"Children of Men" vs "1984"

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Children of Men vs 1984

Both 1984 (W.H Auden) and Children of Men (Alfonso Cauron) explore the nature of dystopian societies. While Children of Men revolves around propaganda and warfare in an infertile world, it is 1984 focusing on an individual’s rebellion against a totalitarian government which conveys a future at its bleakest.

Government control and its impact on citizens is a theme used to portray a dystopian future of both texts. “Children of Men” conveys a future where the government controls the state of society and the actions of its citizens through the use of propaganda to whatever way they see fit.

Obvious from the beginning of the film, as the audience is introduced to a city of urban squalor. Through dull lighting and the mise-en-scene the city takes on a third world appearance with rubbish strewn streets, primitive transportation and a thick polluted atmosphere as if it were set in the past rather than the future. However as the film progresses a complete contrast to the city in the form of advanced advertising becomes present in the shot, it is through such advertising that many of the governments priorities are revealed throughout the film, even for them to go so far as to have their citizens wake up to an advertisement for suicide kits on the television. This presents the audience with the views and priorities of the government. Rather than spare funds towards helping its society the government chooses to advertise suicide kits for citizens who are unhappy with the state of the world the government has created.

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1984 establishes its dystopian view of the future within the first few sentences of the novel, with Auden using sensory visualisation “vile wind”, “smelt of boiled cabbages”, “gritty dust” to convey a dilapidated outlook of the world. 1984 also presents a totalitarian outlook of the world through its government (Party) who are “solely interested in the quest for power. Not wealth or luxury or long life or happiness: only power, pure power.” The Party employs coercive methods to create obedient and apathetic citizens such as newspeak, the destruction of the English language literally stripping it down to the bone. Hence ...

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There is some good points made about the film and how the world is represented in 'Children of Men'. There needs to be far more links made between the novel and the film you are analysing otherwise there is no value in looking at them both in the same essay. 3 Stars