1984 Background Blog

9/15/2014

Here is where you can post your findings about your 1984 background topic. After you potently post your findings, reword the information and/or write a reflection in your own words, in a different font color.

16 Comments

Grace Phillips

9/22/2017 10:38:34 am

Three Most Influential Revolts in Human History- The French Revolution

Findings: The French Revolution, which lasted from 1789 to 1799, was a social and political uprising against the absolute monarchy governing the French Empire. The revolution was in part caused by the debt France was placed in after aiding America in their own revolution which granted them independence from Britain. Upset by the regressive taxation imposed on them to repay this debt, the French revolted against their leaders. The French Revolution resulted in the downfall of France’s absolute monarchy, which in turn triggered other monarchies’ eventual collapses and their replacements- be they republics or democracies.

Reflection: The French Revolution is widely considered to be one of the most influential revolutions in history because it ushered in a political transition into the modern era. The long-standing monarchies and empires that existed for hundreds of years were finally falling, never to be built back up again. The end of the French Revolution brought with it a new beginning: the beginning of republics and democracies, the political structures we know in the majority of modern societies.

corinne wegner and peyton walker

9/22/2017 10:45:23 am

“a contemporary term for a form of propaganda that relies on deceptive methods of persuasion.”

“characterized by exaggeration, euphemisms, inaccuracies, half-truths, and excessively emotional appeals.”

“shaping of events to make you look better than anybody else”

“to twist truth for particular ends”

“misleading commercials”

“prepackaged reports that get their message out or put a positive spin on the news”

https://www.thoughtco.com/spin-communication-1691988

“information that is manipulated or slanted to affect its interpretation and influence public opinion”
http://www.dictionary.com/browse/spin-journalism

Summary: Spin in the media is used to manipulate the public’s view of an object or subject to create biased views. By altering the truth, the media can appeal to the public and sell information. “Spin” in the media can be seen where athletes appear in fast food commercials to make the food seem healthy.

Amanda S.

9/25/2017 06:48:49 am

I also found that "spin" in the media applies to McCarthyism and does not always have a positive influence.

Julia Jackman link

9/22/2017 03:47:18 pm

The “Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism” Act, or USA PATRIOT Act, was introduced less than a week after September 11, 2001, and was signed into law on October 26, 2001.
The bill broadly expanded law enforcement’s surveillance and investigative powers and amended more than 15 different statutes, including the Electronic Communications Privacy Act of 1986 (ECPA), the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (CFAA), the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA), and the Family Education Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA).

Why does it matter to libraries?
Libraries are key sources of information on all kinds of subjects and from all perspectives for their communities. Reading has always been one of our greatest freedoms. The written word is the natural medium for the new idea and the untried voice from which come the original contributions to social growth.
Libraries provide a place to exercise intellectual freedom: a free and open exchange of knowledge and information where individuals may exercise freedom of inquiry as well as a right to privacy in regards to information they seek. Privacy is essential to the exercise of free speech, free thought, and free association. In a library, the subject of users' interests should not be examined or scrutinized by others

Summary: The American Patriot Act basically broadened security networks and the amount of surveillance by gov. to protect the people's privacy but also to protect the society of America from any possible harm.

Tiffany Lain and Amanda Schlecte link

9/22/2017 04:32:22 pm

https://www.biography.com/people/leon-trotsky-9510793?_escaped_fragment_=

http://spartacus-educational.com/RUStrotsky.htm

Born Lev Davidovich Bronshtein on November 7, 1879, Leon Trotsky's revolutionary activity as a young man spurred his first of several ordered exiles to Siberia...1896 in his last year of school, became enlightened with Marxism. He waged Russia's 1917 revolution alongside Vladimir Lenin. Leon Trotsky helped found the South Russian Workers' Union. He was arrested within a year and spent two years in prison before being tried, convicted and sent to Siberia for a four-year sentence. In 1902, after serving only two years of his sentence, Leon Trotsky escaped exile, abandoning his wife and daughters. On forged papers, he changed his name to Leon Trotsky, a moniker he would use the rest of his life...Lenin formed a faction known as the Bolsheviks. After the Bolsheviks took control of the Soviet government, Lenin ordered the formation of the Red Army and appointed Leon Trotsky its leader. Trotsky proved to be an outstanding military leader, as he led the army of 3 million to victory. Between 1925 and 1928, Trotsky was gradually pushed from power and influence by Stalin and his allies, who discredited Trotsky's role in the Russian Revolution and his military record...As the Soviet government developed, Trotsky engaged in a power struggle against Joseph Stalin, which he lost, leading to his exile again and, eventually, his murder. In fact, on August 1936, 16 of Trotsky's allies were charged with aiding Trotsky in treason. All 16 were found guilty and executed. Stalin then set out to assassinate Trotsky.

