In times of political hostility with a president that seems to somehow become more unfit to lead every single day, many comparisons are made between the Trump era and a “1984”-esque Orwellian dystopia. With a closer analysis, many shocking comparisons can be drawn between the current political climate and our favorite dystopian novels.
George Orwell’s “1984,” perhaps the most famous dystopian novel of all time, is a favorite for modern comparisons.
Recently, the media has been outraged over the emergence of fake news, fabricated stories with the goal of political gain, including stories that Hillary Clinton was running a child sex ring out of a Washington, D.C., pizza shop and that Donald Trump’s inauguration saw record-breaking attendance.
In Orwell’s “1984,” the Party releases fake news all the time in its attempt to brainwash its citizens. News is released that Oceania is allied with Eastasia in a war against Eurasia, when a few days earlier they were allied with Eurasia in a war against Eastasia.
The government says the chocolate ration is increased to 20 grams, but it is actually a decrease from the former ration.
In the book the government uses fake news for its political advantage.
Another famous dystopian novel is Ray Bradbury’s “Fahrenheit 451.” Books are burned regularly, withholding information from the people.
President Trump recently ordered communications lock downs on federal agencies like the EPA and the USDA, effectively withholding information from the people.
Many of these agencies, such as the National Parks Service, created “alternate” Twitter accounts as a means of protest and finding a way to continue to share the truth with the public.
This is too close to government censorship for comfort.
“It was a pleasure to burn” may now apply to our volatile climate change.
Margaret Atwood’s “The Handmaid’s Tale” is another dystopian novel from which we can draw modern day comparisons. In the novel, the government is replaced by religious fanatics that restore order by grossly suppressing women’s rights.
President Trump recently signed an executive order that cuts off funding to women’s health organizations worldwide if they advocated for abortion access of any kind.
We are already seeing a regression of women’s rights under Trump, especially regarding abortion access.
His cabinet has the least amount of women a presidential cabinet has seen in the past 40 years.
At least the government is still allowing women to read, which is more than we can say for the government in Atwood’s novel.
Authors take inspiration from their surroundings and cultural climate, so it is no surprise legitimate fears that authors predicted have started to take root.
Luckily, circumstances in real life are nowhere near extreme as the cases in our favorite dystopian novels, but I would still keep a look out just in case Big Brother is watching.
emmagetz@umail.iu.edu
