August 16, 2019
Orwell’s 1984 is a fantasy, but
this country under Trump is beginning to have an eerie and worrisome similarity
to Oceania under Big Brother. The novel
described the mind set of a citizen:
In the ramifications of Party doctrine she had not the faintest interest. Whenever he began to talk of the [party line], she became bored and confused and said that she never paid any attention to that kind of thing. One knew it was all rubbish, so why let oneself be worried by it? She knew when to cheer and when to boo, and that was all that one needed. [58]
That could fit anyone at a Trump rally; this could
describe the Base:
In a way, the world-view of the Party imposed itself most successfully on people incapable of understanding it. They could be made to accept the most flagrant violation of reality, because they. . . were not sufficiently interested in public events to notice what was happening.[59]
The parallel is not complete; the
political situation in Oceania more nearly resembled that of the USSR under
Stalin than of Trump’s America. Big
Brother had control the Donald only can dream of. However, his faithful do seem to be limited to knowing when to
cheer and when to boo.
The Appendix to 1984 describes the
principles of Newspeak: “words such as honour, justice, morality,
internationalism, democracy, science, and religion had simply ceased to exist.
. . .” Without much exaggeration, we can say that they have been suppressed in
Trumpland as well, with the exception of “religion,” which has been redefined
into a category of politics. In
addition, “all words grouping
themselves round the concepts
of objectivity and
rationalism were contained
in the single word
oldthink.”[60]
That certainly fits.
“Ultimately it was
hoped to make
articulate speech issue
from the larynx without
involving the higher
brain centres at all.”[61] Appled to written speech, that could
describe Trump’s tweets.
Why do Trump’s followers swallow his
lies? There are several factors: fear,
bias, resentment of the “elitism” of liberals, a sort of class solidarity, but
also ignorance about history and political concepts, a failing shared with much
of the population.
As to the public’s ignorance, various
studies have found the following:
• only 13 percent knew when the U.S. Constitution was ratified, even on a multiple-choice exam, with most thinking it occurred in 1776.
• 60 percent didn’t know which countries the United States fought in World War II.
• 57 percent did not know how many Justices serve on the Supreme Court.
• 37 percent believed that Benjamin Franklin invented the lightbulb.
• 12 percent thought General Dwight Eisenhower led troops in the Civil War; 6 percent thought it was the Vietnam War.[62]
• only half of adults could name the three branches of government. [63]
• more than a third did not know the century in which the American Revolution took place.
• half believed that either the Civil War, the Emancipation Proclamation or the War of 1812 were before the American Revolution;[64]
• 41 percent could not identify Auschwitz as a Nazi concentration or extermination camp. As with other surveys, young people were less well informed than their elders: among millennials, 66 percent could not identify Auschwitz.[65]
• only 13 percent knew when the U.S. Constitution was ratified, even on a multiple-choice exam, with most thinking it occurred in 1776.
• 60 percent didn’t know which countries the United States fought in World War II.
• 57 percent did not know how many Justices serve on the Supreme Court.
• 37 percent believed that Benjamin Franklin invented the lightbulb.
• 12 percent thought General Dwight Eisenhower led troops in the Civil War; 6 percent thought it was the Vietnam War.[62]
• only half of adults could name the three branches of government. [63]
• more than a third did not know the century in which the American Revolution took place.
• half believed that either the Civil War, the Emancipation Proclamation or the War of 1812 were before the American Revolution;[64]
• 41 percent could not identify Auschwitz as a Nazi concentration or extermination camp. As with other surveys, young people were less well informed than their elders: among millennials, 66 percent could not identify Auschwitz.[65]
Does a college education help? Not much, apparently.
• One-third of college graduates were unaware that FDR introduced the New Deal.
• Nearly half did not know that Teddy Roosevelt played a major role in the construction of the Panama Canal.
• Over one-third could not place the American Civil War in the correct 20-year time-frame.
• Nearly half could not identify correctly the term lengths of U.S. senators and representatives. [66]
• One-third of college graduates were unaware that FDR introduced the New Deal.
• Nearly half did not know that Teddy Roosevelt played a major role in the construction of the Panama Canal.
• Over one-third could not place the American Civil War in the correct 20-year time-frame.
• Nearly half could not identify correctly the term lengths of U.S. senators and representatives. [66]
There’s more, and it’s all
depressing. How can a democracy
function, how can rule by a demagogue be avoided if so many citizens know so
little? The internet can’t be blamed
for all of this; the educational system, top to bottom, needs
attention.
________________________________
58. 1984, Part II, Chapter 5; in the omnibus George Orwell, p. 836
59. Ibid.
60. Id., at 921
61. Id,. at 923
62. https://woodrow.org/news/national-survey-finds-just-1-in-3-americans-would-pass-citizen ship-test/
63. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/how-much-us-history-do-americans-actually-kn ow-less-you-think-180955431/#Aim8aA7mLsEUFsHX.99
64. https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2010/06/americans-vs-basic-historical-know ledge/340761/
65. https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/acts-of-faith/wp/2018/04/12/two-thirds-of- millen nials-dont-know-what-auschwitz-is-according-to-study-of-fading-holocaust-knowledge/
66. https://www.goacta.org/news/the-danger-ignorance-of-history-poses-to-the-future-of-a-free- society
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