subjects, it must constantly monitor them so that it can curb anyone who does not fall in line with party policy--the telescreen provides the Inner Party with that power.

Orwell also uses the telescreen to get his readers to think about the role that technology could play in their future.  The book, published in 1949, might seem a little ahead of its time, but no doubt a savvy Orwell observed all of the technological advances being made around him and considered just how dangerous that technology could be when used by those who seek absolute power.

In Orwell's classic novel 1984, the authoritarian regime of Oceania uses a variety of oppressive methods to control, manipulate, and terrify the population. One of the state's primary means of controlling the citizens is through the use of telescreens, which are technologically advanced surveillance devices that hang on walls and perform several invasive functions. The telescreens record citizens, monitor their vital signs, issue announcements, and display Big Brother's propaganda. Throughout the story, Winston Smith is fully aware of the location of telescreens and must always maintain a sanguine disposition to conceal his negative feelings toward Big Brother and the Party. In the first chapter of the story, Orwell describes a telescreen by writing,

The voice came from an oblong metal plaque like a dulled mirror which formed part of the surface of the right-hand wall. ... The instrument (the telescreen, it was called) could be dimmed, but there was no way of shutting it off completely.

Although citizens can lower the volume of a telescreen, they cannot turn it off completely and remain under constant government surveillance at all times. Fortunately for Winston, the telescreen in his apartment does not command a full view of his room, and he can write in his diary from a nook in the corner. Winston also describes what it is like to be under the telescreen's constant view by mentioning,

To keep your face expressionless was not difficult, and even your breathing could be controlled, with an effort: but you could not control the beating of your heart, and the telescreen was quite delicate enough to pick it up.

Citizens must not only appear to be docile and content at all times but they must control their breathing and the beating of the heart in order to deceive the telescreen's sensitive mechanisms. The telescreens symbolically represent Big Brother's omnipresence and the intrusiveness of the authoritarian regime. Telescreens eradicate personal privacy and represent the Party's oppressive, invasive policies.

In George Orwell's novel 1984, a telescreen is a technologically advanced surveillance device that displays the Party's propaganda while simultaneously recording and monitoring the surrounding environment. A telescreen is shaped like an oblong metal plaque and resembles a dull mirror.

Telescreens can record anything in their field of vision and pick up on the faintest sounds. Telescreens can also read the pulse of civilians and are stationed everywhere throughout Oceania. Given the ubiquitous nature of telescreens, civilians are constantly under surveillance and being monitored at all times by agents of the Party. In the story, telescreens symbolically represent the intrusive, oppressive nature of the Party and Big Brother's omnipresence.

In addition to using them as spying mechanisms, the government also issues announcements over telescreens, and Outer Party members cannot turn them off. Outer Party members like Winston Smith are only capable of turning down the volume of the telescreens but can still hear the annoying announcements and patriotic songs.

Winston Smith is forced to maintain a sanguine disposition at all times and remain aware of his actions and words due to the presence of telescreens. One of the primary reasons Winston decides to rent the apartment above Mr. Charrington's shop is because he does not see a telescreen in the room. However, the telescreen is hidden behind a painting on the wall, and agents of the Party are able to spy on Winston as he conducts his affair with Julia.