Orwell's main objection against this decline of the English language is not so much based on aesthetic grounds, but rather that for him the linguistic decline goes hand-in-hand with a decline of thought, the real possibility of manipulation of speakers as well as listeners and eventually political chaos. Those who deny this may argue that language merely reflects existing social conditions, and that we cannot influence its development, by any direct tinkering with words or constructions." The conclusion thematically reiterates linguistic decline: "I said earlier that the decadence of our language is probably curable. : 171 In the essay Orwell criticises standard English, with its perceived dying metaphors, pretentious diction, and high-flown rhetoric, which he would later satirise in the meaningless words of doublespeak, the product of unclear reasoning. As in "Politics and the English Language", the perceived decline and decadence of the English Language is a central theme in Nineteen Eighty-Four and Newspeak. This can be seen in his essay " Politics and the English Language" (1946) as well as in the Appendix to Nineteen Eighty-Four. Orwell was interested in linguistic questions and questions pertaining to the function and change of language. The word "Newspeak" is sometimes used in contemporary political debate as an allegation that one tries to introduce new meanings of words to suit one's agenda. Like Nazi ( Nationalsozialist), Gestapo ( Geheime Staatspolizei), politburo ( Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union), Comintern ( Communist International), kolkhoz (collective farm), and Komsomol (communist youth union), the contractions in Newspeak, often syllabic abbreviations, are supposed to have a political function already in virtue of their abbreviated structure itself: nice sounding and easily pronounceable, their purpose is to mask all ideological content from the speaker. The political contractions of Newspeak- Ingsoc (English Socialism), Minitrue (Ministry of Truth), Miniplenty ( Ministry of Plenty)-are described by Orwell as similar to real examples of German and Russian contractions in the 20th century.
In "The Principles of Newspeak", the appendix to the novel, Orwell explains that Newspeak follows most of the rules of English grammar, yet is a language characterised by a continually diminishing vocabulary complete thoughts are reduced to simple terms of simplistic meaning. Such concepts are criminalized as thoughtcrime since they contradict the prevailing Ingsoc orthodoxy.
#Define speek free
Newspeak is a controlled language of simplified grammar and restricted vocabulary designed to limit the individual's ability to think and articulate "subversive" concepts such as personal identity, self-expression and free will. In the novel, the Party created Newspeak : 309 to meet the ideological requirements of Ingsoc (English Socialism) in Oceania.
Newspeak is the fictional language of Oceania, a totalitarian superstate that is the setting of the 1949 dystopian novel Nineteen Eighty-Four, by George Orwell. For the computer language, see Newspeak (programming language). This article is about the fictional language of the novel Nineteen Eighty-Four.
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