The Naked Emperor

The article, "The Naked Emperor," is an article about how Chinese leaders use propaganda in the cyber world to steer online conversations. The Communist party used the cyber world as a tool because in the present,  more than a 100 million people in China uses the internet, so they took this opportunity to "fool around." The first thing they attempted was to "mess around" by posting a message on Sina Weibo, China'
s twitter. Their goal was to spread propaganda through the cyber world in order to achieve support from their people. The message posted on Sina Weibo was about how one of the leaders of the party wept five times during the president's opening speech. The party thought that by posting messages like this, people would feel proud and give support to the party, but the results were the opposite of what they had expected. The people of China saw this as a joke and created a ridiculously funny version of it, for example she wept five times because of eating spicy noodle. This shows that manipulation and propaganda do not work and the people are not conceived from what the government are trying to do.

Mr. Zhu wrote in this article that: "Ordinary people like us all know the emperor is not wearing any clothes. The emperor himself knows that he is naked. he also knows that we know. And yet he stilled walked out like this." This means that the people of China knows that the Chinese government is trying to depict and portray themselves as great heroes to the people of China through the usage of manipulation, even though everybody knows that they are faking it.

This is similar to Orwell's 1984 because in the novel, the Party try to manipulate and brainwash the people of Oceania through means of media and propaganda. It is a very similar situation because in both cases, there are people who the government fail to manipulate and have a thought of their own, like Winston and the people of China. In my opinion, I think that this is a great article because it expresses the thought of a Chinese who knows that the government is trying to manipulate their people and dares to speak out to the world about the failure of the government and to humiliate them in a way.

1984 Chapter 6 & 7 Analysis

Feminist view

 

Chapter 6 (Perth) A feminist would view chapter 6 of 1984 negatively because in this chapter, Winston describes the experience he had with a prostitute three years ago. The female prostitute is one of the few female characters that appear since the beginning of the novel and the portrayal of women being prostitutes seem nasty and disgusting. We could also tell that this book was written long ago before the 21st century, because during the 21st century, women have more equality and rights than they did before. By comparing men as ‘masculine’ or as the people working and comparing women as a ‘prostitute’ clearly shows that men had an advantage and were more superior than women at that time. But as we all know, these ideas and concepts are just thoughts that are constructed by culture. In conclusion, throughout the chapter, women are shown as weak, powerless people who are under the control of men and their purpose is to follow given orders and to pleasure men. This can be seen from the role of Katherine, Winston’s wife, and the prostitute Winston met a while ago.

Chapter 7 (Little V) - upload soon

Psychoanalytic view

Chapter 6 (Little V) 
In a psychoanalytic view, the main goal would be to investigate the cognitive processes that are being presented such as memory or behavior. Winston’s prediction that the Party only viewed sex as a process in producing new Party members can be viewed as a psychological stereotype or a situational factor of behavior. Winston’s depression and suppressed feeling towards females because how the Party thinks females are an excess duty and how they are merely tools of reproduction can be caused by either not knowingly agreeing to the common belief of the Party that pleasures should not be made from sexual acts or that he believes he should follow a certain belief simply because everybody else is. The most likely case of Winston’s feeling is a situational factor case, where he, individually, would not hate women in his own perspective or according to personality, but instead, it is more likely that surroundings and encountered context have made him believe differently. Another important factor is fright. Since the Party has negative views towards females, Winston feels that having sex without any other purpose than pleasure is rebellious and would possibly anger the Party. He has no hatred for sex but when he and his wife Katherine separated, he became desperate for a sexual affair, mentioning in his diary that even the prostitute that was old and ugly, he continued along with the sex nonetheless.

Chapter 7 (Perth)  
This chapter narrates about how the Party manipulates the people by feeding them false information. The Party is brainwashing the people to believe in what they want them to. By doing so, the Party is able to control the people the way they want. In this chapter, the Party provides the people with false information to deceive them from reality. In my opinion, I feel that this chapter is a portrayal of a communist society or a dictatorship, where the ruler controls the information people have and twist information to suit the purpose of the ruler. It is a horrible concept to provide people with false knowledge because it would come to a shock when the people know the truth, but on the other hand, this is a very complicated and intriguing concept to think about.

Questions

1) Why did you initially choose the theory you did to break down your chapter(s)?

