Doublethink In George Orwell's '1984'

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Doublethink was used by the Party as a form of brainwashing to manipulate and control the citizens of Oceania. This form of control was important within the novel because it eliminated the chance of rebellion or disbelief in the Party.

As one of the main forms of control within the novel, doublethink is a form of brainwashing every individual undergoes for their minds to be controlled by the party. It is a form of mental training learned by the individual themselves. Doublethink is believing two contradicting ideas concurrently. The best example of this lies in the Party’s three slogans: ‘War is Peace,’ ‘Freedom is Slavery,’ and Ignorance is Strength’. The party can preserve “War is Peace” because keeping Oceania at war with the enemy gives the citizens something to bond over. There is no need to fight within the country if the citizens are all united against a common enemy. “Freedom is Slavery” because without the party you will fail. If an individual is to follow their desire they are open to failures and bad choices. The citizens of Oceania were never given the opportunity …show more content…
As stated in the paragraph before, it was used to give an individual no choice but to believe what they are told by the party because with doublethink you are to believe both contradicting ideas as truth. Doublethink weakened the mind of the individual so much that even if they knew that what was being said was illogical they had no choice but to believe it or be charged with “Thought Crime”. After being brainwashed for so long an individual loses the ability to think independently, therefore, they can believe anything as truth. This allows the Party to have complete control over one’s mind and manipulate them any way they want. Doublethink is a very powerful form of control that allowed the Party to be very successful in controlling and stabilizing their

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