I’d have to say The Average Joes is anything but average. We have four completely different people in our group, and while I had my doubts if we could work together at the beginning of the semester, everything is going perfectly smooth. The best strength of our group lies in our ability to communicate with each other. It usually starts with Catie opening with what we should do as a group everyday, and even though the weekly planner is there, we always strive to push beyond what is being written and productively use our time to have the most work done. After Catie would always come with me and Chloe as we tend to have a lot more to discuss with the group when the frames are laid out, sharing our ideas to Kelly who always diligently take note of absolutely everything. 

The only noticeable weakness admittedly would have to be me. During the first few weeks, I personally had a lot of work outside the class to tend to and as a result I didn’t dedicate the time needed to do my job as a team of four. I did apologize to everyone of them and it seems like within the near future, I would be able to participate with the group a lot more often than now.

1984 is indeed an interesting read. When I read a book, I tend to take value in its title. What is being said? What does 1984 have to do with this book? Is it the year 1984, or a number of connotative meaning?

George Orwell, 1984:

WAR IS PEACE

FREEDOM IS SLAVERY

IGNORANCE IS STRENGTH

Unfortunately, rather than taking the significance of the actual number, Orwell picked it to symbolize the future that is not so utterly far away from the actual year he had written the book in 1949. The quote above does answer most of my question, but continues to keep me entertained and continue with the reading. In this world created by Big Brother, everything is the opposite of what it should be like: the government’s authority is unwavering, finding peace means going to war, being strong means to be unaware of anything, to completely be subdued in an inhuman state.

Why did George Orwell decided to write this novel under the perspective of the protagonist Winston Smith? What characteristics does Winston Smith carry that makes him the subject in a dystopian world ruled by the sovereign dictator? I’m very excited to find the answer to this question.

An article from Prison Planet & a counter-article from CNN made me dig within my mind about the controversial topic of privacy in today’s modern society. However, I would have to disagree with both the arguments made by these journalists.

Both papers talk about an opinion that the author makes on the situation of the American government, and how it is compared to Big Brother’s world in an extremely polarized way. Instead of categorizing U.S.A today in either end of a stick, I would draw it along somewhere in the middle of the line.

Human society cannot function when freedom is abused. What is the purpose of a government if they cannot intervene with any aspects of the community? On the other hand, excess authority and control can lead to corruption, which has evidently been the case for many nations both in the past and the present.

It is no luck that America flourishes as the most militarily and economically stable nation in the world; both the people and the government work in unison to create what is currently present, and in order to do so, I do believe that to some extent, secrecy and privacy is a probable sacrifice.

The telescreen received and transmitted simultaneously. Any sound that Winston made, above the level of a very low whisper, would be picked up by it, moreover, so long as he remained within the field of vision which the metal plaque commanded, he could be seen as well as heard.

George Orwell, 1984

The telescreen being described in the first part of the novel symbolizes Orwell’s pessimistic view of what the future holds. It is the tangible object that signifies the absolute control the government would have over the people within a few decades.

While in today’s society the word telescreen will not be included in the Oxford’s Dictionary, we do have something that describes the omnipotent device that will “keep track” of every individual’s movements and actions, the camera.

One particular event flares into my mind as this topic is brought up. During a Friday when we were updating our Tumblr blogs in the Fountain Valley High library, a fellow classmate Taylor Dimicelli angered Mr. Ziebarth by posting a witty comment on Twitter that states her disagreement in believing that the government have the technological advance to watch our every movements. Mr. Ziebarth responded by posting up a picture that roughly outlines the screens of all the thirty-so computers that were being used in the library within one monitor. After seeing that picture, Taylor quickly removed her comment and never doubted that statement again.

Cameras and surveillance are present everywhere in public places. Some might be at obvious locations, but the rest are carefully placed out of vision. It may not be long before they are moved into our homes, removing any sense of freedom or privacy one always take for granted in today’s society.