ON THE WATER
NEELS BLOM: Orwell’s novel has become a guidebook for a new dystopia
Transport Minister Blade Nzimande liberally deploys Ministry of Truth revisionism in the Acsa debacle
The man said to be the most sued in English legal history, one Ian Hislop, writes in an essay ostensibly about language that he gets a sense of déjà vu from history’s cycle of farce and tragedy. This, for those who have read the book, Hislop gets from George Orwell’s Nineteen Eighty-Four, that fount-in-reserve for commentating hacks. Of course, Hislop’s editorship of the satirical Private Eye makes his grasping for analogy in a world in perpetual war a bit more palatable. But Nineteen Eighty-Four, too, is as much about language as it is a cautionary tale. It has given the world universally recognised concepts such as Newspeak (political correctness), Big Brother (panopticon) and the Thought Police (Facebook, perhaps), and the Ministry of Love’s torture chamber, Room 101.SA has similarly enriched the political lexicon. Consider how the word "apartheid" has become a byword for white supremacist racism so potently that any discussion about race-based prejudice is incomplete without it....
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.
Subscribe now to unlock this article.
Support BusinessLIVE’s award-winning journalism for R129 per month (digital access only).
There’s never been a more important time to support independent journalism in SA. Our subscription packages now offer an ad-free experience for readers.
Cancel anytime.
Questions? Email helpdesk@businesslive.co.za or call 0860 52 52 00. Got a subscription voucher? Redeem it now.