University of South Carolina Libraries
'1984'spur s dread, t By College Press Service "On each landing, opposite the lift shaft, the poster with the enormous face gazed from the wall. It was one of those pictures which are so contrived that the eyes follow you about when you move. BIG BROTHER IS WATCHING YOU, the mrttinn honontli it r/in " uvnvMMi It r Url? ? From George Orwell's 1984" ANN ARBOR, MI ? It's almost the year 1984, and Big Brother may be watching us all already. I But whatever Big Brother might be, a lot of people are watching the late author George Orwell. He's the hottest property on camrms since Herschel Walker. There are numerous special college conferences and academic convention panels scheduled over the next 1 1/2 years, devoted to heavyweight academic ponderings of how close we are to fulfilling Orwell's frightening vision of totalitarian society. JIM AND WENDY Berlowitz have been sunbathing topless on a University of Oklahoma street corner to count down the days until Jan. 1, 1984. & Their countdown has been interrupted by ? naturally ? ...i i : ii 1 I s I c~ * uk auuiuiiuc?, wuu is.ccp miCMiug 111c nusuanu anu wuc icaiu on various disturbing-the-peace charges. Two Michigan men will soon deliver to campus bookstores nationwide 1984 calendars that identify dates on which the U.S. government infringed on individual liberties and privacy. The Village Voice will soon devote an entire issue to "a ~c 1 aoA J n^.. i picvicw UI I70H UIIU Dcyunu. NEOCONSERVATIVE Norman Podhoretz, editor of Commentary magazine, said Orwell belongs in his camp. Former U.S. Sen. Eugene McCarthy claimed him for the liberals. I And The New American Library, anticipating more classes devoted to the book, is stepping up production of the paperback version. There are rumors from Hollywood of another film version IU iIji Ipw?w??paw WE'VE GOT 'EM. HHH I ALSO BRASS, GOLD, HHP AND PEWTER Hi.. UNICORNS AND B| ?\ DUNGEONS AND HH ^ DRAGONS FIGURES. HH flp I TUESDAY HE WEDNESDAY HB THURSDAY IB RH LOBBY mm I YO criticism of govern nf rt-u,A 11? c / ? 1 o o e 1 ui vi nvu o via^iw. And last week, the first of what promises to be more than a dozen academic conferences at various campuses on Orwell and "1984" occurred at the University of Michigan. IN WHAT MAY become the pattern, English professors spent the three-day symposium analyzing Orwell's literary talents while historians explained his political aims. University of Michigan English Professor Ejner Jensen, who organized the conference, got to sum up Orwell's ? and "1984*"s ? broad appeal. "He read society with such clarity, that's why everybody wants a piece of him. The book stands as a symbol of what people are dreading out there." Jensen said he started planning his dread festival in 1981 to "give students a cross section of what his great book means today." BERNARD CRICK, Orwell's biographer, said Orwell "is a great peg to hang all our worries around." After that, the agreement ended as conference participants debated whether the book's vision resembles modern regimes, both communist and democratic. Former Senator and presidential candidate McCarthy feared the worst. Borrowing a phrase from football coach George Allen, known for trading future draft choices for __i i i J r i* a-!_- it J piayers wno couia perioral immediately, ivic^ariny saiu, "The future is now. "The extent of corporate and government control over American life has come without reflection to us," he said. MICHIGAN LAW professor Francis Allen said "The federal National Security Agency is capable of intercepting all rarlin m*?ccaopc trancf*?rrino th#*m tn itc pr*m ruit^r anH 1 UV41V VI UlltllVIIUl^ VUVIIl W JIVU VVIIIJ^ UfcVI MltM decoding them. "Also, you look at the kinds of things that credit agencies do, the files that are kept and the difficulty of maintaining any kind of security of privacy," he said. SSHSBH He""" S| Soups, Salads Sandwiches B itsnTjAn wBmE3Dsalmm L; wmmmmmmmmmmr mmm "r ? . 'A* ;M L A ' U'LL BE AMAZED AND AMUS Mucniiv e.nni IN UOJL/n Jl U?W JL L20^983^^^^^^RHJBALLR( ment, business Former United Auto Workers President Leonard Woodcock was also alarmed, but less drastic. "Total control is not anywhere near what we have today," he said. Michigan history professor Alfred Meyer said "My prescription for avoiding Orwell's nightmare society is that (the American) people will have to get used to the notion of less resources and less power. If not, we'll have a state that might seek tighter control and justify that it's necessary in a time of emergency." THE MANY COLLEGE students who viewed it all tended to be as worried as Meyer. Michigan senior Shari Sanger said, "We probably will always have the freedom of speech that nrn.ait e <mo>? ? v/i ?*wi uiuu i iuicscc in lyo*t. "But with all the technology, the potential for total control will always be there. That's what scares me," she said. Crick, who is scheduled to attend similar Orwell meetings this year at the University of Akron and at schools in his native England, counseled all to "remember, he didn't say it would happen. He told us to try not to let it happen." But it already has, said Tim Keefe, a freelance nhofocranher nnH HnwarH T Auinp a lOfiO Mi^inon cf | -"O X ? * v f * m* JUVVillV) W A S\J4* i*ilVl Ahg^lAU UiaiV graduate. They've created a calendar to prove it. KEEFE SAID "We got stuff through the Freedom of Information Act ^stimony from Senate committee hearings and through nev. .paper clippings. This calendar will document that in many ways, people here have been oppressed. Almost every day has another announcement of government intrusion." Asked if there were other motivations for producing the calendar, Keefe said, "Oh, this has an incredible market, obviously." For the same reasons New American Library, which has printed 10 million paperback copies of the classic since 1948, is readying a promotional blitz. "1984 is George Orwell's year, and we're George Orwell's publisher," said NAL Editor Joe Esposito. "We'll be promoting very heavily, and we will have special sales." """ \ Trying to kick the | j VUI UVIIUIVU I lUUIl* I I At Nice-N-Natural we offer a tasty variety of beverages, ) including 2 I juices, herbal teas, whole milk and hot cider, to complement our delicious sandwiches S salads. Until 4(23(83, come by for a FREE BEVERAGE with the pur- | j chase of a sandwich or salad. 1 j 1217 College St. FREE j j IMMORTALIZE YOURSELF IN A CARICATURE. THEY'RE FREE!! l I MONDAY 11-3 I TUESDAY 11-3 I j||j| RH BACK PATIO 1 ED _ I