1984 Metropolis

Essay fnal Module A  The inherent nature nature o individuals to attempt attempt to retain retain their individuality through asserting personal values inevitably comes into conict with the ideals o oppressive oppressive political politica l authority. authority. This is explored in Frit !ang"s #$%& flm Metropolis' in terms o Freder ta(ing advantage o his position in the oligarchy to a)ect the social transormation transormation over the capitalist oligarchy' representative o *olden Age o +eimar"s economic prosperity. ,n contrast' *eorge -rwell"s novel #$/ depicts +inston 0mith"s rebellion against the suppressed individuality o his society' and ultimate deeat and destruction by the 1arty"s 1arty"s monolithic totalitarianism' reecting the political context o -rwell"s disenchantment with 0talinist authoritarianism' and the apparatus o state oppression.

Assertion of personal values The oppressive nature of unmediated power within a society inevitably leads to tension in provoking the impulse of individuals to assert their autonomous personal values and retain individuality. ,ntellectual curiosity o Freder Freder 2uriosity o good Maria and children' leaving the Eternal *ardens ,nitial complacency as part o the oligarchy Acts out o personal interest' to satisy curiosity Awa(ening o desire to help 1lays upon humanity"s inherent empathy 2hanges places with *eorge o Emphasises moral action' rather than complacency' wanting to do something Fighting or the assertion o personal values o wor(ers' wor(ers' fghting against dehumanisation o societal structure 3ealisation 3ealisation o the ability to help others less advantaged *oing into the cloc( machine 2onronting his ather 3escuing 3escuing o the children 3epresentation 3epresentation o the purity o the wor(ers' wor(ers' neglect o o the children o 1hysical conrontation' he has to save them rom themselves. 4e realises he has to save people rom inside the social structure structure !ang sees total rebellion as the wrong direction o 2hildren are most pure representation o 4e is able to use this desire or others to retain individuality as he is part o the capitalist oligarchy o 2an communicate with the higher ups •

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Analogously' ,n -rwell"s #$/' the 1arty"s unrestricted power over all acets o society creates t5ensions in terms o individuals desiring the a6rmation their humanist values in order to escape this control. 4owever' -rwell ta(es a more pessimistic view' seeing this as impossible actors such as 0talinist dictatorship and the beginning o  the cold war. •

,nitial discovery o the possibility o assertion o personal values +riting the diary o o 7i)erences to +inston8 Fatalist attitude 9The thought police would get him :ust the same. 4e had committed ; would still have committed' even i he had never set pen to paper< 0exual 3ebellion 0mall and private rebellion' which is all he is allowed. 0mall step to brea(ing suppression o individuality 

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An dwh a th ewa n t e d,mo r ee v e nt h a nt ob e l ov ed,wast obr eakdownt hatwal l ofv i r t ue, ev eni fi twer eonl yonc ei nhi swhol el i f e.The s ex ual ac t ,s uc ces sf ul l yper f or med,was r ebel l i on.

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Their embrace had been a battle, the climax a victory. It was a blow struck against the Party. It was a political •

 Tric(ed by -"=rien 7i)erent positions within society +inston is on the oppressed side Freder still has inuence ,nstead o 9saving the childrenery minor rebellion' but he is still totally destroyed' the idea o actual social transormation is not going to be possible. 

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Unmediated power of an institution inevitably clashes with the desire of individuals to assert personal values. •

2apitalist -ligarchy in power ; embodied as exploiting the proletariat in order to achieve capitalist expansion

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Enorce oppression by8 they are dehumanised to cogs in the wheel o a machine. The wor(ers are dehumanised so they are reduced to parts o a machine so that there is less chance o rebellion. The purpose is not dehumanisation but an added beneft is that the wor(ers do not rebel. Embodying the institution8 Economic hegemony established by Freder"s ather or use mise en scene to demonstrate the tower o babel ; modernist' light' in contrast to the gothic #$th century underground to demonstrate the oppressive nature o the societal structure  Tie into the moloch machine and the dehumanisation

#. 0omething embodying the institution' reder"s ather' architecture %. Moloch ? technology @. 0cientifc paradigm /. 1ossibility o overcoming the instititution' how the tension clashes etc • •

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0cientifc 1aradigm ?wor(ing with economic paradigm' to (eep them distracted and motivated' so they dont rebel ; rotwang and evil maria ?contextual point' in +eimar republic those who have the economic power also drive the science and technology hope that the intellectuals and the enlightened bourgeoisie could mediate between oligarchy and wor(ing class. Economic conditions allowed him to have hope started to become consumerist =ecause o that' the character is able to succeed in his ultimate triumph in mediating between sel?interest and division o the two groups' is predicated by his unction as the moral' intellectual leader' who can defne a social progressive balance reecting the unction o the bourgeoisie intellectuals in +eimar BcontextC

Idea 2 - 1!" 4owever ; restricted by totalised society  Totalised ; the complete construction o a ideological version o reality' through brainwashing' alteration o history

? o stalins idea o writers being the 9engineers o human souls< ; Duote #$/ #. 0omething embodying the institution' inner party %. Telescreens ; technology

“ Wi ns t onk epthi sbac kt ur nedt ot het el es cr een.I twassaf er , t hough,ashewel l k ne w,e v enabac kc anber e v eal i ng. ” @. Energy is not spent on science but totalising reality ; rewriting history' newspea(' or the way they switch wars or torture o +inston and orcing them to accept etc.

9to be conscious o complete truthulness while telling careully constructed lies< Day by day and almost minute by minute the past was brought up to date.

/. 7estruction o individuals with conicting ideals

#. / Ministries and their paradox' the sense that they control all aspects o lie' and are predicated on 7oublethin( so that they are entering into heads and shaping reality ; clearly in contrast with the way the oligarchy' who have transormed the topography' but have not changed perception o reality  Through the oppressive party clutches on8 ? 4istory ? Thought ? !anguage ? 1rivacy ? 1olitics ? Emotion ? 0ex Absolute power over individuals 7emonstrated through absolute power to alter all aspects o an individuals lie ? ree thought ? perception o reality ? emotion ? ree speech etc

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Truth 1ower over society' not :ust physically but mentally and psychologically

,nclude examples' telescreens' newspea(' ministry o truth etc 2ontrast with reder"s triumph ? despite winston"s utile attempts to rebel and :oin a rebellion against the oppressive 1arty' his ultimate ailure and total destruction is representative o the inability or any competing ideology to even exist let along transorm any aspect o society. ; ? this is because the 1arty is solely devoted to maintaining power BtotalitariansmC and does not care about the indiviudals or the economy' and thus they will never let competing ideas emerge and transorm the society' as this will reduce the hold they have over the society ? Also totalisation o the society B control o reality in the headC' no attempt to engineer souls in metropolis ? -rwell"s comment on totalitarian states that individuals in those states are utterly powerless to rise up against the system' since the system actively shuts down the ideas as a threat against the power and control ? ,n contrast with Freder"s rebellion because the aim o the capitalist society was to grow the economy. =ecause o this' capitalist societies did not have the goal o oppression and thus are easy to transorm. ?  Freder is rom the oligarchy itsel' in a better position Also remember the wor(ers are rom pre ++,' now the conditions are slightly better due to +eimar *ermany.