I don't actually think that 1984 is a prequel but there are some interesting commonalities between the two of them. These societies also have many differences. However, it's important to note that BNW takes place something like 500+ years AF (after ford) which is like 2450 ish whereas 1984 takes place in 1984. This means there is something like 450-500 years between the two books, so there is enough time for a drastic change to take place.
However, there isn't that much time. Brave New World's society is based very strongly on Ford. The party is destroying all of the past and so it's likely they destroyed Ford and took credit for his inventions. Julia tells Wilson that the part has taken credit for the creation of the airplane (1903). When Wilson was in school the party took credit only for the creation of the helicopter which was in 1939. So the party is moving backward through time and taking credit for inventions as they go. So it's fair to say that in 2000 all record of Ford would have been destroyed and all people who remembered the old way killed. This being said the window hasn't closed. It's certainly possible that some proles still remember ford.
I think that what happened is a Eurasian invasion. Maybe not of all of Oceania but at least what we call Brittan. Eurasia most likely includes what would have been the USSR. 1984 was written in 1948 so it's safe to assume that history doesn't derail until slightly after that date, which is consistent with what Wilson says about what he remembers with his mom. So it's quite possible Eurasia is still communist. If Eurasia is the basis for the world state it could explain why people are named Lenina. However, the story is still more complicated as it doesn't really make sense for a religion based around the biggest capitalist in the world to arise from a society based on communism. Perhaps this religion develops because of the proles who still remember ford. Maybe the deconditioning of the proles causes the Eurasians to build up some figure like ford as a replacement big brother? Either way, it's very unlikely and definitely not what was intended but still interesting to think about.
This is an interesting theory. It makes sense geographically though, as both books are set in or around London. It also makes sense politically, as we know in the 1984 world the three superpowers in the world are actually quite similar and sort of help each other keep their people in check. It would make sense that at some point they just start to officially work together as the World State.
ReplyDeleteI honestly cannot bring myself to align more with the ideas that you have elucidated in this piece of writing.
ReplyDeleteI feel that the part you wrote about the soviet influence in Eurasia and its effects on culture (e.g. names) was a brilliant deduction! Keep up with the good work!
Wow. Very good post. I honestly just could not be in greater accordance with the majority of the ideas you presented in this blog post. It is important to note that, for instance, Eurasia most likely includes what would have been the USSR.
ReplyDeleteThis is a very interesting idea to think about. I'm not sure that any of the states would actually ever want to conquer the others, but if they did I could definitely see something like the world state happening. Cool post!
ReplyDeleteThis is a very interesting blog post. I definitely see Eurasia resembling USSR. I'm not exactly sure if any of the states would ever want to take on such a great risk. Great post.
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