hamlet vs. 1984
...ian government. The citizens are forced to live in isolation from others and they have no freedom; fear is placed within the people to prevent them from expressing themselves. Winston Smith, the protagonist, states, “Who controls the past controls the future: who controls the present controls the past (31).” This emphasizes how the Inner Party manipulates history in favour of Big Brother so the people of Oceania come to love him; hence, the Inner Party has control for the future. However, Winston knows of all this and once he meets Julia, a revolutionary, he expresses his true opinions with her in hope to stand up and change the government by forming a Brotherhood. Winston strives for the freedom and independence he had before WWII, even though there is a great risk of getting caught and being “vaporized”. On the other hand, the Elizabethans of Shakespeare’s Hamlet believed there is a place for everything and everything is in its place. Should the natural order in the universe be out of balance, things would become corrupt. This occurs in the play as society in Denmark becomes corrupt by the throne, and it is up to Hamlet to set things right. In contrast, this society has more freedom than Oceania, yet many of the characters do not put forth their ideas because of the risk of damaging their image in society. It is ironic in the fact that Winston and Julia would rather die trying to gain their freedom at heart, while the hierarchy of Denmark does not attempt to fix the corruption of the universe because by expressing their inner feelings, they are putting their image in jeopardy. Despite that “Something is rotten in the state of Denmark (1.4.90),” characters like Polonius in society choose caution in what they say to preserve their great image, rather than providing a solution. Another way to show how the Elizabethans in Hamlet do not express their freedom of thought and speech in relation to Oceania in 1984 is to contrast the characters themselves in both literary works. In 1984, Winston becomes more confident in the hope for change when he has his first date with Julia. Winston explains, “Their embrace had been a battle, the climax a victory. It was a blow struck against the Party. It was a political act (133).” This shows how Winston and Julia were able to express themselves freely and stand against the rules and regulations of the Inner Party. It is as if Julia set Winston free from Big Brother and now he has no fear. Julia also has news of more hope in the stand against Big Brother when she claims she had done the same thing with other Outer Party members as well. This provides hope that civilization can be reborn, as the act of sexual intercourse is not done for pleasure, but it is a representation of th...