So apparently a couple of the mouth-breathers on Big Brother were having a discussion about why the game show they were on had the name it did. ‘Big Brother’ didn’t seem right. Wouldn’t ‘Father Figure’ be a better name?
Gretel, of course, smirked it for all it was worth, presenting them with their own copies of ‘Nineteen Eighty-Four’ once they were evicted. I didn’t see the presentation, but I can just imagine the smarm. “Here you go, dummies. Go and read a book and get yourself an education,” like she’s so much better than they are. Sure, they should have at least a vague awareness of where Big Brother comes from, but I reckon the greater sin is committed by Gretel. She’s (apparently) read the book, knows who Big Brother is, and yet is still comfortable using the name for her fluffy, vacuous, trivial bit of nothing of a game show. That's what's really tragic. George Orwell's spinning so fast he could power a small city.
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I can proudly say that I did not view one episode of this series... and in the past I have never watched an entire episode... just enough to make me wish to throw the TV out the window... not good when you live 9 floors up.
ReplyDeleteI do however actually feel sorry for the poor 'Turkey Slappers'. Firstly they were just fooling around with a mate who happened to be female, were kicked out and dragged through the mud after the cops said they had no case to answer for, then every time their names were refrenced for the remainder of the series it was edited out, and becuase the probably signed some release, they do not have a leg to stand on.
But when it comes down to it... you really have to be a half wit to even think about going on that show.
Don't feel sorry for em much any more...
Bogans... the lot of em!
ReplyDeleteAnd still we did not get Live sex on TV... Soft Cocks!
If I wanted sexual tension I would get a box set of farken friends!
Or perhaps, Apostropher, George Orwell is spinning so fast he could power the entirety of Airstrip One....?!
ReplyDeleteOooh aaah gotta've read it to get that one ;)
My very most favourite quote from Nineteen Eighty-Four refers to Winston's frustration and disbelief at Julia's apparent lack of concern about the things that were going on around them.
I think this quote remains incredibly powerful...
"Such things did not appear to horrify her. She did not feel the abyss opening beneath her feet at the thought of lies becoming truths..."
Gaaah.
Of course, they're absolutely right.
ReplyDelete"Father Figure" would be a better name for the show than "Big Brother". In fact, "Father Figure" would be a better name for the "Big Brother" figure in 1984 as well.
Except, of course, that Winston Smith wouldn't understand the metaphor, living as he does in a culture where children are taught by the State that their parents have no authority, and that any transgressions on their part should be reported.
Apostropher, you do have such an inteligent blog.
ReplyDeleteCan we make fun of George Bush and discuss the benefits of Liberal Islam, next week?
Bomber - You have courage. :-)
ReplyDeleteJess - Airstrip One. I wish I had said that. Maybe in true Ministry of Truth style I should delete your comment and edit my post?
You're right, that's a great quote. The one that I always remember first is the opening sentence: "It was a bright cold day in April, and the clocks were striking thirteen." It's just one sentence, but I find it so evocative. It sets the scene and establishes the mood so well, and in an instant. And with that I was in and away.
JJ - I agree with your second para, so why do you think 'Father Figure' would be better name for Big Brother.
Dags - I think it's important to create a space where we can dicuss the finest works of English literature and a box of cereal. And, woah, Liberal Islam?! That'd be a bold change of direction for John Howard to take his party. :-)
I agree with your second para, so why do you think 'Father Figure' would be better name for Big Brother.
ReplyDeleteWell, I don't. But only because of what's in the second paragraph; the name is meaningful because of the rest of the book.
If you haven't read the book, then well, the logic expressed by the contestants is perfectly sound.
And it's no great crime not to have read the book - if I was preparing a reading list of Western literature then there are several books I would recommend ahead of Nineteen Eighty-Four, not least because the true horror of that book can only be felt by someone with a love of literature and/or the English language.
In fact, "Father Figure" would be a better name for the "Big Brother" figure in 1984 as well.
ReplyDeleteScanning back over your original comment I realised I didn’t count your first sentence as a paragraph, so I was agreeing with your third, not your second. Although can a sentence be a paragraph? Anyway, what I was trying to say was that I don’t think ‘Father Figure’ would be a better name for Nineteen Eighty-Four’s Big Brother and I was wondering why you did? Or are you saying you don’t? I’m confused.
If you haven't read the book, then well, the logic expressed by the contestants is perfectly sound.
Possibly, but as a father I’m offended they think ‘Father Figure’ would be an appropriate name for someone who lurks all day behind darkened windows, watching and even filming you. :-)
…if I was preparing a reading list of Western literature then there are several books I would recommend ahead of Nineteen Eighty-Four…
Out of curiosity, if you were preparing a list, what would it look like? And how would you decide on which Dan Brown book to include? Probably easiest to just include all of them, yes?
If you haven't read the book, then well, the logic expressed by the contestants is perfectly sound.
ReplyDeletePossibly, but as a father I’m offended they think ‘Father Figure’ would be an appropriate name for someone who lurks all day behind darkened windows, watching and even filming you. :-)
I anticipate that in approximately 15 years you will not be offended at all if young men of your daughter's acquaintance think of that phrase in that way.
Very good point JJ
ReplyDeleteI always thought the whole idea of "Big Brother" was mined from The Bible story of Cain and Abel, with "am i my brothers keeper?" Every Big Brother natural responsibility for his Little Brothers safety and guidance.
Every big brother, you say? JJ, is that what you did for Bart? Guided him safely along a path towards wisdom? :-) I guess there’s a parallel with Cain and Abel, in that Cain deceived Abel and ended up murdering him, but I don’t think that would have been the source for Orwell. There’s an interesting bit on Big Brother and his possible origin at Wikipedia.
ReplyDeleteI always saw the name Big Brother as simply a mask. An ideal to conceal the unpleasant and opposite reality; as with the Ministry of Truth (propaganda), the Ministry of Love (interrogation/torture), the Ministry of Plenty (food control/rationing) and the Ministry of Peace (war). If you’re tyrannized and terrified and are looking for comfort and security, something to believe in, then the ideal of a big brother looking out for you would be an alluring one. A smiling, benevolent face amidst all the terror and chaos for you to put your faith and trust in.
The most obvious inspiration for "Big Brother" is, of course, "Uncle Joe" used as an epithet for Stalin and "Uncle Sam" as a personification of the United States.
ReplyDeleteBut a name like that wouldn't work as a personification of Oceania because it relies for its metaphorical power on the existence of a hierarchy that is not controlled by the State.
In Oceania, all are equal, so there is no need for any of the old hierachies: no need for Kings, clergy, fathers, mothers, or Secretaries of the cricket club; all are brothers; and just as some animals are more equal than others, so are some brothers bigger than others.
Of course, there's another level of meaning in the name "Big Brother", which anyone who has ever had a big brother will understand; as will anyone who has ever read Lord of the Flies.
Lord of the Flies? There werent even any flies in that book It was just about school children or something I reckon Lord of the School Children would of been a better title
ReplyDeleteI read the book and I didn't even know they had a Lord. They seemed more like an autonomous collective.
ReplyDeleteYou're fooling yourself. They were living in a dictatorship!
ReplyDelete