Our Pandemic 2021 Versus 1984—Technology, Interconnectedness, and Social Ineptitude : A Case of History Repeating Itself

ABSTRACT

A number of reviews of Orwell’s totalitarian tale “1984”—the first filmic sci-fi drama based on the book released in 1956—interpret it in an antisemitism-oriented light. In his symbolic, classic yet timeless cult narrative, Orwell leaves us with a political message and shows how a totalitarian power ruthlessly strips citizens of their individuality, identity, and human value. Narrated as a fable, “1984” is a somber reflection on a utopia turned dystopia, where power falls into the hands of a privileged elite. Fast-forward to 2021 and as COVID-19 impacts the world at large, it has triggered a plethora of new inventions as we operate under new conditions in an increasingly technocratic society. In today’s “New Normal” or era of interrupted realities, “1984” offers many insights. The oppressed are yet again the masses, yet while the minority crushes the majority or the collective in “1984,” our current virus conquers the world without prejudice. With our reality resembling science fiction, we are alienated from one another in real-time yet approach each other virtually. Technology our guiding star, we have gained increased sets of transferrable skills and become technologically savvier by the minute yet may become all the more socially awkward—perhaps even inept. This article makes a sweeping comparison between pandemic overreliance on technology and the future society envisioned in “1984”—Orwell’s fable now stepping away from the page, seeping into our current context, and becoming our reality as we (did not) know it.