copyright 1999, Sirpa Grierson
Novel Information and Resources:
George Orwell was Wrong
http://www.spectacle.org/496/orwell.html
One person's opinion of 1984.Animal Farm and 1984
Kearney, Anthony. "Orwell's Animal Farm and 1984." Explicator Summer. 1996: 238-40.
This brief article talks about the notions of equality as treated in both Animal Farm and 1984. He plays with the idea brought up in Orwell's appendix for Newspeak that equality is actually the state of being identical and how this applies to both books.The Hell of 1984
Pittock, Malcolm. "The Hell of 1984." Essays in Criticism: A Quarterly Journal of Literary Criticism. April. 1997: 143-64.
This article talks about 1984 in a way describing the social implications of Orwell's book. One interesting passage compares it to Dante and Milton in that it's a modern tour of hell. The article is very heavy-handed in politics and social comment.The Invisible sources of Nineteen Eighty-Four
Rose, Jonathan. "The Invisible Sources of Nineteen Eighty-Four." Journal of Popular Culture Summer. 1992: 93-107.
Rose talks about who George Orwell was and what he believed and how this affected his writing.Totalitarianism in 1984
http://www.duke.edu/~dcw4/opaper.html
An article on how totalitarianism is ingrained in the novels of Orwell.Reception Theory
Wixson, Douglas. "Reception Theory and the Survival of Orwell's Nineteen Eight-Four." North Dakota Quarterly Spring. 1987:72-86.
This article does a lot of explicating and analyzing 1984. He discusses how the book has managed to survive over the course of the years with such continuing appeal.Reading Activities
Allport, Allan. “George Orwell Biography.” The Chestnut Tree Café. 19 Feb. 2005
<http://www.netcharles.com/orwell/ctc/intro.htm>.
This website boasts a detailed biography of George Orwell. The site also houses numerous links to scholarly articles written about the novel 1984.
Blum, Arlen Viktorovich. “Orwell's Travels to the Country of Bolsheviks.” The New Times.
Moscow: (2003). 18 Feb. 2005 <http://www.orwell.ru/a_life/blum/english/e_papsb>.
Originally appearing in Moscow’s paper The New Times, this article reports on Russia’s reception to Orwell’s novel 1984. Included is the disclosure of the novel being used by the government for counter-propaganda. The article traces the history of the novel in Russia until the fall of Communism.
Chiodo, Kara C. George Orwell Resources. 4 May 2001. 22 Feb. 2005 <http://students.ou.edu/C/Kara.C.Chiodo-1/orwell.html>.
This is a helpful site providing links to multiple resources on several of Orwell’s works. This site creates a database of reliable sources available on the Internet in connection with Orwell and his novels.
Coulehan, Jack. Literature Annotations: Brave New World. 17 Feb. 2005
<http://endeavor.med.nyu.edu/lit-med/lit-med-db/webdocs/webdescrips/huxley1256-des-.html>.
This site provides links addressing the differing viewpoints of Aldous Huxley and George Orwell on the subjects: freedom, human worth, individuality, and society.
Crick, Bernard. “Big Brother Belittled.” The Gaurdian. London: 8.19. (2000). 17 Feb. 2005
<http://www.orwell.ru/a_life/crick/english/e_bbbel>.
Following the rise of popular reality based television, the show Big Brother aired in Britain to rave reviews. The show attempts to depict the totalitarian world of Orwell, but fails miserably. This critique dissects Orwell’s warnings being played out in our modern world.
Derbyshire, John. “What happened to Aldous Huxley?” The New Criterion. Vol.21(6), 2003.
<http://www.newcriterion.com/archive/21/feb03/huxley.htm>.
Provides a brief section on the relationship between Huxley and Orwell. There is little information providing evidence of a correspondence, however, the two authors are inextricably linked together due to their subject matter and opposing philosophies
DoubleThink: Reality Control in the 21st Century. 2 Dec. 2004. Dept. of International Study, College of Dupage. 17 Feb. 2005 <http://www.cod.edu/1984/doublethink.htm>.
A symposium held at the College of DuPage offers insight into novel and present day connections, as well as providing interesting discussion topics.
Ershler, Norman. The Orwell Reader. 20 Feb. 2005
<http://www.theorwellreader.com/20th.html>.
A website dedicated to Orwell’s philosophies. Provides articles and background information on Orwell’s philosophies. The site provides a hypothesis as to the remedy provided by Orwell.
Farley, Patrick. Political Writings of George Orwell. 20 Feb. 2005 <http://www.abattoir.com/~prime8/Orwell/>.
