What a great question! I might have to use this comparison
the next time I teach this novel. Well, you are right in thinking that there is a lot to
compare between these two texts. Firstly, both Winston Smith and Truman are in a world
where pretty much there every move is observed and watched. They have no privacy
whatsoever and their exterior lives are completely controlled by forces beyond their
power. The only true escape they are able to engineer is interior: in their thoughts and
minds.
Of course, a massive difference is that Truman at
the start of the film does not know that he is under constant surveillance, and at least
the powers that control his life are not malevolent in the same way that Big Brother is
for Winston Smith. Both main characters try to escape or rebel against the powers that
constrain them, but only Truman's rebellion is successful. 1984 offers critical comment
on totalitarian regimes, whereas The Truman Show comments upon entertainment in today's
world, the modern surveillance society and reality shows. Both, however, and this is the
point I guess, show the consequences of limiting the freedom and the privacy of the
individual.
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