What are the advantages and disadvantages of Big Brother in 1984?

The chief pro of Big Brother is his propaganda value as a rallying point and a representation of the state's power and security. Big Brother is a distinct and recognizable face for the nation, functioning as George Washington or Uncle Sam does in the United States or Queen Elizabeth II in Great Britain. This is especially important in Oceania, where the government is largely invisible and also forever changing its policies, such as who it is at war with. Big Brother, in contrast, provides a distinct, recognizable face, and is an emblem that is an unchanging point of stability.

Nevertheless, Big Brother also represents oppression and surveillance. The motto "Big Brother is Watching You" is threatening and ominous rather than comforting and empowering. Big Brother creates a constant sense of unease in outer Party members that they might, at any moment, be doing something wrong and worthy of punishment. He symbolizes conformity and groupthink, qualities that alter individuals into a herd.

A pro of Big Brother and total government surveillance would be safety.  In a world where everything is monitored and the police can even monitor your thoughts, violent crime would be almost non-existent.  Tom Cruise's Minority Report focused on that kind of idea.  

Big Brother also creates a huge uniformity of the population, so anything that doesn't fit the mold is easy to spot and "fix."  That's what happened with Winston, although the fixing solution for him was really gross.  

Another pro of Big Brother is how organized everything was.  Nothing was out of place and there wasn't any extra stuff to get in the way of that organization and efficiency.   Even the language itself was being streamlined.  

Cons on the other hand are that Big Brother essentially wipes out any independent thought or individualism.  To an American that is horrible since the Bill of Rights basically guarantees individuals the right to think what they want to think, and at times do what they want to do.  

Another con is that there is no motivation for self improvement.  Orwell's 1984 created a sort of caste system of society.  Winston was what he was, and had no real hope of becoming more.  A society with no motivation to do better is a dying society.  

What are the advantages and disadvantages of living in the society depicted in 1984 by George Orwell?

Some advantages to living in this society would include:

1. COMMON LIFESTYLES: The classes in this society occur, but the great majority of proles and Party members understand their positions and don't work to change them. People know where they stand. Their rations as distributed are much more equal than compared to what current societies today see used throughout their classes. We have the very filthy rich, and the most dirt poor in our societies today.
2. PARENTING RELIEF: Since the children are in school being so coaxed to love and have devotion for Big Brother, parents don't have to worry about vying for their children's affection, it is already a lost cause. I would assume too that they see their children less hours of the day.
3. SECURITY: In a society like 1984's as long as you follow rules and show devotion, you will be protected because there are telescreens everywhere to help determine when any kind of wrong occurs.

The disadvantages of such a society are as follows:

1. LOSS OF IDENTITY: A person wouldn't get to choose the career path that interested them, they would do what they were told. Clothing to express one's self and the ability to make choices on a daily basis would be completely lost in this society.
2. LOSS OF RELATIONSHIPS: Although Julia and Winston make a relationship somewhat work, you can see how not only sex for pleasure is frowned upon, but having anyone to talk with for more than a few seconds is frowned upon. The constant oversight of who you talk to and what you are talking about would drive today's people crazy.
3. LOSS OF CULTURE: Winston doesn't really share any activity that adults do or children do that help define a culture as one with positive traditions or values, they just exist.