Summary: Leon Trotsky, originally named Lev Davidovich Bronshtein, was born in 1879 and lived a life filled with criminality. In his last years of school, Trotsky was introduced to Marxism. Trotsky pursued Russia’s Revolution with Lenin as a founder of the South Russian Workers’ Union. After escaping exile, Trotsky abandoned his family and permanently changed his name. Trotsky’s “partner” Lenin formed the Bolsheviks faction (a faction of the Marxist Russian Social Democratic Labour Party), and Trotsky himself became the leader of the Red Army (of the communist government). Stalin and the Soviets won a power struggle against Trotsky which led to his exile (again) and a plan for his assassination. Trotsky ran to Mexico to hide, but a Soviet spy found and murdered him.

Lili and Mary

9/22/2017 04:39:28 pm

Stalin

“Stalin was bag of dicks” - Liliana Griffin, 2017
Self written summary: Stalin’s corrupt views regarding the government of the USSR turned it into a wasteland of famine and poverty under his rule, caused by his reformation of the farming industry and other practices unmanageable to a common society. Stalin’s ethics reflected poorly on the rest of the world and the republic celebrated tremendously when he died. He is also the blame for the Cold War (war on communism).

Blog Information:
- Joseph Stalin's forced industrialization of the Soviet Union caused the worst man-made famine in history.

- Joseph Stalin (1878-1953) was the dictator of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) from 1929 to 1953. Under Stalin, the Soviet Union was transformed from a peasant society into an industrial and military superpower. However, he ruled by terror, and millions of his own citizens died during his brutal reign. Born into poverty, Stalin became involved in revolutionary politics, as well as criminal activities, as a young man. After Bolshevik leader Vladimir Lenin (1870-1924) died, Stalin outmaneuvered his rivals for control of the party. Once in power, he collectivized farming and had potential enemies executed or sent to forced labor camps. Stalin aligned with the United States and Britain in World War II (1939-1945) but afterward engaged in an increasingly tense relationship with the West known as the Cold War (1946-1991). After his death, the Soviets initiated a de-Stalinization process.

- Stalin built a cult of personality around himself in the Soviet Union. Cities were renamed in his honor. Soviet history books were rewritten to give him a more prominent role in the revolution and mythologize other aspects of his life. He was the subject of flattering artwork, literature and music, and his name became part of the Soviet national anthem. His government also controlled the Soviet media.

http://memes.ucoz.com/_nw/14/91658412.jpg

ps. I asked on voxer and no one knew how to change colors so I hope this format is alright

Adam and Josh

9/22/2017 07:07:44 pm

Fascism:
a form of radical authoritarian nationalism
political aesthetic of romantic symbolism, mass mobilization, a positive view of violence, and promotion of masculinity, youth and charismatic leadership
nationalist authoritarian goals of creating a regulated economic structure to transform social relations within a modern, self-determined culture
centrist doctrine, as a doctrine that mixes philosophies of the left and the right
conservative and anti-conservative, national and supranational, rational and anti-rational
strength through unity: a single rod is easily broken, while the bundle
is difficult to break

Our Summary
Fascism is a type of political rule in which the public rallies behind a leader who take responsibility for creating and managing the nation's economy, social roles, and culture. The leaders promote violence against all of those who contradict their beliefs or motives while also instating a strong male superiority. Behind these standards fascists band together strengthening their force by support.

Sources:
Larsen, Stein Ugelvik, Bernt Hagtvet and Jan Petter Myklebust, Who were the Fascists: Social Roots of European Fascism, p. 424, "organized form of integrative radical nationalist authoritarianism"
John Horne. State, Society and Mobilization in Europe During the First World War. pp. 237–39.
"Definition of FASCISM". Merriam-Webster. 27 April 2013
Payne, Stanley (1995). A History of Fascism, 1914–45. University of Wisconsin Press. ISBN 0-299-14874-2.
Renton, David. Fascism: Theory and Practice, p. 21, London: Pluto Press, 1999.

