"The Internet is Watching You" - Why and How George Orwell's 1984 should be taught in the EFL classroom

Abstract

This essay will argue for why and also how the book "1984", by George Orwell should be used in the English as a Foreign Language (EFL) education. Teaching authentic literature from various periods of time is an important part of the EFL education according to the syllabus for Swedish schools. However, the teaching of classic literature can often be found stale and unapproachable. If literature is integrated in the lives of the students, it becomes more approachable and exciting, and consequently the students are more likely to take it in, according to the sociocultural teaching theory. In today's IT society, computers and the Internet has a big part in most young people's lives, and are a subjects they can easily relate to. This essay, shows how "1984" can successfully be used in EFL education to compare Orwell's dystopian vision about a controlling surveillance state with today's IT society's use of social media, Internet history, targeted advertising and so on.