1984

=1984 = = =

= WAR IS PEACE FREEDOM IS SLAVERY = =IGNORANCE IS STRENGTH. =




 * Who controls the past controls the future. Who controls the present controls the past.**

Author Bio
George Orwell is the pseudonym for Eric Arthur Blair, who lived from 1903 to 1950. The name George Orwell was more than a pen name to him, as he adopted the name almost entirely in all parts of his life. This change in name followed a transition in his life from a great supporter of the British Empire to someone rebellious in political views and writings. Only his family and close friends knew his real name. He was born in Bengal, which was then a part of Eastern India and is now mostly in Bangladesh. His father was a lower-ranking officer in the Indian civil service, and his mother (of French descent) was the daughter of a rather unsuccessful teak-seller in Burma. The family into which he was born was of the lower middle class, but still (ironically) had a snobbish attitude (Orwell referred to this as "landless gentry"). Later, his family returned to England.

In 1911, he was sent to a preparatory boarding school located in Great Britain. As a child, he was rather introverted, partly because his poverty set him apart from the other attendees of the school. At the school, however, it was discovered that he was quite smart. He won a scholarship to Eton College in Britain and attended the school from 1917 to 1929. At Eton, Orwell published his first writing in one of the college's periodicals. A scholarship was offered to him by a university, but he declined, instead pursuing a job in the field in which his father worked, the Indian Imperial Police.

In 1922, he began to serve with the Imperial Police in Burma, which is now called Myanmar (India was still owned by Great Britain at this point; it would gain its independence in 1947.) At first, he acted as a model servant of the Empire. However, as he saw more and more of the rule under which the Burmese were living, he began to accrue shame for serving in the Imperial Police. For his career, he instead decided to pursue his true passion: writing. In 1927, Orwell went on leave to England, and he decided that he did not wish to return to Burma. Thus, on 1 January 1928, Orwell resigned from his position in the Imperial Police. He was humiliated by the racial and class barrier that kept him from interacting with the people of Burma, so he decided to take drastic action to try to free himself of some of his guilt. In an attempt to immerse himself in the life of the poor in Europe, he clothed himself in rags and lived in East London in cheap boarding houses among the poor. In addition, he spent some time in the slums of Paris, working as a dishwasher for the many restaurants and hotels in the city. In this time, he truly lived the life of the poor, and these experiences led to his book, //Down and Out in Paris and London//, which was published in 1933. This helped to shape his career as a writer, as this autobiographical writing helped to earn him a small degree of literary acclaim- the first step of many on a road to literary fame.

Orwell published his first novel, titled //Burmese Days//, in 1934. Although not really autobiographical, it focused on the oppression he saw and the isolation he felt as an officer in the Imperial Police. At this point, his political views were also changing and becoming rather extreme, partly due to the bad side of government that he saw in Burma. Immediately upon his return from Burma, he began to consider himself as an anarchist. However, during the 1930s, his views became less extreme (but still pretty extreme) and he began to view himself as a socialist. However, he never went so far as to call himself a communist, because he believed in the liberties of the people as more important than the ideology of equality in communism. His first book that expressed his socialistic views was called //The Road to Wigan Pier//, and it was published in 1937.

However, by the time the book was published, Orwell had already moved on to something else. He was reporting on the Spanish Civil War, and he decided to stay in Spain and fight for the Republican militia. During one battle in which he fought, he was badly wounded in the throat, a wound that damaged his voice for life. In May of 1937, he was fighting in Barcelona against communists and was forced to flee the country for his life. This experience gave him a lasting hatred of communism. This was first expressed in his account of his experiences in Spain, titled //Homage to Catalonia//, which was published in 1938. Later, he headed the Indian division of the BBC, which he left in 1943 to become an editor of the //Tribune//, a socialist newspaper associated with the British Labour Party. He wrote many newspaper articles, criticisms, and reviews in this time period. He also wrote a number of books about England during this time period.

In 1944, Orwell finished writing one of the cornerstones of his work: //Animal Farm//. This famous work depicts the Russian Revolution through the context of farm animals, who rise up against their human master (the czar) to form a new society (Communist Russia). However, the idealistic thoughts of the Communist society are shattered when power-hungry Napoleon (Stalin) betrays Snowball (Lenin) and the rest of the farm animal to set up a dictatorial society that symbolizes Soviet Russia.

However, his last book is by far the most famous: //Nineteen Eighty-four// (published in 1949), which he wrote as a firm warning about the horrors of Nazism and Russian Communism. It depicts a horrible future, which is discussed further in the PLOT SYNOPSIS section.