This website contains a large supply of George Orwell’s full text political essays. A catalogue of Orwell’s newspaper articles, letters, and editorials are also available. The high volume of full text articles helps to calcify Orwell’s political ideologies.
George Orwell 1984 Analysis. Book Wolf Inc. 18 Feb. 2005 <http://www.bookwolf.com/Free_Booknotes/1984_by_George_Orwell/Questions_-1984/questions_-1984.html>.
This free study guide offers chapter by chapter analysis, and provides helpful, thought provoking study questions.George Orwell 1984 Study Guide. Book Rags Inc. 20 Feb. 2005 <http://www.bookrags.com/notes/1984/OBJ.htm#39>.
This free website provides topic tracking for the novel 1984. Important themes and motifs are tracked throughout the entire novel and presented as a whole in an easy to read format.
Guimont, Frederic. “1984.” Cartoon. 1984 Comic. 17 Feb. 2005. <http://www.1984comic.com/ashcan/1984DemoWeb.pdf>.
Comic rendition of the novel 1984. Provides a visually stimulating alternative, and provides a clear adaptation of the text.
Huber, Peter. “Bye-bye Big Brother.” The National Review. 15 Aug. 1994. 19 Feb. 2005
<http://www.netcharles.com/orwell/ctc/docs/bybybb.htm>.
The author asserts that although Orwell was correct in his predictions of technological advancements, he was incorrect in his judgments of their social effects. The article provides evidence as to the current effects of technology on society, or how Big Brother has become obsolete.Hurst, L.J. George Orwell: From War-Time Diaries to Ninteen-Eighty Four The Use and Avoidance of Memory. 18 Feb. 2005 <http://ds.dial.pipex.com/l.j.hurst/orwelldy.htm>.
George Orwell attempted numerous experiments with diaries. This article proposes to disclose what Orwell was trying to achieve through diary writing. The author claims that 1984 is a final opus of diary, memory, and experience. The novel 1984 presents questions as to the validity of memory, and the rewriting of history.
IMDB George Orwell Page. 17 Feb. 2005
<http://us.imdb.com/name/nm0000567/>.
An Internet movie database which provides information on all available adaptations of George Orwell’s novel 1984.
Jura, Jackie. Orwell Today. 20 Feb. 2005
<http://www.orwelltoday.com/>.
This site presents a thorough representation of Orwell’s themes and correlating present day evidence of their existence. Although this site makes many outlandish conspiracy theory attempts, it also provides articles from reliable newspapers and journals that can be used to solidify themes from the book through modern day examples.
Kreis, Stephen. “An Orwell Chronology.” The History Guide. 13 May 2004. 17 Feb. 2005
<http://www.historyguide.org/europe/orwell.html>.
Beneficial for background information, this website features a detailed chronology and multiple links to other helpful Orwell websites.
Kreis, Steven. “George Orwell and the Last Man in Europe.” The History Guide. 13 May 2004. 17 Feb. 2005
<http://www.historyguide.org/europe/lecture13.html>.
This site traces the history of the utopian ideal. Marks the downfall of the utopian ideal after the production of dystopian literature. The prime example and explanation of dystopian literature and its effects is explained through the novel 1984.
Lazar, Ava and John Tarnoff. Newspeak. 19 Feb. 2005 <http://www.newspeak.com/>.
An organization aimed at recognizing the elements of newspeak in our current society. Film producer John Tarnoff and Ava Lazar started this organization in 1994. The site provides the general basis for the language, how it inhibits personal autonomy, and where the seeds of this language are growing today.
Leigh, Allen. Big Brother Page. 20 Feb. 2005
<http://www.shire.net/big.brother/index.html>.
This site tracks different themes from 1984 in the current media. The author provides connections to reputable sources which produce associations between the novel 1984 and present day occurrences. There is a fair amount of salacious, or conspiracy theory type links. The entire is not recommended, but information from trustworthy newspapers and journals available on this site are helpful.
Marxist Internet Archive. 19 Feb. 2005
<http://www.marxists.org/>.
A complete guide to understanding Marxist literature and thought. The site provides a section on Marxist writers, a history archive, subject archive, and Encyclopedia of Marxism. This site offers accurate and comprehensible information on Marxism.
“Nineteen-Eighty Four Book Review.” New York Times. 12 June 1949. 18 Feb. 2005
<http://www.netcharles.com/orwell/articles/col-nyt1984.htm>.
Original New York Times book review. Provides insight into how the novel 1984 was perceived at its debut. The review also relays how this novel was received specifically in the United States.
Orwell, George. Notes on Nationalism. May 1945. 18 Feb. 2005
< http://www.george-orwell.org/Notes_on_Nationalism/0.html>.