I chose to analyse Chapter 6 of 1984 in a feminist perspective because chapter 6 is one of the few chapters in this novel that has the appearance of a female, so I decided that it would be a good opportunity to analyze this is a female's point of view. Another reason was because I have tried analyzing text in different views and would like to try see things in another perspective. I, myself, is a male and would like to discover how a female would handle and see situations differently than men. This was why I chose to analyze in this view. For chapter 7, I analyzed it in a psychoanalytic perspective because my partner chose it for chapter 6.

2) How did viewing the chapter(s) through this scope (and the scope of your partner) change your interpretation of your reading?

I feel that analyzing the chapters 6 and 7 in different views give me a different perspective and a wider insight on the chapter. I understood the chapter with more depth and also in a different side. This helps develop my analyzing skills and gave me a need experience in interpretation of text and made me understand the text in different ways. Rather than just reading it normally, I also had to think more than I usually do.

Late October Cartoon Analysis

This is a political cartoon written around two years ago during the election at the US. From this cartoon we can see that it is in the perspective of the author is either a Democrat or possibly neutral because it portrays the Republicans in a negative way. First of all, we know that this cartoon is against the Republicans because of the elephant, which is their symbol. The elephant is portrayed as a fat man wearing a suit and the suit represents wealth and greed just like a typical businessman or politician. The message the cartoon is trying to send is that the Republican party platform for the coming election is made up of anger, accusations of Barack Obama being a socialist and hatred against Muslim. This can be seen from the facing cards (ANGER, JOKER, and QURAN). We could see that it is not a very strong, but rather a weak and robust platform from many aspects in the cartoon. This is seen by the platform the elephant standing on made of small pieces of wooden planks and connect by masking tape. The base of the platform is made up of cards which are know to fall apart when just in contact with little wind. We could also see this by the elephant shaking showing that it is unstable and he is balancing himself to prevent himself from falling. Lastly, the "tea" sign at the back of the card is a reference to the Boston Tea party which indicates that they are instigating most of it.

I chose this cartoon because after being confused and skimming through all the cartoons without understanding any of them; this one came out appealing and understandable, which is why I decided to analyze this one. I analyzed the cartoon based on my understanding and the news I watch on American politics in the past and my general knowledge about the elections and the competing parties in the US. My analysis was mainly based on how I saw and interpret the message of the cartoonist with the assistance of a little bit of research for more background information on the parties.

In my opinion, I loved this cartoon because it is filled with humor and symbolism, which portrays the Republican at an angle, at the point of view of the cartoonist. I think his cartoon have illustrated his points and is clear to the audience. For instance I could understand that the JOKER represents Obama and him being socialist by look at the picture and the text on his collar. I could also recognize QURAN as hatred against Muslims because the Quran is a Muslim term and the image of the Muslim in the card look evil. However, the snake I do not know what it means and how it represents ANGER. After a long tedious research I gave up, but my connotation of the snake is being dangerous and poisonous. The Republican party is clearly portrayed as the fat, dull, elephant and their stability is clearly shown by the structure of the platform the elephant is standing on. I think that the author has done an awesome job to send his message to the audience and this was one of the political cartoons that I strangely understood by nature (not being American).

Columbus Day

As a child, I've heard stories about Columbus and his famous conquest to India. He is known for discovering the new land, America and was respected among young children. Children were proud of his great discovery and worshiped him as the founder of America, but little did we know the truth of Columbus.
After reading the first chapter, "Columbus, the Indians, and Human Progress" of Howard Zinn's book, "A People's History of the United States," my views on Columbus completely shifted to another direction. A new one. All my respects for Christopher Columbus completely fades away and I unveil the truth of Columbus. The story told to children and the reality of Columbus described by Zinn are two very different stories. It seems like the story told to children was just a deception to hide the violence that happened and see Columbus as just the founder of America. This was the mask worn by Columbus to be seen as a hero of America, but behind the mask of hero lies a true monster than is not less cruel than Hitler. The true identity of this hero lies a villain. This is just like the Joker being Batman after all. After reading this chapter i was very surprised of what i heard about Columbus as a child and what I found out from reading the chapter. Columbus thought like a dictator. He was racist and hated on the Jews and the moors and saw the Indians as an opportunity for slavery. These evil thoughts came out from the hero of the children. He wiped out islands just for his own people and used the fact that the Indians were less civilized to take advantage over them and kill them all for their land and resources. This is a very inhumane and disgusting act. In my opinion, I believe that the children of America and the world should have the rights to know who Christopher Columbus is. Celebrating Columbus day is just as horrible as celebrating Hitler for gassing all the Jews or like the Japanese thanking the Americans for bombing Hiroshima and creating a better Japan. You wouldn't want your children worshiping Satan, and Christopher Columbus day is just as evil as the devil and does not deserve to be looked up upon. In fact, Columbus day shouldn't even exist anymore. That sailing the blue sea to find a better world crap is no longer legit after discovering the inconvenient truth. From now on, Christopher Columbus will be known as the one who bought death to America or the one who stole America. After all, discovering America was kind of an accident. They misunderstood America to be India after and only went there for the gold. Columbus, you lucky qfuhasdkfjhuwf.

