Emmanuel Goldstein

Emmanuel Goldstein is a fictional character in George Orwell's 1949 dystopian novel ''Nineteen Eighty-Four''. He is the principal enemy of the state according to the Party of the totalitarian Oceania. He is depicted as the head of a mysterious and possibly fictitious dissident organization called "The Brotherhood" and as having written the book ''The Theory and Practice of Oligarchical Collectivism''. He is only seen and heard on telescreen, and may be a fabrication of the Ministry of Truth, the State's propaganda department.

Character history

In the novel, Goldstein is a character rumoured to be a former top member of the Party and an early associate of its leader, " Big Brother", but having broken away early in the movement and started "The Brotherhood". Ostensibly "The Brotherhood" is organized into cells, with each member required to read ''The Book'', supposedly written by Goldstein, ''The Theory and Practice of Oligarchical Collectivism''. Goldstein is always the subject of the "Two Minutes Hate", a daily programme beginning at 11:00 a.m. at which an image of Goldstein is shown on the telescreen and subjected to extreme contempt. Goldstein is commonly depicted walking among the parading soldiers of Oceania's current enemyEurasia or Eastasiaimplying that he is not only an ideological opponent of the regime but also a traitor aiding and abetting the national enemy.

It is not clear whether Goldstein or "The Brotherhood" really exist. When protagonist Winston Smith asks O'Brien, an Inner Party member, whether The Brotherhood is real, O'Brien replies:

O'Brien states that Goldstein's book was written by the Party leadership, including himself, but this statement leaves the questions of Goldstein and the Brotherhood's existence unanswered and may be a lie by O'Brien to deceive Winston.

One possible interpretation is that a political opposition to Big Brothernamely, Goldsteinwas psychologically necessary in order to distract, unite and focus the anger of the people of Oceania. Ostensibly, Goldstein serves as a scapegoat for the dictatorial regime in ''Nineteen Eighty-Four'' and justifies its surveillance and elimination of civil liberties.

Trotsky as potential real-life origin

Not long after the novel's appearance,
a number of contemporary commentators noticed that the biography, appearance, writing style, and political thought of Emmanuel Goldstein resembled that of Leon Trotsky. Born Lev Bronstein, Trotsky was a close associate of Russian revolutionary Vladimir Lenin and was later the chief rival of Joseph Stalin, who branded Trotsky a traitor and expelled him from the Soviet Union in 1929. In exile, Trotsky wrote ''The Revolution Betrayed'', denouncing Stalin and the Soviet Union. During the Great Purges of the 1930s, when Stalin consolidated his power by killing and imprisoning many of the early members of the Bolshevik party, Stalin's propaganda invariably depicted Trotsky as the instigator of all supposed plots and acts of sabotage. In 1940, Stalinist agent Ramón Mercader murdered Trotsky at the latter's residence in Mexico.

Orwell declared, in a letter to U.S. writer Sidney Sheldon, that ''Nineteen Eighty Four'' was inspired by the Soviet Union under Stalin, imagining what would happen if such a social and political movement existed in England:

Orwell wrote of Trotskyism:

In 1954, Isaac Deutscher wrote that Goldstein's book in ''Nineteen Eighty-Four ''was intended as a "paraphrase" of ''The Revolution Betrayed''.
In 1956, Irving Howe described Goldstein's book as "clearly a replica" of Trotsky's ''The Revolution Betrayed'', writing that the parts that seemed to be imitating Trotsky were "among the best passages" of the novel. Critic Adrian Wanner, writing in a collection of essays edited by Harold Bloom, described Goldstein's book as a "parody" of ''The Revolution Betrayed'', noting that Orwell was deeply ambivalent about Trotsky.

Contemporary comparisons

George Soros

According to a journalist identified in ''The Economist'' as "M.S.", George Soros, a wealthy progressive financier, has been used as a Goldstein-like figure in Hungary. Soros has criticised the Prime Minister of Hungary Viktor Orbán in the past for his handling of the 2015 European migrant crisis. Soros' wealth and origins have made him the subject of numerous conspiracy theories. According to M.S.:

Richard Nixon

President Richard Nixon's 1972 visit to China, long considered a Cold War foe, inspired comparisons with Emmanuel Goldstein's analysis of the shifting alliances of the three superpowers in ''Nineteen Eighty-Four''.
The widespread vilification of Nixon due to the Watergate scandal inspired commentary comparing his treatment in the media with the Two Minutes Hate sessions focused on Goldstein.

Osama bin Laden

Goldstein was also compared to al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden during the latter's lifetime.

Drawing parallels between Goldstein and bin Laden a week after the September 11 attacks, Professor William L. Anderson at Frostburg State University wrote a column for LewRockwell.com entitled "Osama and Goldstein".

Legal scholar Cass Sunstein, in his 2009 book ''Worst-Case Scenarios'', coined the term "Goldstein Effect", described as "the ability to intensify public concern by giving a definite face to the adversary, specifying a human source of the underlying threat." According to Sunstein, since the U.S.-led War on Terror so heavily associated terrorism with bin Laden, the outrage intensified in similar ways as displayed in ''Nineteen Eighty-Four''. However, he also pointed out how Saddam Hussein to a great degree had been subject to the same Goldstein Effect.

References

External links

Emmanuel Goldstein: War is Peace
George Orwell: ''Nineteen Eighty-Four'', Part II, Chapter 9.


George Orwell: ''Nineteen Eighty-Four'', Part II, Chapter 9.

{{DEFAULTSORT:Goldstein, Emmanuel
Fictional characters based on real people
Fictional politicians
Fictional writers
Nineteen Eighty-Four characters
Cultural depictions of Leon Trotsky
Literary characters introduced in 1949
Fictional fugitives
Fictional revolutionaries
Male characters in literature