Definition

1. Noun:
   • Believing two contradictory ideas at the same time: The act of simultaneously accepting as correct two mutually contradictory beliefs, opinions, or facts, especially as a result of political indoctrination or to conform to an official ideology.

Usage

• Noun:
  • The term is used to describe a state of mind where contradictory beliefs are held, often without the individual being consciously aware of the contradiction.
  • It is frequently used in political, social, or psychological contexts to critique ideological conformity or propaganda.

Examples

• Noun:
  • The regime's propaganda required a profound act of doublethink from its citizens, who had to believe the state was both all-powerful and perpetually under threat.
  • Engaging in doublethink, she managed to advocate for environmental protection while investing heavily in the fossil fuel industry.

Advanced Usage

• As a critical concept: The term is often used analytically to describe the cognitive dissonance enforced by totalitarian systems, as famously depicted in George Orwell's novel .
  • The novel explores how doublethink is a necessary tool for maintaining control in a dystopian society.

Variants and Related Words

• Cognitive Dissonance (n): The mental discomfort experienced by a person who holds two or more contradictory beliefs, values, or ideas. (Note: This is a related psychological concept, but "doublethink" specifically implies a willful or imposed acceptance of contradiction.)
• Newspeak (n): A controlled language created in to limit freedom of thought, closely associated with the practice of doublethink.

Synonyms

• Self-contradiction: The act or an instance of contradicting oneself.
• Illogicality: The quality of being illogical; lack of logic.

Related Phrases

• To practice doublethink: To actively engage in holding two contradictory beliefs.
  • Officials had to practice doublethink, celebrating economic growth while denying the existence of widespread poverty.

Related Idioms

• To hold two opposing ideas in one's head: A descriptive phrase similar in meaning to doublethink.
  • He seemed to hold two opposing ideas in his head: that taxes should be lower and that public services should be vastly improved.

Noun

1. believing two contradictory ideas at the same time