He described how, by manipulating the people by fear, a totalitarian government might be able to even destroy the people`s spirit. To me, "1984" is a book related to how the fear and the destruction of the minds of the people, through starvation, by having them in a continuous state of stress, even at the point of being able to destroy the capacity of falling in love.
I have to say that, historically, regimes based on fear and state surveillance of the individuals have proven to be weaker and shorter lasting than those that at least pretend to make the individuals believe that their say means something.
The most recent experiments that western societies have undergone is the control based on
The Shock Doctrine. It is not that new, but it has been taken to new heights after September-11 and the London, Madrid and Paris attacks, among others.
Apparently, it is more efficient to calm the masses providing apparent choices based on the materialism and the pseudo-democracies and then use the shock when required, inciting the hate to other civilisations, when draconian or impopular measures are desired by the controlling plutocracies. Ensure this is mixed with an acritical educational system and a continuous feed of instagram-uploaded celebs pictures to discourage any depth in the thinking of the mass.
The results are societies that do not need to massively detract resources from the economy to ensure a continuous surveillance of the individual nor have the social tensions that come from not letting any steam out of the boiler. Thus, the economy serves uninterrupted a continuous flow into the bags of the plutocrats, while the population is kept scared in an Just in Time fear production system, delivering shocks as needed in case greasing is required.