George Orwell’s 1984 is a classic dystopian novel that is a regular part of American high school English and social studies classes. It is usually taught in 9th or 10th grade to introduce students to themes like totalitarianism, propaganda, and censorship. The book remains relevant because it helps students understand how oppression and manipulation operate, offering important insights into their roles as citizens who help protect democracy.
Similarly, American high schools teach about Adolf Hitler’s rise to power in 1933 and how the Nazis changed German society, usually in 11th or 12th grade. This history provides students with clear ways to judge modern leaders and helps them spot similar patterns in today’s politics, including those seen in figures like Donald Trump.
During both of his terms as president, Donald Trump’s views and actions were widely shared in the media. TV networks often covered his rallies and press conferences, and social media platforms like Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram played a major role in shaping how people saw him and engaged with his messages.
Hence as a result of this education, many Americans notice similarities between Trump and the patterns found in Orwell’s 1984 and Hitler’s time. These similarities are seen as repeated patterns, not exact copies of totalitarianism. To think more about this, ask yourself: Which signs of growing authoritarianism do you notice most?
Core components
The first of four core components people point to when comparing Orwell’s 1984, Hitler, and Trump is the emphasis on a single leader as the embodiment of the nation, with loyalty to him prioritized over loyalty to institutions, Congress, the U.S. Constitution, the Supreme Court, and/or the law. This is an echo of fascist leadership cults and Big Brother’s centrality in 1984.
Another point is that Hitler repeatedly told lies until they were accepted, while Mr. Trump’s policies feature blatant falsehoods and misinformation: 30,573 false or misleading claims during the Trump 1.0 administration (Washington Post, Jan. 24, 2021).
Mr. Trump’s discrediting of independent media – “enemy of the people” – and attacks on journalists – “obnoxious reporter,” “stupid,” and “quiet piggy” – evoke both Nazi attacks on the Lügenpresse (lying press) and 1984’s state-controlled information system.
The 47th president’s statement to the public, “What you’re seeing and what you’re reading is not what’s happening,” strongly resembles Orwellian doublespeak and demands that you reject the evidence of your own eyes and ears. Americans have seen video footage of two people being killed by ICE agents in Minneapolis, know that 60-70,000 people have been detained during the Trump 2.0 administration (Deportation Data, Jan. 27), and realize 73.6% of those detained have never been convicted of any criminal offense (TRAC Immigration).
1984-style elements
Mr. Trump’s insistence that Americans who are getting facts from the media are getting “fake news” resembles Newspeak and the Ministry of Truth’s role in manufacturing false reality.
Mr. Trump’s efforts to change or rewrite official government documents and websites, punish civil servants who present unwelcome data, or replace independent experts with loyalists are seen as analogous to the constant revision of records in 1984 to fit the party's narrative.
Mr. Trump’s constant focus on vilifying groups like immigrants, political opponents, and critical journalists functions like an ongoing “Two Minutes Hate,” channeling anger at designated enemies to consolidate support.
Hitler-era
Nazi propaganda portrayed Jews and other groups as parasitic, criminal, or a biological threat to the nation. Mr. Trump said “poisoning the blood of our country” and has linked them to an alleged Christian nationalists’ replacement of native-born Americans, which parallels the neo-Nazi’s far-right “Great Replacement” ideology. It’s worth remembering that roughly 97 percent of Americans are descendants of immigrants ourselves, a nation built generation after generation by people who arrived seeking safety, opportunity, and dignity. Our shared history should give every citizen pause before embracing rhetoric that divides us into “real” and “unreal” Americans.
Historians of fascism point out that Nazi authorities used visible humiliation, rough treatment, and publicized expulsions to send a message to bystanders. Reporting on Trump 2.0 describes deportation flights with migrants shackled as deliberate “theater,” meant to demonstrate state power.
Mr. Trump’s repeated suggestions to use the military for domestic enforcement, plus aggressive immigration raids and nationalizing elections, are viewed as analogous to Hitler’s actions in Germany.
Authoritarian playbook
Mr. Trump’s illegal firing of 17 inspectors general, firing career civil servants and demanding loyalty from his cabinet appointees, Congressional Republicans, America’s judicial system, military personnel, and civil servants – intended by America’s founding fathers to be neutral and independent – tracks an authoritarian playbook of hollowing out USA’s checks and balances system that has worked quite well for 250 years.
The difference between America, Orwell’s 1984, and Nazi Germany
Unlike 1984 or Nazi Germany, the United States still has freedom of the press, Constitutionally-driven courts, federally elected representatives, state governments willing to resist, open elections, and a strong civil society where people can organize, protest, and criticize the president without automatic imprisonment.
Many scholars stress that Trump 2.0 is not the same as Hitler or Big Brother but that the patterns – attacks on truth, the rule-of-law erosion, reshaping the population along ethnic lines, scapegoating, and leader-cult politics in the GOP-dominated Congress, cabinet, and Supreme Court – are early warning signs that if left unchecked, history shows they can lead democracies toward authoritarian regimes.
This is no genocide, but history warns us to be careful
Only a strong civil society can ensure that America, in its 250th year of existence, remains a democracy and rejects an authoritarian dictatorship.
Will you help keep it strong, or will you give in to Big Brother?
Steve Corbin is a professor emeritus of marketing at the University of Northern Iowa.
