Nineteen Eighty-Four1949 dystopian novel by George OrwellPersonalEileen O'Shaughnessy(first wife)Sonia Brownell(second wife)Richard Blair(adopted son)BibliographyDown and Out in Paris and LondonBurmese DaysA Clergyman's DaughterKeep the Aspidistra FlyingThe Road to Wigan PierHomage to CataloniaComing Up for AirAnimal FarmNineteen Eighty-FourCharactersNapoleonOld MajorJonesSnowballSquealerBoxerBenjaminWinston SmithJuliaO'BrienBig BrotherEmmanuel GoldsteinAdaptationsAnimal Farm1954 film1999 film2025 filmNineteen Eighty-Four1956 film1984 film2005 opera2013 play2023 filmLegacyOrwellianOrwell's listSearchlight BooksHarvill SeckerEric & UsWhy Orwell MattersOrwell AwardOrwell PrizeThe Orwell FoundationStatueNineteen Eighty-Four (also published as 1984) is a dystopian and speculative fiction novel by the English writer George Orwell.
TelescreenA telescreen is a two-way video device that appears in George Orwell's 1949 dystopian novel Nineteen Eighty-Four. It is a medium that dominates the fictional totalitarian society of Oceania, being present in public and private spaces. Omnipresent and almost never turned off, it is an unavoidable source of propaganda and tool of surveillance used by the ruling Party to manipulate and control the Oceanian population.
George OrwellPersonalEileen O'Shaughnessy(first wife)Sonia Brownell(second wife)Richard Blair(adopted son)BibliographyDown and Out in Paris and LondonBurmese DaysA Clergyman's DaughterKeep the Aspidistra FlyingThe Road to Wigan PierHomage to CataloniaComing Up for AirAnimal FarmNineteen Eighty-FourCharactersNapoleonOld MajorJonesSnowballSquealerBoxerBenjaminWinston SmithJuliaO'BrienBig BrotherEmmanuel GoldsteinAdaptationsAnimal Farm1954 film1999 film2025 filmNineteen Eighty-Four1956 film1984 film2005 opera2013 play2023 filmLegacyOrwellianOrwell's listSearchlight BooksHarvill SeckerEric & UsWhy Orwell MattersOrwell AwardOrwell PrizeThe Orwell FoundationStatueEric Arthur Blair (25 June 1903 – 21 January 1950) was an English novelist, poet, essayist, journalist, and critic who wrote under the pen name of George Orwell.
Thought PoliceIn the 1949 dystopian novel Nineteen Eighty-Four by George Orwell, the Thought Police (Thinkpol in Newspeak) are the secret police of the superstate of Oceania, who discover and punish thoughtcrime (personal and political thoughts unapproved by Ingsoc's régime).
TotalitarianismExtreme form of authoritarianism and a theoretical conceptTwo versions of the World War IIU.S. propaganda poster "Your Lot in a Totalitarian State" depicting a process of compulsorysham election which took place in totalitarian states, the flags of which – Nazi Germany, Fascist Italy and the Soviet Union – are presented below.
Political geography of Nineteen Eighty-FourIn George Orwell's 1949 dystopian novel Nineteen Eighty-Four, the world is divided into three superstates: Oceania, Eurasia and Eastasia, which are all fighting each other in a perpetual war in a disputed area mostly located around the equator.
Cult of personalityIdolization of a leader A cult of personality, or a cult of the leader, is the result of an effort to create an idealized and heroic image of an admirable leader, often through unquestioning flattery and praise.
Nazi GermanyGerman state from 1933 to 1945Nazi Germany, officially the German Reich and later the Greater German Reich, was the German state between 1933 and 1945, when Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party controlled the country, transforming it into a totalitarian dictatorship. The Third Reich, meaning "Third Realm" or "Third Empire", referred to the Nazi claim that Nazi Germany was the successor to the Holy Roman Empire (800–1806) and the German Empire (1871–1918).
DystopiaA dystopia (lit. "bad place") is an imagined world or society in which people lead wretched, dehumanized, fearful lives. It is an imagined place (possibly state) in which everything is unpleasant or bad, typically a totalitarian or environmentally degraded one. Dystopia is widely seen as the opposite of utopia – a concept coined by Thomas More in 1516 to describe an ideal society. Both topias are common topics in fiction.
PropagandaPropaganda is a form of mass communication that is primarily used to influence an audience and persuade them to further an agenda. Propaganda may not be objective and often selectively presents facts to encourage a particular perception, or uses loaded language to produce an emotional rather than a rational response to the information presented. Propaganda can be found in a wide variety of different contexts.
SuperstateLarge and powerful state formed from smaller states Part of the Politics seriesBasic forms of government List of forms · List of countries Source of power Democracy (rule by many) Demarchy Direct Economic Guided Liberal Representative Social Socialist Others Oligarchy (rule by few) Anocracy Aristocracy Broligarchy Corporatocracy Gerontocracy Imagocracy Kleptocracy Kritarchy Matriarchy Meritocracy Particracy Patriarchy Plutocracy Stratocracy Technocracy Theocracy Autocracy (rule by one) Autocratic legalism Despotism Dictatorship military Tyranny Anarchy (rule by none) Anarchism Free association Stateless Power ideology MonarchyRepublic (socio-political ideologies) Absolute Communist Constitutional Directorial Legalist Presidential Parliamentary Semi-parliamentary Semi-presidential AuthoritarianLibertarian (socio-economic ideologies) Anarchism Colonialism Communism Despotism Distributism Fascism Feudalism Islamism Socialism Totalitarianism inverted Tribalism ReligiousSecular State religion Secular state Separation of church and state State atheism GlobalLocal (geo-cultural ideologies) City-state Intergovernmental organisation National government World government Nationalism Internationalism Globalism Power structure Unitarism Unitary state Empire Principality Branches Unified state power Fusion of powers Separation of powers Client state Associated state Dependent territory Dominion Protectorate Puppet state Puppet monarch Satellite state Self-governing colony Tributary state Buffer state Vassal state Viceroyalty Federalism Confederation Devolution Federation Superstate Supranational union International relations Small power Middle power Regional power Emerging power Great power Superpower Related Administrative division Centralized government Democratic backsliding Democracy indices Democratic transition Democratisation Politics portalvte A superstate is defined as "a large and powerful state formed when several smaller countries unite", or "A large and powerful state formed from a federation or union of nations", or "a hybrid form of polity that combines features of ancient empires and modern states."*As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.