Metacognitive Journal #8

Paranoia

Paranoia is caused by anxiety and fear and this concept revolves around chapter 5 in the novel 1984 by Orwell. In Winston's society, there are many situations where paranoia is seen. Paranoia is created by the government, and gives the people of Oceania a feeling that they are being watched all the time. The people of Oceania are paranoid that they will be caught if they said something wrong or conduct a thought crime, they would be caught and punished. The government use the idea of fear and paranoia to control the people and make them not dare to express their feelings so that they would not spread their negative impacts of the government or spread their ideas of rebelling if they had any. 

In the novel, Parson mentions that his daughter caught a thought criminal. Even though it is not proven or confirmed whether he is a criminal or not, he is taken away by the Thought Police. This shows that a suspicious act could also get the people into trouble and this would make the people paranoid of every action they make and everything they say. People would also tend to keep their thoughts to themselves because of their fear of getting into trouble. Another example is how Syme is suspects Winston of being a thought criminal. Winston hated going to the hanging of prisoners and he could be accused for hating it, which explained why Winston was acting weird throughout the chapter. 

The message that Orwell is trying to send is probably the fact that a totalitarian dictatorship governs its people through fear and paranoia. The government would punish anyone who acts suspicious or disagrees with the government. In reality or a proper government, the government should only be able to punish a person if the person commits a crime, not punish a person with an opinion of his own. It is clearly shown the the people is oppressed in doing anything and thinking anything and the only thing they could do is listen to the orders given to them without questioning why they have to do it. The people are simply robots that work for the government as they are programmed to do.

 

Metacognitive Journal #7

"The Scarlatti Tilt" by Richard Brautigan

Analyze the following variations of lines from “The Scarlatti Tilt.” What simple variances of word choice made the largest impact? Why did you react the way you did? Please post your responses on your blog as Journal Entry #7.

ORIGINAL:
“It's very hard to live in a studio apartment in San Jose with a man who's learning to play the violin.” That's what she told the police when she handed them the empty revolver. (from Revenge of the Lawn: Stories 1962-1970)

Bank: The women and the man are couples. It is very difficult for the women and the man to live together in a small studio apartment in San Jose. The women is bored of the noisy sound of the violin and the man face, she decide to kill the man and got arrested.

Perth: The women and the man are either couples or neighbors living together. The women is fed up with the noisiness of the man or is in a bad mood or is troubled making her run out of temper and decides to kill the man.

VARIATION I:
“It's very hard to live in a studio apartment in San Jose with a white man who's learning to play the violin.” That's what she told the police when she handed them the empty revolver.

Bank: The white man got angry when he couldn’t find job so he start playing the violin for fun while staying at the apartment. The woman is tired and rage of the man not getting anything job, she ended up killing the man to release her anger.

Perth: The women might tell the man to reduce the noise level, but the man being arrogant and ignorant, making the woman mad and unable to withstand the man making her decide to kill him. Another possibility is that the man might say bad things about the women making her anger and lose control. The man provoke her anger.

VARIATION II
“It's very hard to live in a studio apartment in San Jose with a black man who's learning to play the violin.” That's what she told the police when she handed them the empty revolver.

Bank: The black man stole the violin and practice playing. The women is unsatisfied of the black man behavior and performance, she got mad and kill the black man.

Perth: The woman might be a racist or a latino hating on black people and so when she realizes that the noise pollution is coming from the black man, she got mad and acted without thinking because of the hatred she has towards black people.

VARIATION III:
“It's very hard to live in a studio apartment in San Jose with a woman who's learning to play the violin.” That's what he told the police when he handed them the empty revolver.

Bank: The man is mental and violent. He threatened the women badly, and because of he thinks that the women play the violin to distract him, he decided to kill the women.

