Od staklenog grada do betonskog ministarstva: evolucija nadzora u romanima Mi Jevgenija Zamjatina i 1984 Džordža Orvela

Abstract

The goal of the paper is to point to one of the key differences between the literary cities of the novels We by Yevgeny Zamyatin and Nineteen Eighty-Four by George Orwell. The protagonists of We live in transparent houses made of glass, while in Orwell’s work we notice high-rise buildings made of concrete and marble, sometimes built without any windows. Of special significance will be the examination of architectural tendencies with regards to choice material used to “construct” dystopian cities. Additionally, the effectiveness of surveillance in such cities will be analyzed. The switch from glass buildings and a completely transparent surveillance system to a Panoptical system of unidentifiable power alludes to the main difference in the way each society and its social practices are constructed. Using the model of the Panopticon as a starting point for the research, we notice the paradox of (non)transparency which is exemplified by the fact that concrete, windowless buildings prove to be equally efficient as a glass one in maintaining constant surveillance and control over citizens. Technological advancements bring about a change in the surveillance paradigm due to which we must ask ourselves: Has Michel Foucault’s model of a disciplinary society with constant surveillance been surpassed in our contemporary society?