Many of the rhetorical strategies from the Two Minutes
Hate relate to propaganda techniques. Below are several specific
techniques.
1. Pinpointing the
Enemy--This technique helps the speaker(s) unify a group against one
specific foe. During "the Hate" in 1984, the Party features
Goldstein in every "episode." The people of Oceania have been conditioned to hate the
sound of Goldstein's voice and his appearance because they associate him with hate, and
while Goldstein's face appears on the telescreen, footage of seemingly neverending
columns of marching Eurasian soldiers appear in the background. The audience
automatically associates Goldstein with the enemy army and focuses all of its animosity
upon Goldstein.
2. Appeal ad Populum
(Produces the Bandwagon Effect)--Many marketing agencies seek to induce
consumers to buy a product or take action simply because everyone else is doing so. One
of the most common techniques used to produce the bandwagon effect is appeal ad populum
(a speaker/writer convinces the audience that something is true because everyone
believes it). The Party relies on this technique throughout 1984,
especially during the Two Minutes Hate. Winston notes to himself in Chapter 1 that even
when he is thinking insubordinate thoughts about Big Brother
that
"the
horrible thing about the Two Minutes Hate was not that one was obliged to act a part,
but that it was impossible to avoid joining in"
(16).
Winston finds himself
jumping out of his chair during the Hate, shouting at the screen. This is precisely why
the Party requires the workers to gather together in front of the telescreen--they
realize the power of peer pressure and mob mentality and that once an individual gives
in to their rhetoric, many will follow.
3.
Scare Tactics--Though a logical fallacy in rhetoric, scare
tactics work surprisingly well because of the technique's ability to induce fear. Near
the end of the Hate, Goldstein's voice becomes more like a sheep's bleating, and his
face fades into the figure of a huge advancing Eurasian soldier. Not only is this the
use of the transfer technique which causes one to transfer emotion or thoughts about one
subject to another, but it is also an effective employment of scare tactics. The
soldier becomes bigger and bigger, and his machine gun seems like it might explode into
the crowd at any minute.
4. Paradox and
Parallel Structure--At the end of the Hate, the Party's three slogans
appear on the screen along with Big Brother's face. The slogans themselves are examples
of a paradox--they are seemingly contradictory, but when Winston reads Goldstein's book,
he sees the "truth" of the statements. The parallel structure of the slogans is
effective in making them rhythmic and perfect for repetition.
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