"My
name is Ozymandias, king of kings: Look on my works, ye Mighty, and
despair!"
Percy Bysshe Shelly
Many have pondered with a tinge of sadness on the
ephemerality of existence. A man may die, civilizations prosper and decline, but
ideas endure without death. They are trampled upon for a time, “yet seldom do
they fail of their seed, and that will lie in the dust and rot to spring up
again in times unlooked-for” (Tolkien, 294). The power of idea is seen
throughout media and literature. Both 1984,
a dystopian novel written by George Orwell, and the film V for Vendetta portray a world besieged by poverty, warfare, and
totalitarianism. Amongst the turmoil and destruction, V emerges victorious
while Winston Smith succumbs to the Oceanian hegemony. Both V and the Party of 1984 succeed - V in the ousting of the
government while the latter in its attainment - because they realize that the
power of a political or moral belief can transcend that of the individual. V and
Big Brother transform into symbols, or embodiments of ideas, through which they
propagate their influence. Moreover, they realize that a belief can cause an
individual to be audacious to the point of irrationality. Finally, V and the Party
are both aware that an idea is more powerful as a collective quality.
Binding
themselves to powerful messages, both V and Big Brother become more than
tangible individuals. Although V may die and Big Brother may be fictitious,
their values survive in the form of effigies. Whoever displays the symbol
embodies their image while that which or who is indifferent to the effect. To
demonstrate, V responds to Evey, “There is a face beneath this mask, but it
isn’t me. I’m no more that face than I am the muscles beneath it, or the bones
beneath that” (V for Vendetta). V’s anatomical
form exists only as a vessel for his spiritual self that truly defines who he
is. V builds on this concept by sending everyone in England a Guy Fawkes mask. He
believes that anyone can become what he represents – the very act of wearing
the mask is a political statement that symbolizes anarchy and rebellion. V
realizes that the only way to unite England is by eliminating the
idiosyncrasies of each individual, which he successfully achieves by
transforming them into symbols which are effigies of himself. Furthermore, V
says to Mr. Creedy, “Beneath this mask there is more than flesh. Beneath this
mask there is an idea, Mr. Creedy, and ideas are bullet proof” (V for Vendetta). V’s endurance of the gunfire
is a metaphor for the immortality of belief. Similarly, in 1984, the image of Big Brother pervades throughout Oceania. If V represents
anarchy and freedom, Big Brother is an impenetrable fortress against Goldstein
and his sinister accomplices. Though his existence is dubitable, the emotional
hysteria that is evoked upon seeing his image is paramount to the perpetuation
of the Party’s control. Winston’s reaction to the portrait of Big Brother
clearly demonstrates the power of his image, “White always mates, he thought
with a sort of cloudy mysticism. Did it not symbolize the eternal, unvarying
triumph of Good over Evil? The huge face gazed back at him, full of calm power.
White always mates” (Orwell, 289). After his transformation, Winston instinctively
sees Big Brother as “good” and “perpetually triumphant”. Big Brother symbolizes
the omnipotence and omnipresence of the Party – so long as he persists as a
powerful symbol in society, the reign of the Party would never falter.
V
and the Party recognize that an influential idea can cause an individual to act
against human nature – the instinctive will to survive and to avoid pain and
suffering. To demonstrate, in V for
Vendetta, V ruthlessly tortures Evey while showing her the powerful message
left behind by Veronica, “I shall die here. Every last inch of me shall perish.
Except one. An inch. It's small and it's fragile and it's the only thing in the
world worth having. We must never let them take it from us” (V for Vendetta). After Evey reads the
message, she is immediately overwhelmed by the mystic power of Veronica’s “last
inch” – her faith. Clutching on hopes of freedom and prosperity, she relinquishes
any fear of pain, suffering and death, which allows her to calmly face her
demise. The transformation of Evey proves be a great asset for V. Threatened by
the inspector, she calmly refuses to release the lever that would bring
destruction to the parliament. Similarly, for Winston Smith, the prospect of a
utopian society is oddly propelling. Winston is aware that “thoughtcrime does
not entail death, thoughtcrime is death” (28), yet out of boldness or stupidity,
he commits them nonetheless, “I am afraid of death…So long as human beings stay
human, death and life are the same thing" (166). Programmed by nature to
be afraid of one’s own demise, Winston’s paradoxical behaviors can only be
explained by his strong belief in human liberation and individualism. The Party
succeeds because it is fully aware of the appeal of belief to which Winston is
a victim. The phrase “Thou art” demands citizens to abandon all beliefs except
the love for Big Brother, which is enforced systematically, “It was as though
some huge force were pressing down upon you – something that penetrated
inside your skull, battering your brain against, frightening you out of your
beliefs, persuading you, almost, to deny the evidence of your senses.” (264). This
clearly demonstrates the extent of the Party’s dominance over human belief –
the seed of rebellion.
The power of an entire population that share an
idea is much greater than that of an individual, which is why both V and the
Party expand and maintain their sphere of influence. For example, when Evey asks
V for the reason behind the destruction of the parliament, V explains, “A
building is a symbol, as is the act of destroying it. Symbols are given power
by people. A symbol, in and of itself is powerless. But with enough people
behind it, blowing up a building can change the world” (V for Vendetta). V knows that his just cause or formidable skills
are futile without the support of the citizens of England, so he makes his
recording watched by the entire nation on November the 5th. This proves
to be vital to his success as a year later, the entire nation takes action
against the totalitarian regime. The government in 1984 also realizes the deadly potential of a group of
self-conscious citizens, so it strives to keep the proletarian unaware of their
collective power. The forging of history, the vulgar entertainments and the
deprivation of knowledge and wealth are all aimed towards maintaining the
asymmetric relationship between the people and the government. Moreover, social
bonds are restrained, as no one was to be trusted. All these measures combine
to form a potent prevention system that discourages the formation of any
alliance between citizens. Alone, Winston is powerless against the entire Oceanian
population, which is an essential reason for his failure. Specifically, O’Brien
says to Winston, “If you're a man, Winston, you're the last man. Your kind
is extinct. We are the inheritors. Do you realize that you are alone? You are
outside history” (270). The Party’s control over its population is so complete
that anomalies like Winston Smith are hopeless against its loyal party members.
Ideas are fundamentally men’s
creations, yet their influence lies far beyond the scope of an individual. It
is in realizing this that both V and the Party of 1984 are able to attain their goals. V and Big Brother become symbols which facilitates the spread of their
influence. Moreover, they realize the fact that a belief can have the power to
cause someone to counteract their physical will. Furthermore, V and the Party
both propagates their beliefs knowing that an idea has power only when it’s
shared as a collective. An idea is a powerful agent of change as is the act of
forming one, because one’s mind, once stretched by a new idea, never regains
its original dimensions.
Works Cited
Orwell, George. 1984. 1949. Reprint. New York: New American Library,
1977. Print.
Tolkien, J. R. R.. The lord of the rings,. 2d ed. Boston: Houghton
Mifflin, 19671966. Print.
V for Vendetta. Dir. James McTeigue. Perf. Natalie Portman. Warner Bros.
Entertainment, 2006. Film.
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