Both texts effectively highlight and foreground the need for humanity to learn from its mistakes for its ultimate survival. The social, cultural, and historical environment of a composer's era significantly shapes the construction of his text and the ideals, values, and attitudes he chooses to address within it. These influences offer a unique distinction between different texts, while also highlighting notable commonalities. Through the implementation of dystopian fiction, in which they describe a post-apocalyptic future, arising from cultural realities that allow tyrants to exploit periods of adversity and tribulation, both texts offer didactic and implicit warnings about what will happen if current trends persist. Fritz Lang's expressionistic and patently surreal silent film, "Metropolis" (1927), can be interpreted as a reaction to the economically unstable and rapidly fluctuating social environment of Germany during the immediate post-World War I era, in which the controversial The newly emerged Weimar Republic gave birth to new individual freedoms and consequent cultural diversity. Lang's physical depiction of the segregation and dichotomy between the upper and lower classes of Metropolis pushes his audience to question the distribution of power and authority, subtly highlighting the flaws of Germany's new system of government and affirming the need for compassion in rebuilding a thriving society. . In contrast, George Orwell's dystopian novel, 'Nineteen Eighty-Four' (1949), is a pessimistic vision of the future, in response to the horrific totalitarian and authoritarian regimes witnessed in the years following the First and Second World War. Orwell provides an ominous warning about the capabilities of dictatorial control systems and their ability to extend control over all aspects of an individual's life; suffocating their freedoms, dignity, morality and subsequently dehumanizing the population. Through the comparative study of both texts, we observe a clear set of commonalities and differences in their construction, contextual influences and themes explored. Furthermore, we discern the fundamental correlation between a text and its contextual origins and how exploring similar content in both texts highlights their fundamental meaning. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay Oppressive capitalist plutocracies can abuse and dictate individual freedoms; employing terror, surveillance and other corrupt tools as a means to suffocate its citizens and deprive them of their dignity. Fritz Lang's black-and-white expressionist film "Metropolis" is a distinctive, artistic commentary on Germany's Weimar Republic in the 1920s; depicting the facade of superficial economic abundance during this period that hid the deeply rooted flaws in the new democratic system. This can be seen in the physical representation of the bright, art-deco inspired and glamorous city of abundance that is Metropolis, reflecting the German period of industrialization and modernisation, built on the city's foundations of deprivation, inequality and scarcity of workers. . In Lang's film, similarly to the unjust power structure of '1984', absolute and authoritarian control is held singularly by Joh Fredersen, who is motivated primarily by securing a city of wealth and sumptuousness for the benefit of the aristocratic upper class, in ignorance and indifference towards disadvantaged workers or the "hands" whothey struggle to realize his vision. Frederson achieves and maintains his power through the use of fear and terror as a means to control his robot-like workers, stifling their individuality and freedom. A black-and-white long shot depicts a stiff formation of workers with their heads turned downwards moving listlessly, uniformly and expressionlessly through the subway prison tunnels of Metropoli's city mise en scene; reflects the nature of labor on production lines in Germany during this period. This image exudes connotations of slavery, deprivation and indolent conformity, in stark contrast to the opening images of skyscrapers, spotlights and luxury inspired by the highly modernized and architecturally innovative city of New York. Frederson's son Freder, the film's Christ-like hero, watches in horror as a worker's factory explodes and he transforms into the barbaric, golden-faced fire god, Moloch. Moloch, a biblical character who alludes to the Greco-Roman tradition of child sacrifice, consumes the weary workers offered to him, reinforcing fear-induced methods of power and control. The dehumanizing, repetitive and physically demanding nature of the work depicted in these scenes is indicative of the reality of assembly-line production, commonplace during Weimar Germany's industrial revolution after World War I, resulting in the reintroduction of the 12-hour working day. hours with a two-hour break. Lang pushes us to question the corrupt and abusive use of power and its repercussions on an individual's sense of dignity, humanity and right, while at the same time making comparisons and connections with one's social, cultural and historical context. Lang's text was considered an innovative German expressionist silent film; providing a crucial source of inspiration for the subsequent development of the "film noir" genre. Lang's innovative use of special effects, multi-layered sets, stop motion film, and his visual dichotomy between the two interior worlds of Metropolis are central to subsequent dystopian and science fiction texts, while at the same time creating a strong conceptual connection with "1984 " by Orwell. attach intrinsic and fundamental value to their essential rights to freedom of speech, thought and individuality. If the values ​​of these fundamental rights are neglected, societies are prone to all-encompassing and complete manipulation, tyranny of totalitarian control systems and resulting dehumanization. This is made clear in George Orwell's iconic dystopian novel “1984”. Similar to Lang's film, Orwell depicts a futuristic, dystopian setting, exploring the dangers of oppressive systems of control. However, Orwell's vision, inspired by the dictatorship of Joseph Stalin and his "great purges" in Soviet Russia, and by Adolf Hitler and his eradication of the "inferior" races in Nazi Germany, is a significantly darker and more pessimistic prophecy. Orwell immediately places us in the austere and harsh context of urban decay; "Airstrip One", the parallel image of degraded and rubble-filled London after the Second World War. The clocks "strike thirteen" and the omniscient and invasive image of Big Brother "watching you" is strikingly reminiscent of the image of Joseph Stalin. The antihero, Winston Smith, is "small, frail" and has "a varicose ulcer above his right ankle." Winston's desperate, weak and disgusting image contrasts sharply with Lang's hero Freder, the image of Aryan perfection. Winston works in the "Ministry of Truth", an oxymoronic title for a place that hosts the constant rewriting of history to ensure the party is always correct; "Whocontrol the past control the future. Whoever controls the