Perth: I think that the man is short tempered because women are a weaker sex and with the man shooting the woman, it shows that the man is cruel and has no sympathy towards woman. He is violent and is a very bad man.

VARIATION IV:
“It's very hard to live in a studio apartment in San Jose with a child who's learning to play the violin.” That's what she told the police when she handed them the empty revolver.

Bank: I think that the child is very naughty while he playing the violin, and this is annoying to the women. She got tired of the noisiness of the child and his behavior, the solution to this is to kill the child.

Perth: This is disturbing, the child is just trying to learn an instrument. I think that the woman has a mental problem or is either crazy or psychotic because it is extremely wrong to have the will to kill or even hurt a child.

VARIATION V:
“It's very hard to live in a studio apartment in San Jose with a baby who cries all the time.” That's what she told the police when she handed them the empty revolver.

Bank: The women has a baby, however the father leave. She is depressed and doesn’t take care of the baby. The women is very mad and go insane, because of the hatred she has towards the father she killed the baby in revenge.

Perth: Again, this is even more disturbing because women should always take care of babies and find them cute. Women care for babies because they will have one in the future and especially killing her own baby is a sign of craziness  and other mental problems. No one would dare hurt an innocent baby except the cold blooded people.

VARIATION VI:
“It's very hard to live in a studio apartment in San Jose with a baby who cries all the time.” That's what he told the police when he handed them the empty revolver.

Bank: The man is insane and violent, that’s why his wife leaves. She scared of the man going to rage on her so she leave without taking the baby. The man don’t know how to take care of the baby, and got tired of the baby that cries all the time, so he used the baby as a butt to tried out his new revolver.

Perth: This means that the man is violent and crazy just like the woman. It might not be his child because dads also love their kids, but maybe he has a problem with his wife so he put his anger on the baby. It could also be another person’s baby, maybe he did it because the crying pushed him to his  limit or because he has a problem. There is no reason to hurt a baby.

Metacognitive Journal #6

Asimov Review of 1984

Asimov's review on the novel "1984" is one that is pretty negative and does not agree with Orwell. The purpose of Asimov writing this review is to set the minds of the people straight and not let them over think about the novel happening to the United States or Europe in real life. Asimov believes that the novel is a very dreadful and dull book that does not portray the future, but instead, portrays the communist country of USSR during the time it was written which was the year of 1949. The book was written to show Orwell's view on communism in Moscow. This review shows Asimov's harsh critiques on Orwell's novel, but does not actually explain the reasons behind why Orwell wrote this novel.

I will analyse Asimov's review by using the critical literary approach. Starting of by the view represented in this text. It is clearly seen that this text is written in the view of Isaac Asimov and his opinions on the novel 1984. This review has nothing to do with the ideas and reasons why Orwell wrote this novel. The intention of Asimov on writing this review is for him to express his thoughts on the novel and to comment on how he felt about it. Asimov felt that this book does not portray the future, but describes how a communist or a totalitarian dictatorship is in an exaggerated way. This text would probably interest critiques or people who read and analyse texts because this novel of Orwell could be deciphered and understood in many, many different ways depending on the person. The cultural assumptions made is that the readers of the book would understand the concepts given in the novel because they have been through the World War and see live examples of what it is like to be ruled by a dictatorship. Asimov connects this idea to the reader through a first person perspective making the reader feel like they are listening to Asimov's opinion and review in person. In his review, Asimov also included harsh comments including how he said that this is a bad science fiction with no creativity involved and mentioning that the novel is "not science fiction, but a distorted nostalgia of a past that never was."This is just an opinion of Asimov and other critiques and people might agree differently when reading the novel 1984, but to me, I see that Orwell's purpose of writing this novel is to create an imaginary scenario where totalitarian dictatorship takes over and and shows how hard life is in this system of government. This is like a warning to the readers and makes them aware of this system and want to try and prevent this system from taking over a democracy or a republic.

Analyzing Advertisement

Critical Literary Approach:
Whose views are represented? The main view that is being represented or advertised is the Coca Cola, the product. The aim/audience is people who are thirsty or interested in a cold beverage.

What are the intentions of the message? Drinking a cold beverage on a sunny day could help refresh you.

Whose interests are served? Men and women. Men would be attracted from the sexiness of the woman in the advertisement. Women would want to be as sexy and attractive as the woman in the ad.