Brooke Simmer

9/22/2017 08:21:50 pm

13) American Revolution
Several aspects of the American Revolution make it noteworthy. For example, guerrilla warfare played a major role in the war for independence, establishing the method of surprise battle in the modern era and replacing the pitched battle of earlier periods. Another unique aspect of this revolution is that it took place outside the borders of the parent nation. The replacement of one government with another doesn't have to take place within the same contiguous geographic region to be considered a proper revolution. Yet, the American Revolution is often compared to the French Revolution that followed -- and historians often mark this essential difference between the two.

What made the American Revolution so revolutionary, however, was that it didn't involve regime change, but the creation of an entirely new nation and the adoption of a democracy by that nation.

Cite: http://history.howstuffworks.com/historical-events/american-revolution-revolutionary.htm

Summary in my own words: The American revolution set a precedent for a new kind of war, one with less formality and more aggressive and secretive warfare. It was also a world wide example that democracy could feasibly work as a political model, a system that was only dreamed of before this time.

Delaney Wetherholt & Madison Roush link

9/23/2017 07:12:35 am

Francisco Franco led a successful military rebellion to overthrow Spain's democratic republic in the Spanish Civil War (1936—39), subsequently establishing an often brutal dictatorship that defined the country for decades.

When the social and economic structure of Spain began to crumble, Franco joined the growing right-leaning rebel movement. He soon led an uprising against the leftist Republican government and took control of Spain following the Spanish Civil War (1936–39). He then presided over a brutal military dictatorship in which tens of thousands were executed or imprisoned during the earlier years of his regime. Franco died on November 20, 1975, with country transitioning to a democracy.

His family life was not entirely happy, for Franco’s father, an officer in the Spanish Naval Administrative Corps, was eccentric, wasteful, and somewhat dissolute. More disciplined and serious than other boys his age, Franco was close to his mother, a pious and conservative upper middle-class Roman Catholic. Like four generations and his elder brother before him, Franco was originally destined for a career as a naval officer, but reduction of admissions to the Naval Academy forced him to choose the army. In 1907, only 14 years old, he entered the Infantry Academy at Toledo, graduating three years later.

He devoted great care to the preparation of his unit’s actions and paid more attention than was common to the troops’ well-being. Reputed to be scrupulously honest, introverted, and a man of comparatively few intimate friends, he was known to shun all frivolous amusements.

Because of his military ability and prestige, a political record unmarred by sectarian politics and conspiracies, and his proven ability to gain military assistance from Adolf Hitler’s Germany and Benito Mussolini’s Italy, Franco was the obvious choice.

Franco presided over a government that was basically a military dictatorship, but he realized that it needed a regular civil structure to broaden its support; this was to be derived mainly from the antileftist middle classes. On April 19, 1937, he fused the Falange (the Spanish fascist party) with the Carlists and created the rebel regime’s official political movement. While expanding the Falange into a more pluralistic group, Franco made it clear that it was the government that used the party and not the other way around. Thus, his regime became an institutionalized authoritarian system, differing in this respect from the fascist party-states of the German and Italian models.

In Our Own Words: Because Franco was raised in a family with strict core military values, he was molded into the military general that led the successful rebellion to seize control of Spain. Assisting him in getting this position was not only his military ability, but also the help he gained from other powerful figures, such as Hitler and Mussolini. After his takeover, Spain had become a military dictatorship and despite help from the dictators of both Germany and Italy, his dictatorship revolved about an authoritarian system, much unlike his fascist counterparts. Franco supported his government by the fusion and control of the Spanish fascist party and the Carlists.

Victoria Fair

9/23/2017 07:48:36 am

Three most influential revolts/rebellions/uprisings in human history-The Russian Revolution
My findings:
By 1917 the bond between the tsar and most of the Russian people had been broken. Governmental corruption and inefficiency were rampant.

Faced with this untenable situation Tsar Nicholas abdicated his throne, handing power to his brother Michael.. He resigned the following day, leaving Russia without a head of state.
After the abdication of the Romanovs a Provisional Government was quickly formed by leading members of the Duma and recognised internationally as Russia's legal government. It was to rule Russia until elections could be held. However it's power was by no means absolute or stable.

