Programm 74. StuTS

In my talk, I would like to introduce the basics of censoring language in the media, the effects this can have on a society, and how this can be applied to literature (in particular, in Orwell’s ‘Nineteen Eighty-Four’)

Influencing, even manipulating, societies through the calculated use of language is an ever-present topic in politics and the social sciences. In the second world war, propaganda played a huge role in establishing the dictatorship’s ideology and driving the war. In present times, it is very noticeable in the Ukrainian war, especially when looking at how consistently the Russian government enforces censorship throughout their media outlets. But censorship doesn’t have to be connected to wars only. It is everywhere. Hollywood has dictated what could be discussed in films for a long time (see e.g. Bernstein 2000). Some American presidents, like Bush or Trump, are known to have used the press to their advantage to win elections (see e.g. Borjesson 2004).

The topic of my talk will orientate itself around my master’s thesis, which I will begin in October. In my master’s thesis, I will look at how the language used in three speculative fiction novels influences and controls the fictional society.

This talk will begin with a short introduction to what censorship is. Then we will have a closer look at the key features of “Newspeak”, the constructed language of Nineteen Eighty-Four (1949) by George Orwell, which was designed to manipulate the fictional society into accepting the ideology of the totalitarian regime in the novel. The last section of my talk will compare these key features to the Russian censorship imposed on their media in February 2022, shortly after the invasion of the Ukraine began.
I am looking forward to questions and further ideas I can use in going forth with my MA thesis.

References:
Bernstein, Matthew, ed. 2000. Controlling Hollywood: Censorship and Regulation in the Studio Era. London: The Athlone Press.
Borjesson, Kristina, ed. 2004. Zensur USA: Wie die amerikanische Presse zum Schweigen gebracht wird. Zürich: Pendo Verlag.

Info

Tag: 28.10.2023
Anfangszeit: 12:00
Dauer: 00:25
Raum: Hofburg Raum 1
Track: Applied Linguistics
Sprache: en

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