One of the first things I noticed about this story when I was reading it was the allusions to George Orwell’s 1984. So, of course, I was happy when the author mentioned it in the end: “It was just like they did to Winston Smith in Nineteen Eighty-Four, which was a book none of them knew about, but the techniques are really quiet ancient…” There are many similarities between these two stories. The Ticktockman and Big Brother are very similar because they both seem to be the leader and figurehead of society. Also, both of them seem to keep their identities concealed; the Ticktockman by always wearing a mask, and Big Brother with the secrecy of whether or not he really exists as a person at all. In both stories society is highly regulated, and there are severe consequences (namely torture and death) for those who refuse to conform. And both stories are unique in the fact that the hero of the book is not the typical brave, good-looking guy with everything going for them. The thing that sets them apart from most other protagonists is their unwillingness to accept the standards forced on them by their government, and their commitment to fight and even die for their tiny bit of freedom. The main difference between these two books, though, is the contrasting silliness of the Ticktockman and the seriousness of 1984. The Ticktockman seems more to be a parody of the time restraints of western society and modern government regulations, while 1984 is an actual, earnest warning about the dangers of socialism and communism.
One of my favorite things about this story is the fact that the Harlequin had a personality despite all odds, when the government officials thought they had gotten rid of any such thing so long ago. This story is like so many others (1984, Equilibrium, etc.) where the qualities of personality, human emotion, and feeling triumph over too-strict rules of government and society, even though most of the time the effects of these qualities outlive the actual people themselves. It shows that people and institutions may be able to regulate what we do and say, but they cannot regulate who we really are inside.
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Similarily, I enjoyed Repent Harlequin for the same reasons. The parallels to 1984 and the future plot of society is a frightening possiblity. Also, The Harlequin had a fire in him that couldnt be tainted by the government. I liked that part of the story the most, the rebel always catches my eye.
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