What are the cultural assumptions being made in relation to content of the piece (in relation to the assumed audience)? Wearing less clothing and revealing clothing is attractive.

What voices or perspectives are left out of the piece? The voices/perspectives that are being left out are the audience’s or other people besides from the members of the same organization of coke.

Aesthetic Approach:
What is your impression of the piece? The attractive lady in the swimming suit sitting on a hot beach holding a coca cola bottle. However, she looks delighted because she has a coke. It is also stated at the top of the poster, big and attract attention, “Thirst asks nothing more”. In addition, they also put coca cola logo at the left bottom corner to remind people of their brand.

What is the tone or atmosphere of the piece? The atmosphere the advertisement creates is a hot weather by using the beach environment and the beautiful lady in the picture (connotations of the word ‘thirst’ relating to the lady)

What is the effect of the particular imagery, diction, metaphor, color or layout? The imagery creates a feeling of lust and sexual hunger for the male viewers and the diction used possesses a hidden context. The color and layout of the advertisement is vintage and classic, with a slogan and captions that capture the main ideas and intentions of the product. The quote at the top and the quote at the bottom holds an attraction towards the audience and catches the audience's’ eyes.

What ideas or feelings does the creator wish to convey?  How are these ideas suggested or portrayed/presented? The creator try to make coke the first thought when thirsty. They are trying to convey the customer that coke is the only choice; the words in the heading itself already provoke “Thirst asks nothing more”. Also, inside the coca cola logo in the bottom left hand corner also state that coca cola is “delicious and refreshing”. In the image, the lady looks like she is sitting on a hot beach, but she is refreshed by coca cola; nevertheless, it is also delicious as you can see from her face.

World Issue: 2057

Issue: Global warming
Intention: Inform, for people to reflect
Text Type: Speech
Audience: human population around the world

Scenario: The world is ending on 10^th May, 2057, due to global issues caused by man. The amount of CO2 emission is too high and has created a huge hole in the ozone layer, too big that it causes it causes crazy greenhouse effects and heats up the world to more 50 degrees Celsius. The North Pole and Antarctica no longer exist due to all the ice melting from the heat. Some areas of the world sink under the ocean, while some areas suffer from extremely dry land from droughts, due to the fact that all the trees are cut down. People can no longer go outside because they would get skin cancer from the excessive amount of UV light emitted from the bright ball of fire in the sky. Scientists of S.T.A.R.S* (Science technology and research sector) has calculated and discovered that the world would last no longer than a month, due to the amount of heat and the ruined ecosystem because all the plants and animals have gone extinct.

A speech was given by the head of S.T.A.R.S*, Yamaseto Leesagawa on the 23^rd of April and was aired on television around the world. The speech given explains the crisis the world is facing and delivers the unfortunate event that would happen in a few weeks. The speech was given to warn the people and reflect the greedy and unethical acts the human race has done just for pieces of paper, or money. It is simply a message for people to brace themselves, and live life to their best while they can.

“Ladies and Gentlemen, I bring unexpected news today. Reports have been sent from the S.T.A.R.S* research department that there has been a major breakthrough that would shape the future of our beloved planet.

Sometimes, without a warning, the future knocks on our door with a painful vision. That has happened no long ago, as our researchers have calculated that in less than a month, this precious planet of ours, will light up in flames.

We are no longer capable of living on this planet and there is nobody to blame except for ourselves, the human population. We have destroyed everything that was given to us in the beginning. We had the most beautiful planet in the solar system and we destroyed it simply for pieces of green paper… money. Greed has overcome the human soul. Luxurious items and dreaming of living wonderful life has planted a seed of desire into the brains of people. People then live their life fulfilling their goals of becoming wealthy and powerful, while forgetting the fact that nature needs our protection, love and care.

But now, it is too late. My dearly loved people of the world, we have hurt this planet, too much, to the point that it can no longer hold on. The worse is expected in the upcoming weeks. We must stay strong and spend our last few days valuably. Spend your last moments with your loved ones, your family, and your friends. Reminisce the wonders of life in your past years and embrace the fact that we are lucky to be alive.