In this essay Orwell reveals his sentiments regarding the danger of ‘nationalism’. The text expresses Orwell’s political views, and speaks directly of negative forms of Socialism. Orwell presents what he deems to be positive and negative ‘nationalism’.
Orwell, George. “The Principles of Newspeak.” 1984. Life Research Universal. 20 Feb. 2005
<http://www.liferesearchuniversal.com/appendix1984.html#append>.
An excerpt from 1984 in which Orwell explains the language Newspeak. This site provides Orwell’s own definition along with commentary. The information appears in handout form.
Palmer, Ada. “Distopia.”George Orwell Project. 12 Apr. 1993. 17 Feb. 2005
<http://www.orwell.ru/a_life/dystopia/e/e_dist.htm>.
This article gives a basic explanation and definition of the literary genre: dystopia. Several groups of novels are listed as utopian, and dystopian. The author uses 1984 as the primary example of dystopian literature.
Posner, Richard A. “Orwell versus Huxley: Economics, Technology, Privacy, and Satire.”Social Science Research Network. University of Chicago Press, Chicago: 11 (99) <http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=194572>.
Author proposes that dystopian literature should not be viewed as social commentaries, but as works of art. Compares and contrasts the novels 1984 and Brave New World and their effects as literature, and their effects as social commentary.
Postman, Neil. Amusing Ourselves To Death: Public Discourse In The Age Of Show Business. New York: Penguin, 1986. 20 Feb. 2005
<http://www.philosophicalsociety.com/Archives/Huxley,%20Orwell%20&%20Television.htm>.
An excerpt from Neil Postman’s book Amusing Ourselves to Death, which argues that Aldous Huxley offered the correct prophecy of the world to come. Postman compares and contrasts the two authors and their differing dystopias.
Raskin, Jonah. “George Orwell and the Big Cannibal Critics.” The Monthly Review. May
1983. 17 Feb. 2005.
<http://www.netcharles.com/orwell/ctc/docs/cancrtcs.htm>.
An article focusing on Orwell’s thoughts about literature, language, and their ability to control reality. The author also explores the possible roles Orwell played in the Cold War. An interesting look at the amount of power attained by Orwell through literature.
Roberts, Gwyneth. “George Orwell Introduction.” 1984. Longman Group Limited, 1983. Life
Research Universal. 20 Feb. 2005
<http://www.liferesearchuniversal.com/introduction.html#intro>.
Today most copies of 1984 include Walter Cronkite’s introduction. However, this introduction given by Gwyneth Roberts provides a very insightful overview of the novel. Roberts focuses on the life of Orwell, the novel’s background, and elements of the novel itself.
Swan, David. Calgary Peace Conference. University of Calgary, Calgary. 12 Oct. 2003
<http://www.peace.ca/calgaryoct12notes2003.htm>.
This article focuses on defining responsible citizenship. The author uses the novels 1984 and Brave New World to illuminate the urgent need for peace. The teacher is stressed as being responsible to teach these responsibilities. Provides discussion prompts.
Socialism and Labor Movement Directory. 18 Feb. 2005
<http://www.democratie-socialiste.net/annuaire.html>.
A comprehensive guide to the Socialist and Labor movements. The site features each individual branch of Socialism, and includes information on prominent figures who adopted these beliefs, as well as information on the different countries that employed these practices.
Stoorgard, Claus B. “George Orwell, Socialist, Anarchist, or What?” George Orwell. June 2003. 19 Feb. 2005
<http://www.k-1.com/Orwell/site/opinion/essays/storgaard1.html>.
This website provides a brief description of the numerous political systems that existed
during the life of George Orwell. The site also provides insights into how these different movements influenced Orwell, and where these influences can be found in his work.
Teacher Vision 1984 Lesson Plan Page. Pearson Education. 17 Feb. 2005
<http://www.teachervision.fen.com/page/3305.html#before>.
This site provides multiple complete lesson plans. The lesson plans include before, during, and after reading activities. Access to these lesson plans however, require a membership to the program. A free seven day trial is offered.
Wallace, Jonathan. “George Orwell Was Wrong.” The Ethical Spectacle.Apr. 1996. 20 Feb. 2005
< http://www.spectacle.org/496/orwell.html>.
The article argues that 1984 dismisses human resiliency to evil. The author asserts that governments can have no lasting effect on the morality of a people. The fanaticism that governments are able to procure from their citizens is in reality a very weak power, and Orwell’s mythical world is in fact only a myth.
Reading Resources and Unit Guide for this Novel