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If you've watched the news[br]or followed politics

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chances are you've heard [br]the term Orwellian

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thrown around [br]in one context or another.

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But have you ever stopped to think[br]about what it really means,

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or why it's used so often?

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The term was named [br]after British author Eric Blair

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known by his pen name George Orwell.

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Because his most famous work,[br]the novel "1984,"

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depicts an oppressive society [br]under a totalitarian government,

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"Orwellian" is often used simply[br]to mean authoritarian.

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But using the term in this way

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not only fails to fully [br]convey Orwell's message,

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it actually risks doing precisely what [br]he tried to warn against.

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Orwell was indeed opposed [br]to all forms of tyranny,

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spending much of his life fighting against[br]anti-democratic forces

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of both the left-wing and the right.

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But he was also deeply concerned[br]with how such ideologies proliferate.

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And one of his most profound insights

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was the importance that language plays[br]in shaping our thoughts and opinions.

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The government of "1984"'s Oceania[br]controls its people's actions and speech

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in some ways that are obvious.

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Their every move and word [br]is watched and heard,

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and the threat of what happens [br]to those who step out of line

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is always looming overhead.

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Other forms of control are not so obvious.

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The population is inundated [br]with a constant barrage of propaganda

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made up of historical facts and statistics[br]manufactured in the Ministry of Truth.

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The Ministry of Peace is the military.

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Labor camps are called "Joycamps."

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Political prisoners are detained[br]and tortured in the Ministry of Love.

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This deliberate irony is an example[br]of doublespeak,

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when words are used not to convey meaning[br]but to undermine it,

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corrupting the very ideas they refer to.

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The regime's control of language [br]goes even further,

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eliminating words from [br]the English language

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to create the official [br]dialect of Newspeak,

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a crudely limited collection of acronyms[br]and simple concrete nouns

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lacking any words complex enough[br]to encourage nuanced or critical thought.

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This has an effect on the psyche[br]Orwell calls, "Doublethink,"

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a hypnotic state of cognitive dissonance

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in which one is compelled [br]to disregard their own perception

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in place of the officially [br]dictated version of events,

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leaving the individual [br]completely dependent

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on the State's definition [br]of reality itself.

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The result is a world

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in which even the privacy of one's [br]own thought process is violated,

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where one may be found guilty[br]of thoughtcrime by talking in their sleep,

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and keeping a diary [br]or having a love affair

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equals a subversive act of rebellion.

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This might sound like something that can[br]only happen in totalitarian regimes,

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but Orwell was warning us about[br]the potential for this occurring

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even in democratic societies.

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And this is why "authoritarian" alone[br]does not "Orwellian" make.

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In his essay, [br]"Politics and the English Language,"

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he described techniques like using[br]pretentious words to project authority,

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or making atrocities sound acceptable[br]by burying them in euphemisms

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and convoluted sentence structures.

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But even more mundane abuses of language[br]can affect the way we think about things.

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The words you see [br]and hear in everyday advertising

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have been crafted to appeal to you[br]and affect your behavior,

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as have the soundbites and talking points[br]of political campaigns

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which rarely present the most[br]nuanced perspective on the issues.

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And the way that we use ready-made phrases[br]and responses gleaned from media reports

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or copied from the Internet

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makes it easy to get away [br]with not thinking too deeply

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or questioning your assumptions.

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So the next time you hear someone[br]use the word Orwellian,

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pay close attention.

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If they're talking about the deceptive[br]and manipulative use of language,

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they're on the right track.

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If they're talking about mass surveillance[br]and intrusive government,

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they're describing something authoritarian[br]but not necessarily Orwellian.

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And if they use it as an all-purpose word[br]for any ideas they dislike,

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it's possible their statements [br]are more Orwellian

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than whatever it is they're criticizing.

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Words have the power to shape thought.

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Language is the currency of politics,

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forming the basis of society from[br]the most common, everyday interactions

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to the highest ideals.

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Orwell urged us to protect our language

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because ultimately our ability to think[br]and communicate clearly

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is what stands between us and a world[br]where war is peace

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and freedom is slavery.