Project Background
Kitbashing Class Disparity in Orwell’s 1984
George Orwell’s 1984 and the theme of Class Disparity were chosen based on a survey I created and sent out to educators working in Middle Schools, High Schools, and Universities throughout North America. 1984 was one of the selections these educators found the most challenging for their students to grasp, while the theme of Class Disparity was likewise perplexing for students to understand. The series of games based in the dystopia of 1984’s Oceania, allow students to select from among the three delineated classes in the novel: Inner Party Members, Outer Party Members, or the Proles. The subsequent in-game narratives place the student’s characters in situations similar to those experienced by Winston Smith, presenting them with different choices at each juncture. Through these choices, the students build their character and select a Role, with each of the three starting points (Inner Party, Outer Party, or Prole) having two or three choice-based outcomes. The main story arch of the two games invites students to join the revolution attempting to overthrow Big Brother, The Party, and INGSOC. Throughout, the game asks the students to consider the “WHY?” – Why would my character want to do this? Why wouldn’t they? What could my character (and the Class they represent) lose if the revolution fails? What could my character (or the Class) lose if the revolution succeeds? These in-game questions for reflection ask the students to think back on what they know about the narrative and consider their positions within the hierarchy of 1984. While five of the six Character Roles in the game are actively working toward revolution, there is one Character Role (open to both Inner and Outer Party Members) that acts as a double-agent. The “Infiltrator” Role ‘wins’ only if the revolution fails, and if they choose to undermine the revolution, the small group game asks them to defend this position to the rest of their group. However, during the course of the Infiltrator’s pathways, that student is given a final choice either to undermine or support the revolution, should the Infiltrator decide instead to support the group and overthrow Big Brother, the game asks them to reveal their original intentions and why they were ultimately convinced to support the revolution.
Why Google Technologies?
During the pandemic, many classes moved to online learning, with a large number choosing Google Classrooms as the hosting site. I’ve built these games using Google’s free software (Docs, Forms, and Slides) as they natively integrate into Google Classrooms. Should Google Classrooms not be your chosen hosting site, or if the class does not have an online component, the “1984 Introductory Adventure” can be sent via email to the entire class and the responses will still be recorded as usual. The “1984 Small Group Game” can also be played on a single tablet or laptop computer per small group, and while responses to this game are not recorded, the point of the adventure is to stimulate a class-wide discussion. Alternatively, teachers can choose instead to run the game for the class as a whole, either rolling the dice themselves, or having a single student (or group of students) make the individual and group dice rolls using either physical dice or the inbuilt dice rollers I have embedded into the Google Slides. In the future, I hope to make printable analog versions of these games in a choose your own adventure format.
Secondly, I have chosen to use Google Freeware due to their inbuilt accessibility software and integration. “While we might think most students are playing games, many games demand proficiency in specific types of problem solving, attention, and reflexes that make them difficult for some students to complete. Most perplexing of all for students and instructors alike is the possibility that the decision-making processes required by games might result in every member of the class having very different experiences with a given piece of software.” (Philips) To combat some of these concerns, Google offers screen readers that recite text and describe visual media as well as plug-ins for braille keyboards for students with different accessibility and educational needs, ensuring the game can be played and enjoyed by all.
Lastly, as part of the accessibility focus of the game design, I have chosen to use Google Freeware to eliminate as many of the monetary barriers to utilizing these games as I can. As the Google suite of software is free to use, all students with internet access should be able to run these games on either their home or school devices. While playing the Individual Game on a phone is not recommended, it can be done if that is the only option available. For student populations without access to personal devices, the Small Group Game can be played instead by the class as a whole in the same manner as a Slide Show or Power Point presentation.
*For full video source list, please see the "Works Cited" section of this site.
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- Kitbashing The Classroom 2.0 Matthew Aaron Hernandez