*Head of P.L.A.N.E.T. (Protection of Land Animals, Nature, and Environment Team) research department comes on stage to speak*

To further this explanation of why this is happening to our planet; lets us take a step back and look at what we have done to hurt this planet. Since the beginning of mankind, people have been fighting over things, but as the mind of people expands over time, with new knowledge and technology, warfare advances into a deadlier thing. For example, the development of nuclear power and the atomic bombs that have caused huge threats to nature and the world itself. Other than warring conflicts, humans destroy the world by harming the environment as well. We kill animals for their body parts and take their habitat and food away. We burn and cut down whole forests just for wood and land. We dump our waste onto the land and the ocean without thinking of the organisms living there. This explains why we don’t hear birds chirp in the trees and we do not see colorful fishes and beautiful corals in the ocean. They are all destroyed by the palm of our hands. With wiped out forests and waste-filled oceans, the balance of the ecosystem of the world is shattered and impossible to regain. We are literally the last mammal on Earth and it is not something we should be proud of but ashamed of instead.

We are not certain of how this would happen, but we will keep you update twice a day at 12. Live safe and happy. You Only Live Once.”

I decided to write this paper about world issue through a speech. The reason why I chose this format of literature because I want to create a scenario where the world population’s dreams and hopes shatter in front of them when discovering that the world would end in a few weeks. I used this piece to serve as a way to explain the dangers of how humans treat the world and to persuade them to be a better citizen by trying to do little things that would not put the world to a dangerous state. I also chose this format because it is a formal way to include facts and it is what I imagine would happen if the world was to really end. Lastly, in this piece, I try to threaten the people of the world ending soon and to spread awareness of dangerous human acts towards nature for these acts to stop. This piece could also serve as a piece for people to reflect on their deadly actions.

Metacognitive Journal #5

A Modest Proposal

Responding as a modern reader...

             From reading "A Modest Proposal for Preventing the children of Poor People from Being a Burthen to their Parents, or the Country, and for Making them Beneficial to the Publick," I find that this it is a very depressing piece that shows how a helpless mother would do everything to help her infants. It is a very unpleasant and disturbing sight to see a mother in sadness, unable to work, but with hungry mouths to feed; sitting there silently and accepting the poverty upon her. In this text, it mentions that children live in squalor because their families are too poor properly provide food, shelter and clothing for them, which showed that people were poor and did not have enough money to live a normal life. At the beginning of the text, Swift disturbingly describes a one year old child as "the most delicious, nourishing, and wholesome Food; whether Stewed, Roasted, Baked or Boiled." This statement is not to be looked at literally, but is connotated as  the idea of fattening up the starving population and feed them to the  rich people of Ireland. It is also stated that poor tenants see their children as valuables and trade their children at the meat market at the age of one to either pay for their debts or to not have to bear the burden of feeding a child and getting a little amount of money in return. As a modern reader, I find this whole text extremely disturbing and morally wrong in so many ways. Children are supposed to be given love and care, even though when there is no money because it is the responsibility of a parent to look after their child until they grow up. This is something that every living knows and is capable of doing, but in the point of view of people back then, the economy is in ruins and they think that it is necessary to commit such disgusting acts as giving away their child and treating them as unwanted objects. In modern time, it is a very disgraceful act to do so and people will see you as a monster. Even in economic struggles, families live and fight through problems together. As long as they are together, that is all they need.

Metacognitive Journal #4 (1984)

TOTALITARIANISM

Totalitarianism is one of the major concepts in the novel 1984.

          First of all, to discuss this topic, we need to know what totalitarianism is.
Totalitarianism is a form of government where the dictator, aka. the leader, takes charge and controls everything.

          It is clearly seen in the novel that the form of government in 1984 is a totalitarian dictatorship. "The Party" has many characteristics similar to a dictatorship, judging from the way the control the country and they way they treat their people.

          In the beginning of the novel, it is mentioned that "BIG BROTHER IS WATCHING YOU" is one of the captions on a poster in Oceania.Winston describes that The Party watches and records down every move a person makes. This is the act of a dictatorship because The Party controls everything the people do. The rights of the people are stripped, making them unable to do anything they wish, and could only follow orders. The people of Oceania couldn't do whatever they wished to or say whatever they want. They couldn't even think their own thoughts, or else they would be punished. The Party wants to plant an idea into the heads of the people and want them to believe in the things they tell them to. They do not want thought process going on in the minds of the people so that there would be no one capable of rioting against them.



The slogan of The Party:

          
"War is Peace
   Freedom is Slavery            
    Ignorance is Strength"




shows that The Party is trying to manipulate the people of Oceania to believe in ideas that are wrong. The slogan is very contradicting and is made of antonyms. The Party wants to control the minds of the people and turn them brainless, meaning that the people only obey what they are told but have no thinking process of their own. This is probably one of the propaganda used by The Party to brainwash the people of Oceania.