present controls the past.' The language is oversimplified and "stripped to the bone", giving rise to a new language, "whose vocabulary shrinks every year", "NewSpeak", which makes "thoughtcrime" or unorthodox thinking "literally impossible" . Perhaps the most frightening aspect of Orwell's disturbing vision is the attainable and realistic future that is depicted. Many of the party's policies and means of control derive from the strategies of Hitler and Stalin in their fanatical dictatorships; Stalin himself airbrushed photos of "vaporized" people, rewriting history and often changing alliances with Germany, claiming that he had always maintained this relationship. Orwell asks us to reevaluate the capabilities of totalitarian government, warning of the terrible possible extension of control that the rapid development of technology would allow. Both Orwell and Lang convey a genuine fear of the future in their lyrics, yet both the medium through which these ideas are explored and the historical contexts that inspired the composers are significantly different and distinctive. Although Orwell was at heart a critical essayist, it could be argued that Lang's primary aim was to create aesthetically innovative art and entertainment. So, although both explore complementary concepts of power and control, and the dehumanization that can emerge from them and leading to subjugation, suppression of rights, and degradation of human qualities, these two iconic texts differ. Societies built on foundations of inequality and deprivation are prone to growing discontent among citizens and ultimately destruction. The continued oppression of individual rights to freedom and expression can only be tolerated within certain limits, after which the spark of resistance and rebellion is ignited. Lang's film was unique in that it confronted conservative German audiences with the rapid change in previously rigid class structures, addressing the growing potential of a Russian-style communist rebellion. Following the signing of the humiliating Treaty of Versailles, in which Germany was forced to accept full responsibility for the destruction of World War I and agree to pay indefinite reparations to the Allies, German public opinion retaliated with bitter divisions, riots and strikes. The seeds of discontent and revolution are evident in Lang's film in the continued subjugation of workers. Lang depicts Mary as a virginal symbol of purity and compassion who prophesies that "the mediator between the head and the hands must be the heart"; a message that extends as a recurring motif throughout the film and clarifies the fundamental need for understanding to achieve balance in this severely divided society. Lang's depiction of Maria's robot "doppelgänger", performing absurdly dramatic gestures and facial expressions, dressed in dark, devilish eye makeup, offers a stark dichotomy to the pure, virginal, and innocently dressed Maria. Lang's continued use of juxtapositions; “light” and “dark,” “blessed” or “damned,” and “higher” and “lower” serve as representations of the severe divisions within German society during this period. Dramatic, pulsating drum beats and climactic violin notes are heard as workers, ironically conforming to the reckless mob mentality, crowd into elevators ascending to Metropolis' upper city, shaking their fists violently. Lang explores the reckless and compliant mass mentality of the rebellion, highlighting the ironic substitution of a simple means of control, complementing Orwell's description of the "two minutes ofhatred", in which the working class is unreasonably united in hatred of Big Brother's enemies. Lang describes the pure and compassionate love story between Maria and Freder, who unite deeply and desperately try to protect the frightened and difficulties from the flooded city. The film ends optimistically with the unification of the 'head', Frederson, and the 'hands', the workers, through the mediation of Freder, 'the heart'. oppression of Frederson's capitalist plutocracy through warm and compassionate mediation. Lang's ending has been criticized as abstruse and unrealistic; that despite this handshake, Frederson's tyrannical rule may continue under a different guise perfect synchronicity and uniformity, the only difference is that now their heads are raised. This could be said to reflect Germany's "Stresemann era", in which the nation established a secure place on the global stage, participating once again. to international trade and business. However this was only a facade for his desperate dependence on the American economy for his success, which led to Germany's severe downfall during the Depression. Lang draws our attention to the nature of resistance and rebellion; how the oppressive abuse of power and control and the stifling of freedoms results in this, while also highlighting the chaos that can be created if not calculatedly orchestrated on one's own initiative. Lang's unique cinematic style and exploration of core themes of power and control have served as an iconic source of inspiration for many artists who followed him, bringing the central importance of "Metropolis" to the fore and illuminating its connection vital with the time period in which it was created. Resistance and rebellion arise due to discontent and dissatisfaction with one's reality; their rights, their freedoms and their distant memories of more prosperous times. Orwell's '1984' elucidates the inherent characteristic of humanity that pushes us to question the nature of the world and the distribution of power and control within it, even if this attempt is accepted and recognized as futile. Lang explores this inherent desire in his film, however, it could be argued that his depiction of the oppressed class holds a much more promising capacity to rebel and succeed in creating a better society. In contrast, Orwell's antihero, Winston, consciously accepts that his life is doomed from the moment he opens his diary and marks its pages; 'the decisive act'. Every trait considered human is stripped from the citizens of Oceania; their humanity, their family, their dignity, their sexual instinct and their individual will to live. This is replaced by the all-encompassing fear and love of Big Brother, making clear the mass scale of the infiltration, control and repression of any possible rebellion. Orwell describes Winston's dark psychological state; he feels "lost in a monstrous world in which he himself was the monster" and therefore his only potential resistance is his own internal contemplation. Similar to Lang's description of Rotwang's house as "a relic of the dark and forgotten past", Orwell describes motifs in his novel that serve to recall a brighter time than Winston's current reality, making clear the extent to which knowledge has been hidden and withheld. . These motifs recur in Winston's frequent dreams of the "Golden Country", the glass paperweight, and the image of "St. Clement's Church", which ironically is used as a hidden surveillance device for parties. Winston attempts to engage intellectually with his love interest..