This chilling dystopian prophecy, born in 1949, is no longer just a work of fiction but a painful reality for those of us living in the highly information-driven society of the 21st century.
Author: George Orwell (Translated by Jeong Hoe-seong)
Publisher: Minumsa
Year of Publication: 2007
Book Club Recommendation:
In this digital age, AI is naturally becoming a part of our daily lives. We always have smartphones in our hands; the algorithms on YouTube and TikTok find and recommend videos we might like; and our search histories and preferences are being meticulously stored in data centers under the name of “data.” While this makes for a truly convenient world where everything is connected, I sometimes get a chill down my spine, wondering if someone might be watching my every move.
Although this work was written over 70 years ago, it is such an astonishing novel that it gives the impression it was written after observing modern people through CCTV. The "Big Brother" depicted in the book monitors people’s every move through screens and even attempts to control their thoughts.
This book prompts us to ask why it is so important to preserve our ability to think for ourselves, rather than relying solely on frameworks created by others. In other words, we must question whether we are blindly accepting what the mass media feeds us on a daily basis. By observing how those in power manipulate history and information to suit their own interests, as depicted in this book, we can develop a keen eye for discerning the truth amid the deluge of media.
Following this, the protagonist’s desperate struggle for love and freedom—even within a vast surveillance system—will resonate deeply with anyone grappling with their true self amid the gaze of others and societal norms. In other words, this book provides an opportunity to reflect on whether we are truly thinking as we wish, or if we have simply been conditioned to think that way.
Therefore, in this highly digitized age where even a single “like” I click or a search term I enter defines who I am, *1984* will serve as a powerful weapon to help us stand as agents who steer our own lives, rather than as individuals swept along by the world.
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