The US Presidential Election is somewhat of a global phenomenon, the effects of which go far beyond the borders of the US. Being one of the world’s current superpowers, the policies set forth by the US have an impact on many parts of the world. What the president of the US says also holds a lot of significance for this very reason, which is why back in 2018, when ex-president Donald Trump spoke at an event about ‘fake news’, the country’s political system turned into an Orwellian nightmare for many people, not only in the US but also around the world.
George Orwell’s book, 1984, talks about a dystopian society where the government tries to snub all revolutionary thought by limiting things like free speech and telling people to reject evidence that they can clearly see or hear. Students have been reading the 1984 book as part of their education and have written essays on it for their school or college in an attempt to better connect the dots between what happened in ‘1984’ and what is happening around the world today, not just in the US. Such essays can be found at https://gradesfixer.com/free-essay-examples/1984/ and they’re worth a serious look. When you read such essays by students, you start to see how a dystopian world created by an author years ago is actually coming into existence as the days pass, which is quite jarring, to say the least.
So what really happened that caused people to start linking today’s politicians to the 1984 book? It was basically a single incident that led to people becoming more aware of what happened in 1984. The first comparisons then led to a lot of conversation about the state of politics in current times in general, all in the light of George Orwell’s book from decades ago.
What Prompted the Original Comparisons
The first comparison between 1984 and Trump was made back in 2018. The then US president had just downplayed the impact of the tariffs that were put into place by various countries on US farmers. These tariffs were placed in retaliation to Trump’s own actions. After all was said and done, Trump decided to call the impact of these new tariffs ‘fake news’. He also said to US citizens to remember that what they were seeing and reading was not true.
This was the statement due to which the comparisons started between the Trump administration and the one portrayed in Orwell’s book. You can research more about Orwell’s dystopian government in any essay written by a student writer for their college assignment and you’ll see why the comparisons were drawn and why they’re so real.
The Aftermath and Current State
Even after this whole Orwellian nightmare started coming to life, the spread of such ideas still didn’t stop. While Kellyanne Conway may have come up with the idea of ‘alternative facts’ in an official response by the White House about three years ago, such phrases and ideas are still expressed by seasoned politicians who have made a career in politics. Similarly, Paula Bennett denied that the online ‘memes’ posted by her party are misleading by saying something about how figures are interpreted. So, clearly, what Orwell’s government did in 1984 is something that is still happening, even in 2020 which makes getting a lesson about Orwell’s 1984 by your teacher or sifting through your library collection for a copy of the book even more important.
Conclusion
While people have been criticizing the Trump administration and making comparisons to what the administration did and what happened in 1984, it is not something that is limited to the US. Many parts of the world see governments do this: downplaying facts and lying to their people to get their votes and support. Orwell was a writer who would write about a government that was trying to control what the people saw and what they thought about what they saw. Unfortunately, in many parts of the world, including the US, that is something that has turned into a reality over the past few years.
