‘Little Brother’ by Cory Doctorow is about how a teenager, Marcus Yallow, gets involved in a technological battle against the government while trying to fight for his privacy and the privacy of others. ‘Little Brother’ places an emphasis on the message that privacy is a right that all people are entitled to. Marcus, who at times seems carefree, heavily supports this message, and it plays a role in his development. In an age where technology can it difficult to maintain your privacy, there are many opportunities for people, like the government, to watch you and feed you propaganda. This kind of unsettling and rigid mood is emphasized in the setting of the book and even the title.
‘Little Brother’ takes place in a city that was subjected to a …show more content…
The title is an homage to the character ‘Big Brother’ from the book ‘1984’ by George Orwell. In Orwell’s novel, every citizen is being surveyed by the government, and constantly reminded that ‘Big Brother’ is watching them. The idea of a ‘Big Brother’ watching over the citizens resembles how the Department of Homeland Security wished to watch over every citizen in America after terrorist attack. In both books, the government claims that giving up one’s privacy is all for the greater good and that ‘Big Brother’ is only trying to keep everyone safe. In both cases, the government is abusing their power by taking stripping their citizens of their privacy and freedom. Another symbolic purpose for the title ‘Little Brother’ is how the Xnet is full of little brothers that watch the Department of Homeland Security and monitor how they are successful with their anti terrorism tactics. Even though the government tries to use technology to keep tabs on their citizens, the more tech savvy citizens give the government the exact same treatment. The idea of a ‘Big Brother’ in the story closely ties with the theme that privacy is a right everyone is entitled to because having figure like ‘Big Brother’ watching you contradicts theme. This is because you are not truly free because you are being watched and punished for your actions. Marcus realizes this from the very beginning of the book, and he realizes that the government appointing themselves as big brother is a violation of his rights and the rights of the citizens of the their
‘Little Brother’ takes place in a city that was subjected to a …show more content…
The title is an homage to the character ‘Big Brother’ from the book ‘1984’ by George Orwell. In Orwell’s novel, every citizen is being surveyed by the government, and constantly reminded that ‘Big Brother’ is watching them. The idea of a ‘Big Brother’ watching over the citizens resembles how the Department of Homeland Security wished to watch over every citizen in America after terrorist attack. In both books, the government claims that giving up one’s privacy is all for the greater good and that ‘Big Brother’ is only trying to keep everyone safe. In both cases, the government is abusing their power by taking stripping their citizens of their privacy and freedom. Another symbolic purpose for the title ‘Little Brother’ is how the Xnet is full of little brothers that watch the Department of Homeland Security and monitor how they are successful with their anti terrorism tactics. Even though the government tries to use technology to keep tabs on their citizens, the more tech savvy citizens give the government the exact same treatment. The idea of a ‘Big Brother’ in the story closely ties with the theme that privacy is a right everyone is entitled to because having figure like ‘Big Brother’ watching you contradicts theme. This is because you are not truly free because you are being watched and punished for your actions. Marcus realizes this from the very beginning of the book, and he realizes that the government appointing themselves as big brother is a violation of his rights and the rights of the citizens of the their