After Trump’s account was permanently “blocked” by Twitter, “fans” borrowed a dystopian novel by British novelist George Orwell 70 years ago, 1984 to attack the United States for losing freedom of expression.
On January 11, the book topped Amazon’s best-selling edition. Some readers left a message in the comment section, “I can understand this novel more than ever.”
On the other hand, however, the liberal media, which has always been counter-Trump, are trying to fight for the right to interpret 1984.” USA Today published a report on the same day under the title of “You used the wrong ‘Orwellian style’,” saying that many people now abuse the word “Orwellian” to resist the authority he disagrees with.
The Washington Post also released a report ironically saying that “the conservatives who shout ‘Orwell’ are completely ‘Orwellian'”.
According to the latest inquiry from Guancha.com, as of press release, 1984 still topped Amazon’s best-selling list of books; former U.S. President Obama’s memoir Promised Land ranked third.
Justthenews, a conservative online news website, reported on January 11th local time that the dystopian novel 1984 became Amazon’s bestseller as large technology companies suppressed conservative voices.
This novel from decades ago depicts a terrible society controlled entirely by the government’s “ideological police”. The news site was founded in January 2020 by John Solomon, a former Fox News commentator and editor-in-chief of the Washington Times.
The report also said that in the review section of the book on Amazon, some readers compared the plot of the novel with the reality of the United States.
Constantin Turculet wrote, “I was born in Romania and experienced the dark scenes described in the novel. However, 40 years after I managed to escape to the United States, I found that in a country that had lived freely for 35 years, it was being pushed into a horrible scene that I thought mankind would never forget.
Jordan Edwards wrote, “This novel is well written, but unfortunately, the left seems to be using the novel in their script now.” Beverly G Boswell said, “I am a teenager, and I can understand this novel more than ever.”
Previously, Trump’s son, Trump Jr., directly compared Twitter’s “blocking” to Orwell’s 1984, saying, “We live in Orwell’s 1984.
Freedom of speech no longer exists in the United States. It died with the big tech companies, leaving only a select few.”
In the face of the widespread propaganda and borrowing of 1984 by Trump supporters, the liberal camp, which has always been incompatible with Trump, is not willing to show weakness, trying to fight for the right to explain what is really Orwell.” USA Today” reported on the 11th that after Trump’s account was “blocked” by various platforms, the American people may often see George Orwell’s name on social media in the past week, either from conservatives’ sincere call or from liberals to mock conservative abuse of power.
The report pointed out that the word “Orwellian” has become synonymous with people’s disapproval of authority. Although 1984 topped the bestseller list, unfortunately, many people abuse “Orwellian” nowadays.
If an internet platform enforces its terms of service and “blocks” you, they will say it’s “Orwellian”; if a store drives you out of the epidemic because you refuse to wear a mask, they will also say it “Orwellian”.
Paravi Yetur, an occupational psychotherapist who wrote Orwellian papers, believes that “the most orthodox ‘Orwellian’ is to use language as a means of control” and “In fact, Trump Jr.’s tweet is ‘Orwellian’ because he is using language.
To control people’s perception of things that are beneficial to him.” Yetul also said that Nazi propagandists such as Leni Riefenstahl were “very ‘Orwellian’ because he was a person who used words to arouse feelings, arouse loyalty and discredit the enemy”.
The Washington Post also released a report ironically that 1984’s sales increased 95-fold when the multiple bankruptcy reality star stepped down under the packaging of outspoken financial genius.
In the last days of Trump’s disastrous term, his “fans” followed not only the “Big Brother” approach, but also Orwell’s name. In fact, “the conservatives who shout ‘Orwell’ are completely ‘Orwellian'”.
“It’s interesting that some aspects of the novel are easily reminiscent of Trumpism, even the right wing,” said David Ulin, an associate professor of English at the University of Southern California and former book editor at the Los Angeles Times.
“Like things like disinformation, and using it to confuse facts.” .
