1. POLITICAL PHILOSPHY IN 1984

2. INGSOC: Basic Info Leader: Big Brother
Ideology: Oligarchical Collectivism
Similar to Stalinism
Slogans: “War is Peace, Freedom is Slavery, Ignorance is Strength.” “Who control the past controls the future; who controls the present control the past.”

3. How did INGSOC begin? Dubious beginnings
Result of a revolution against capitalism
Originally led by Big Brother and Goldstein, if these characters really exist
Goldstein became the enemy of the state
The Theory and Practice of Oligarchical Collectivism, by Emmanuel Goldstein, describes the Party’s ideology as an Oligarchical Collectivism, that “rejects and vilifies every principle for which the Socialist movement originally stood, and it does so in the name of Socialism”.

4. What is socialism? Problems with capitalism
Public/common ownership of assets
Economy without profit and competition
No one person can amass great wealth
No rich CEO’s because companies are owned by the people  seeks to get rid of different classes
Not necessarily a dictatorship- although in reality all socialist countries have eventually become dictatorships

5. Is this any different than capitalism?

6. Why?
“The two aims of the Party are to conquer the whole surface of the earth and to extinguish once and for all the possibility of independent thought” (203).

7. Some questions to ponder
Why does The Party only watch The Outer Party and not The Proles?
Why maintain previously existing class structures? Who does this benefit?
Why have a lower class? Why not let everyone be middle class?

8. Activity In groups, you will create your a political philosophy
Each philosophy needs:
A name
An explanation
A symbol or flag
An slogan
An enemy
A propaganda presentation (2-3 minutes)