Summer Reading Blog I 1984

1984

1. Compare and contrast the concepts of technological surveillance that Orwell envisioned in 1984 and the forms of technological surveillance used today.

2. Discuss the reasons why some people might not be bothered by the same alleged invasions of privacy that deeply concern other people. For example, why do some people take greater issue with employee drug testing than others do?

3. What would the U.S. Founding Fathers have said about some of the privacy-related issues that are being debated today?

4. Debate whether the impact of a privacy violation differs if the policy is implemented by a government or by a corporation. Does it matter who is invading your privacy?

5. Discuss the ways in which the news media may shape opinions regarding privacy issues. For example, what might be the effects of a nightly news feature that discusses economic losses due to employee drug use? What if it featured an employee who had a false positive drug test and was subsequently fired.

6. Explain the ways in which an Orwellian society, with a severe lack of personal privacy and freedom, could develop in both a communist and a capitialist society.