George Orwell: The Man and the Mind Behind 1984

By: Michael Shelden, The Great Courses

Narrated by: Michael Shelden

Length: 2 hrs and 13 mins

Publisher's summary

While many literary works have transcended their own time to become beloved classics, few novels have remained quite as politically relevant as George Orwell’s dystopian masterpiece 1984. How has a book written in the 1940s—and set in a future that is now our past—become a cultural touchstone for every new generation of readers that encounters it? Why does Orwell’s vision of a totalitarian future seem to constantly reflect the conditions of the present?

In George Orwell: The Man and the Mind Behind 1984, Professor Michael Shelden will show you how the novel presents a plausible reality of thought control and totalitarian power that feels contemporary even as it reflects its own time. In five illuminating lectures, you will see how Orwell drew on his own experiences and observations of the post-war world to craft a universal story of human oppression. Along the way, you will see how Orwell:

• Created the terrifying figure of Big Brother not only by observing the tactics of Joseph Stalin, but also by remembering his days at an English boarding school;
• Translated his personal experience with censorship and propaganda into the oppressive forces of Newspeak and the Thought Police;
• Used his own relationships to explore how ordinary people respond to mass intimidation;
• Found inspiration for his nightmare world in his long battle with poor health; and more.

As you will see, 1984 was a financial and critical success from the very beginning and has been a favorite of readers ever since. From the Red Scare of the 1950s to the rise of the surveillance state in the 21st century, Orwell’s surprisingly personal masterpiece continues to resonate with our own lived experience, offering a timeless warning of the dangers of authoritarian power, misused technology, and unquestioned conformity.

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Creating Big Brother

The author of this Great Courses text makes the argument that this book is the single most influential one of the twentieth century. He may be right. Big Brother is a broadly socialized concept that people have been talking about my entire life. The idea of the state spying on every part of their citizenry’s lives is not too hard to fathom. After all, we know that our telephone calls are recorded, we all have devices in our homes that listen all the time, our internet searches are kept forever, there are cameras over most stop lights, and more cameras yet on peoples’ houses and property. The idea of privacy is not anything like what it was fifty years ago and it’s getting weaker every year. And none of that even mentions the popular reality show, Big Brother.

The book gives background on Orwell that helps put the book in the context of his life and his regrettably shortened writing career. I haven’t actually read Big Brother in at least thirty years, but I frankly don’t think you have to have read the novel to enjoy this audiobook on its creation and impact.