Nineteen Eighty-Four: Context

This 20-slide lesson introduces the key context of George Orwell’s ‘Nineteen Eighty-Four’.

Students learn about Orwell’s works and social commentary before delving into the dystopian genre and its key features. Totalitarianism and the political turmoil of the Cold War are then discussed, inviting students to think critically about society, individuality, surveillance, and propaganda as a tool for oppressive regimes to maintain control. The novel’s key themes are introduced, and students are tasked with looking up and defining sophisticated vocabulary associated with the novel.

At the end of the lesson is a potential class or homework task in which students research historical examples of totalitarianism.

This is an ideal introduction to ‘1984’, and could easily cover more than one lesson if teachers would like to expand upon any ideas or tasks.

The PowerPoint is saved as a pdf to maintain its layout.