I have chosen to explore the theme of “Government control.” This theme is evident in the novels The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins, Divergent by Veronica Roth, The Giver by Lois lowry and in the film Minority Report directed by Steven Spielberg.
In the novel The Hunger Games, by Suzanne Collins, “Government control” is emphasized through the Capitol being prosperous financially which enables them to have control over the poor districts. An example that shows this is “Look how we take your children and sacrifice them and there is nothing you can do. If you lift a finger, we will destroy every last one of you...” This shows that the Capitol will emphasize that they are better than the districts using The Hunger Games and that since the districts
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For example, Tris mentions that in her fraction history book she was taught through school “faction before blood” and that “more than family our fractions are where we belong.” This demonstrates how powerful the government in Divergent is and how much control it had, considering it made people believe that the authorities and their rules were more important than their own families. By brainwashing the citizens to think the same the Government can ensure that there are no ‘divergents’ who are the special few who cannot be controlled because they are different. The divergents are able to break the barrier the authorities have put on their society by being able to control their simulations, meaning that they cannot be brainwashed. Veronica Roth wants us to understand that the power and control relationship between the government and society must be balanced, so that one does not simply dominate the other. The government will fail if too much power is in the hands of the people, and equally the government will fail its people if it is to abuse its power when given too much …show more content…
An example that shows this is the mid-shot of Anderton’s flight scene where Anderton escapes in his vehicle, but the control of it is taken over by Precrime in order to take the protagonist to police premises. This shows that in this futuristic society everything is under surveillance even our command over vehicles is lost. Not only does the government have control of the vehicles and mass surveillance, but it also knows practically any given moment where each person is. As a result, the government has the power to control the citizens using extreme surveillance and take away any freedom or privacy that they have. With this in mind, Steven Spielberg wants us to understand what the future can lead to if power is taken advantage of which results into extreme control. As the citizens give up some of their freedom so that the government can protect them but as the government gains more control it would undoubtedly abuse its
Today’s society is predicted as living in a world George Orwell envisioned in 1984. The system Orwell invented is compared to what the United States government is capable of doing. Government control of society is an essential subject due to the current mind set of the world today. In 1984, George Orwell represents how Big Brother is compared to today’s government, showing the consequences and dangers of a government with unlimited surveillance power.
In our society today, we have all these rights, but imagine if we did not. 1984, written by George Orwell, and V for Vendetta, directed by James McTeigue, both paint accurately scary descriptions about the government in the future and the dystopian society. 1984, written in 1949, was intended to be a portrayal of the future and V for Vendetta, made in 2005, shows Britain in power in 2038. Both of these pieces of literature were not far off from their description. As every single year passes by, our own society starts to reflect images from these books. When the government has this much power over the people, the people rebel, but can they be a success or not?
1984, a novel by George Orwell, represents a dystopian society in which the people of Oceania are surveilled by the government almost all the time and have no freedoms. Today, citizens of the United States and other countries are watched in a similar way. Though different technological and personal ways of keeping watch on society than 1984, today’s government is also able to monitor most aspects of the people’s life. 1984 might be a dystopian society, but today’s condition seems to be moving towards that controlling state, where the citizens are surveilled by the government at all times.
In a life where one must rebel to stand up for what is right. In a world where there is only one government. In a game to kill or be killed. Who truly has the power? In the novel The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins, power is shown in many parts of the book. Although the government is initially successful at controlling everyone’s lives in the Districts, as Katniss’ journey of survival progresses in the Hunger Games, her rebellious actions damage the Capitol’s power. This causes her to prove the Capitol that they do not own her, and she has self-power. Throughout the book, Suzanne Collins portrays that everyone has certain control. Collins uses the Districts, the rebellions, and the Capitol to get this message across to the readers.
In the book Brave New World, the government has complete control over the citizens. From conditioning to drugs, the government finds ways to use its power over the people. In many ways, this relates to our world and our government, and in this novel, Huxley warns us about letting the government take control over
Corruption is a fraudulent behaviour that occurs excessively in the world of Suzanne Colin's novel, "The Hunger Games". Furthermore, this form of activity takes place most often in the Capitol. It's difficult to say if the capitol is corrupted or not, however many believe that the capital is doing what they must to survive. Citizens of the capitol do radiate a form of corruption over power. The capitol is undeniably corrupt and advantageous. Three meaningful reasons that corroborate to the contention are: The totalitarian government of Panem is noticeably corrupted because of the drastic differences in the treatment of its citizens. Secondly, the capitol forces voyeurism to symbolise authority and power, to grasp obedience from the districts. Thirdly, the future of the districts will be non-existent if the Capitol continues to make them pay sacrificial benefits with their respective citizens. These reasons noticeably state one of Suzanne Collins most prioritised morals. Too much power leads to corruption.