The more radical Petrograd Soviet organisation was a trade union of workers and soldiers that wielded enormous influence.

Despite being allowed to seize power so easily Lenin soon discovered that his support was far from absolute. His Peace Policy with the Germans was particularly unpopular as it ceded large amounts of Russian territory. Shortly after the October Revolution, the Russian Civil War broke out between the 'Reds' (Communists) and the 'Whites' (Nationalists, Conservatives, Imperialists and other anti-Bolshevik groups). After a bloody four year struggle Lenin and the Reds won, establishing the Soviet Union in 1922, at an estimated cost of 15 million lives and billions of roubles.

It generated a new way of thinking about economy, society and the government. The Bolsheviks set out to cure Russia of all its injustices that arouse from social class differences. They succeeded in some ways.

My summary:
Economic chaos and food shortages plagued Russia during WW1 and due to the social injustices the lower class people of Russia faced, because of the poor leadership of the Tsar, the Soviet party was formed and held heavy influence. Eventually Lenin led the Bolshevik group and swiftly gained the respect of the people by appealing to their need of better treatment. As his group ran Russia, Marxian socialism , and communism, became the governmental style. The Russian revolution was the spark that ignited communism in the world, and had a heavy influence on Russia’s commandment in the world.

Sources:
http://www.local-life.com/st-petersburg/articles/1917-russian-revolution
https://www.britannica.com/event/Russian-Revolution-of-1917

Zak D'Angelo & Kenny Simmons

9/23/2017 08:06:51 am

American Patriot Act:

The USA PATRIOT Act is an Act of Congress that was signed into law by President George W. Bush on October 26, 2001. With its ten-letter abbreviation (USA PATRIOT) expanded, the full title is "Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism Act of 2001". Allows law enforcement to use surveillance against more crimes of terror. Allows federal agents to follow sophisticated terrorists trained to evade detection. Allows law enforcement to conduct investigations without tipping off terrorists. Allows law enforcement officials to obtain a search warrant anywhere a terrorist-related activity occurred. Prohibits the harboring of terrorists. Punishes terrorist attacks on mass transit systems.The government's success in preventing another catastrophic attack on the American homeland since September 11, 2001, would have been much more difficult, if not impossible, without the USA Patriot Act. The authorities Congress provided have substantially enhanced our ability to prevent, investigate, and prosecute acts of terror. Hastily passed 45 days after 9/11 in the name of national security, the Patriot Act was the first of many changes to surveillance laws that made it easier for the government to spy on ordinary Americans by expanding the authority to monitor phone and email communications, collect bank and credit reporting records, and track the activity of innocent Americans on the Internet. While most Americans think it was created to catch terrorists, the Patriot Act actually turns regular citizens into suspects.

Summary:

This act was passed in lieu of the tragic events of 9/11. The goal of such was to prevent future terrorist attacks, along with increasing the punishment for those who attempt to. There is speculation that this act has also instilled the power, as was the intention, to aggressive surveillance by the government to the American people. This act gives the power to essentially enter one's life and personal business via "surveillance" methods.

Sources:

https://www.justice.gov/archive/ll/highlights.htm
https://www.aclu.org/issues/national-security/privacy-and-surveillance/surveillance-under-patriot-act
http://www.crf-usa.org/america-responds-to-terrorism/the-patriot-act.html
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/did-patriot-act-change-us-attitudes-surveillance-n641586

Alison Spiga and Jessica Scopas

9/23/2017 08:32:51 am

Full Title: Animal Farm - A Fairy Tale
When Written: 1944-45
Where Written: England
When Published: 1945
Literary Period: Modernism
Genre: Novel / Fairy Tale / Allegory
Napoleon: Modeled after Stalin, characterized as a corrupt opportunist, represents the political tyrants that have emerged throughout human history
Snowball: Orwell’s stint in a Trotskyist battalion in the Spanish Civil War—during which he first began plans for a critique of totalitarian communism—influenced his relatively positive portrayal of Snowball. A parallel for Leon Trotsky.
Boxer: Epitomizes all of the best qualities of the exploited working classes: dedication, loyalty, and a huge capacity for labor. He also, however, suffers from what Orwell saw as the working class’s major weaknesses: a naïve trust in the good intentions of the intelligentsia and an inability to recognize even the most blatant forms of political corruption.
Squealer: Represents how politicians manipulate language in an age of mass media.
Old Major: A democratic socialist. Modeled after Karl Marx and Vladimir Lenin. His critique of Animal Farm has little to do with the Marxist ideology underlying the Rebellion but rather with the perversion of that ideology by later leaders.
George Orwell: His work is marked by lucid prose, awareness of social injustice, opposition to totalitarianism, and outspoken support of democratic socialism. Best known for Animal Farm and 1984. Experienced the working class of England in the 1930’s, and fought in the Spanish Civil War.