          Even all the things in Oceania are named with the word 'victory'. There is VICTORY mansion, VICTORY gin, VICTORY cigarettes, which is probably one of the ways to promote nationalism and patriotism in a totalitarian government.

          The last piece of evidence that proves to us that Oceania is governed by totalitarianism is the government. The government is suppose to improve the lives of people and create a good society, however, it is ironic that the government in 1984 is used to threaten and harm people. Oceania is controlled by 4 ministries: the Ministry of Peace (Minipax), which deals with issues of war. the Ministry of Plenty (Miniplenty), which deals with rationing and starvation, the Ministry of Love (Miniluv), which deals with torture, and finally, the Ministry of Truth (Minitrue), which deals with propaganda. No democratic government of republic would deal with the country using torture and manipulation. It is clearly shown that the Party governs the people through fear, manipulation, and violence to make them obey the rules.

          Looking from what The Party has done, I think that they are trying to turn the people into thoughtless robots, only ready to listen to orders or what is programmed into them. As mentioned in my earlier post, I believe that people should have freedom and rights. By The Party controlling the people in this way, the people would be unhappy and would one day try to create a revolution to destroy the government. Unhappy people will rebel and the government won't stand a chance. In the case of 1984, The Party control Oceania, but are only a very small percentage, while the civilians make up most of the population. Oceania is made up of:

• Inner Party (The upper-class) - the elites ruling the minority
• Outer Party (The middle-class) 
• Proles (The lower-class/proletariat) - uneducated working class that make up 85% of Oceania's population.

          If one day all the people revolt and protest against The Party, then The Party would stand no chance against them because there is a significant difference in number and if they were to revolt and would probably succeed easily, but the problem is that the people of Oceania are SO manipulated by the government because of the propaganda and everything else, making them unable to think of ideas and plans such as a revolution.

Metacognitive Journal #3 (1984)

          If was to define freedom, I would have to say that freedom is such a beautiful. It is the taste of fresh air when going out of a enclosed area for a long time. It is the sensational feeling of being able to do anything you want without being restricted. BUT, if a man is given too much freedom, the desire of obtaining power will take over his soul filling him with greed and gluttony. With too much freedom, a man would not obey any law and the world would turn chaotic.

          John Locke, a well-known philosopher, states that every human being has three natural rights: Life, Liberty, and Property. People should have limited freedom, meaning that they should have the freedom in some things while they are restricted into other things that could cause a negative impact. For instance, I, myself have a lot of freedom. I have the freedom to do whatever I want or say whatever I wish, as long as it doesn't interfere or harm any other individual. People usually know what is right and what is wrong by their ethical and moral standards, but there are also laws made to ensure that things don't get out of hand. Law and regulations take away parts of a person's freedom to prevent them from doing things that could lead to anarchy. The government create laws to prevent people from causing disgraceful acts such as stealing, killing, selling drugs and dangerous weapons, and many many more. I strongly agree that people's freedom should be restricted for the safety of civilians and society as a whole. The only thing I disagree is the ability to express our point of view to public. The ability to shout out how we feel or how we think to public can be denied by the government because of their fear that the people would take over the government. Even though there is a reasoning behind why we could not have the freedom to express how we feel about everything, I believe that everybody should be able to do so to create a change.

            The government intrudes upon privacy in many ways, and they are able to do so because they are 'the government'. The government intrudes on personal information of a person and keeps track of everything about them. The government knows information such as the home address of a person, personal records, and other information that is personal. The government knows the amount of money a person makes and taxes the person. Personally, I do not feel intruded or aware because I believe that it is the job of the government to keep track of these issues and collect taxes to improve the environment (well, unless if the government is corrupted) to improve the lives of civilians.

          In 1984, the party motto "War is Peace, Freedom is Slavery, Ignorant is Strength" is used. This motto is unusual because the motto is very contradicting and filled with antonyms. War definitely does not make peace, freedom is not slavery and ignorant is never a strength. This shows that there is a sense of contradiction in the party and gives us a sign that the party wants to brainwash and take advantage of the people by sending the wrong message and believing in what is extremely not true.  

GOOD MORNING IB ENGLISH

TODAY WE WATCHED WAKING LIFE. IT WAS LEGEND **wait for it** DARY, LEGENDARY!