“Government exists to protect us from each other. Where government has gone beyond its limits is in deciding to protect us from ourselves”(Reagan). In the book, 1984, Winston recognizes the power the government has over the citizens of Oceania. The citizens lack privacy from the government. George Orwell warns society about a government with total control in 1984. Based on Dana Hawkin’s article, “Cheap Video Cameras Are Monitoring Our Every Move”, as well as Beech Etal’s, “The Other Side of the Great Firewall”, society may truly have something to fear in the form of surveillance and information manipulation.
Society as a whole is drawn to dystopian media primarily because of the evident similarities between the government being portrayed in the media, and the government that society has to live under. A film that is constantly spoken about for its almost satirical comparison between America’s own government and the government presented in the film itself is The Hunger Games. The comparisons made show similarities between the civil unrest within communities under the oppressive government, and the acts of defiance that follow. In the film, by keeping disturbance prevalent within the separate districts, the leaders keep themselves safe from unrest being directed towards them. The government - in the film, the totalitarian government - is well aware of their actions, and justifies them by giving the districts the belief that “It was the price [they] had to pay” (Ross). In addition, districts are shown to have a deep-rooted hatred for each other as a result of the competitive nature of the Games; this enmity keeps them from fully seeing the tyranny of their leaders. This can be related to real life: in America, there is a consistent tension between several different racial groups or religious societies because of circumstances that the government or significant leaders, such as Donald Trump or Roy Moore, create for society. However, the film implies that members of the community are not completely blind to the government’s tactics, and because of this, small acts
In The Hunger Games, Suzanne Collins expresses two themes. The first one is that we can’t let the government use their power to treat, and use people like they want, they are oppressing them. “At one o’clock, we head of the square. Attendance is mandatory unless you are on deaths door. This evening, officials will come around and check to see if this is the case. If not you will be imprisoned.” (Collins, 16) we can see that the Capitol forces the people to participate in the reaping by threatening them. “When I was younger, I scared my mother to death, the things I would blurt out about District 12, about the people who rule our country, Panem, from the far-off city called the Capitol. Eventually I understood this would only lead us to
Reality television has differed throughout the years. At one point it was meant to be a literal depiction of everyday life. Now, reality television has changed to be more dramatic and outrageous than an average person or family’s life. The Hunger Games, in a way, depicts the lives of those who live in the poorer districts where the necessities for life are not in such abundance as in the Capitol. Although children are not forced to kill each other in the districts, there is still the struggle for one’s livelihood. That reality is depicted in the games and it seems that The Capitol takes that theme and develops it into The Hunger Games that we know and love. The Hunger Games suggests that reality television is manipulated to the point where the viewers see what the creators (game makers) want them to see.
These values differ from that of the Capitol, which is exempt from the Hunger Games. It appears that their only purpose is to use the goods and services that the districts create and to do so unscrupulously (2008). The citizens of the
The Hunger Games promotes the idea of a total government control. The Capitol controls everything that the twelve districts do. The world of Panem is divided into 12 districts where each district has its own role to fulfill from luxury to coal mining. "Taking the kids from our districts, forcing them to kill one another while we watch. This is the Capitol's way of reminding us how totally we are at their mercy" (Collins 18). This shows that the districts all pay a yearly sacrifice to the Capitol in the form of tributes. Another of showing that the Games is a dystopian society is that any evidence of an act of rebellion will result in the government having to kill anyone who gets in their way. "Look how he take your children and sacrifice them there is nothing you can do. If you lift a finger, we will destroy every last one of you. Just as we did in District 13" (18).
As it is seen in Brave New World, the World State has controlled so much of their lives that they have lost their consciousness through conditioning. In other words, the World State has controlled their minds so much that the people are unaware that they have lost their person freedom but since conditioning has failed on Bernard, he is able to recognize the loss of individuality in the World State. The government controls because they would rather have others lose their personal identity than have them be a threat to society. Therefore, if the country progresses to being all-powerful and invading the lives of individuals, there would be conformity and a loss of individuality.
Living in a society where the government is constantly watching and monitoring everything a person does can cause many problems throughout the area. When people living in the area start to realize what the government is doing, they want to take action into their own hands. In the contemporary novel, Little Brother, and in the classic novel, 1984, this in one of the main challenges that the protagonists have to go through and try to figure out how to stop the government.
On that note, Google Glass, 1984, and Brave New World all express the potential dangers in having too much influence on the people. People are so gulable that they would do anything to mold themselves with society. The threat of privacy and effect are all signs of the start of an authoritarian power. Not a lot of people want to look