Alison Spiga and Jessica Scopas

9/23/2017 08:35:36 am

Summary: Animal farm is an allegory of the events leading to Russian Revolution and the Communist Soviet Union and then during. Many of the animal characters in Animal Farm have direct correlations to figures or institutions in the Soviet Union.
George Orwell wrote Animal Farm to raise awareness about the dangers of political ideals such as democratic socialism, totalitarianism, and communism-not placing total faith in any ideal, and pointing out flaws in each though character representations.

Dylan and Tony link

9/23/2017 08:49:30 am

In the many years since socialism entered English around 1830, it has acquired several different meanings. It refers to a system of social organization in which private property and the distribution of income are subject to social control, but the conception of that control has varied, and the term has been interpreted in widely diverging ways, ranging from statist to libertarian, from Marxist to liberal. In the modern era, "pure" socialism has been seen only rarely and usually briefly in a few Communist regimes. Far more common are systems of social democracy, now often referred to as democratic socialism, in which extensive state regulation, with limited state ownership, has been employed by democratically elected governments (as in Sweden and Denmark) in the belief that it produces a fair distribution of income without impairing economic growth. (https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/socialism)

Own Summary:
Socialism is any economic system in which there is no private ownership of property. It is commonly known for being described as the transition from Capitalism to Communism in Marxist theory. In Socialism, either a government or the entire society are the sole proprietor of all property and are controllers of all production. Socialism is often linked to Communism for their similar stances on goods and wealth being distributed among society.

Victoria Sutherland and Emma Coenen

9/23/2017 09:08:03 am

The Tehran Conference:

The Tehran Conference was a meeting between U.S. President Franklin Delano Roosevelt, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill, and Soviet Premier Joseph Stalin in Tehran, Iran, between November 28 and December 1, 1943

During the Conference, the three leaders coordinated their military strategy against Germany and Japan.

The Conference focused on the next phases of the war against the Axis powers in Europe and Asia.

Orwell himself claimed that he was partly inspired by the meeting of the Allied leaders at the Tehran Conference of 1944. Isaac Deutscher, an Observer colleague, reported that Orwell was "convinced that Stalin, Churchill and Roosevelt consciously plotted to divide the world" at Tehran.

The Teheran Conference would be central to Orwell's understanding of his time, influencing both of his great novels, Animal Farm, and 1984.

As the Tehran Confrence was concluding, Orwell finally began to take the steps that would make him a great writer.

Our Ideas:
The events of the Tehran Conference directly inspired George Orwell for his dystopian novel. Because he believed that the leaders were plotting to divide the world during the conference, he wrote this novel.

Sources:
https://www.theguardian.com/books/2009/may/10/1984-george-orwell

http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-21337504

https://books.google.com/books?id=b-UZDQAAQBAJ&pg=PA172&lpg=PA172&dq=how+did+the+tehran+conference+lead+to+1984&source=bl&ots=srHfaySViv&sig=cmZ5_NqijZ-j_PV-sc8Fw1yJqHI&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiCxfSLvLnWAhXE7YMKHcgUBeEQ6AEIQTAE#v=onepage&q=tehran%20conference&f=false

Zach Warren, Trevor Sholtz, and Chad Nikles

9/23/2017 09:42:08 am

Findings: The Labour Party was founded in 1900, having grown out of the trade union movement and socialist parties of the nineteenth century. It overtook the Liberal Party to become the main opposition to the Conservative Party in the early 1920s. The Labour Party was founded in 1900, having grown out of the trade union movement and socialist parties of the nineteenth century. It overtook the Liberal Party to become the main opposition to the Conservative Party in the early 1920s.
Summary: The British Labor Party was a third political party. However, due to it's belief in state intervention and worker's rights, it has become increasingly large, even being the main opposition to the conservative party.

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