He finished writing //1984// in a remote home on the island of Jura, bought from the money he made from //Animal Farm//. In January of1950, he died of tuberculosis in a hospital in London.

Source Used: [|Biography.com]

**Plot Synopsis**
"It was a bright cold day in April, and the clocks were striking thirteen."

Thus begins one of the greatest political novels of all time, George Orwell's masterpiece, //1984//. The novel is about a severely dictatorial negative utopia in which the government was ruling for the sake of power itself and the people lived in total submission to the government. The story follows the path of Winston Smith, a member of the Outer Party (which could be viewed as the middle class), as he attempts to decipher the world around him and, eventually, dismantle the Party's rule. Along the way, he meets a young woman named Julia, who helps him in his quest against the Party, and O'Brien, an Inner Party member who seems rather helpful to them. However, there is more to the situation than meets the eye. As the story unfolds, the reader gains a perspective as to just how powerful and terrible the Party really is.

At the beginning of the story, Winston Smith is writing in his diary (which is illegal to have) in a small corner of his apartment not watchable by the telescreen (a sort of two-way television that the government uses to spy on the citizens). He writes about some of his memories, and also about some of his opinions about the government. It is then revealed that Smith works for a branch of the Party called the Ministry of Truth, or //minitrue// in Newspeak (Newspeak is the official language of Oceania, which is the nation in which Winston lives. In the story, the world is split up among three constantly warring but equally totalitarian mega-nations: Oceania, Eurasia, and Eastasia.). His job, along with that of his co-workers in the Department of Records, is to falsify the past so it seems that the Party is always right. This can be done because the people are so brainwashed that they can be fooled easily by the government, through the principle of //doublethink//, or convincing oneself that one's memory is wrong. One of his co-workers, a young woman who Winston suspects to be part of the Thought Police (a Party organization that arrests people it thinks are disobeying the government) slips him a note that says she loves him. Although he is slightly suspect, he decides to go along with it. They eventually meet up, and he discovers that the note is not a hoax, but instead very real. She and him cooperate in their quest to dismantle the Party. Later, they meet O'Brien, who makes them members of the Brotherhood, a secret organization dedicated to rebellion against the Party. However, O'Brien is a member of the Inner Party, but Winston just has a gut feel that he is able to be trusted. Do Winston and Julia succeed in abolishing the party? Are the people set free of tyrannical rule? Or, do Winston, Julia, and O'Brien get caught by the Thought Police? Read the book to find out!

Literary Information

 * Genres: Science Fiction, Political, Dystopian
 * Style
 * Tone: The tone in which the author writes suggests a warning and fear of the potential future that the environment in //1984// represents. He heavily uses jargon that has been invented by the Party in the book, like Newspeak words such as //Miniluv, plusgood//, and other such words. He also uses lots of imagery to describe the conditions in which the people lived in the book. Many times, he vividly described things like the condition of the food, the cleanliness of the streets, and the Party propaganda posters that were hung up basically everywhere in view. Many of the details that he uses to describe the world of 1984 in the book are revealed in a book-inside-a-book called //The Theory and Practice of Oligarchical Collectivism// (also called "the book"). It describes how the government operates and why, along with the similarities between the governments of Oceania, Eurasia, and Eastasia. This forms a very fearsome image of the inability to escape from the oppression, as escaping from one oppressive nation would simply land someone in another that is equally as oppressive. The author's diction also reveals this warning and fearful tone. One example of this can be found early in the book: "The black-mustachio'd face gazed down from every commanding corner." The connotation of his words, such as "commanding" "gazed down", show a sort of omnipresent and fearful force that monitors and controls the people. The syntax that he uses also reinforces this. Orwell uses a blend of all lengths of sentences to provide emphasis on certain points. For example: "All subsequent crimes against the Party, all treacheries, acts of sabotage, heresies, deviations, sprang directly out of his teaching." He uses a long sentence here to show how the Party propagandizes the people about how bad Emmanuel Goldstein, who can be viewed as the opposite of Big Brother, is. Also, he does not use the word "and" in the list before the word "deviations". This removes the sense of finality from the end of the list and implies that the list goes on after the word "deviations", further reinforcing the author's point.
 * Mood: The atmosphere of the story is a sinister and fearsome one. This is shown by the constant spying on the people by the government, the constant barrages of rocket bombs, the nighttime arrests of citizens by the Thought Police, the widespread brainwashing, and the fear-inducing propaganda created and distributed by the government.
 * Themes, Symbols, and Motifs.
 * Themes
 * Do not let the government get too powerful.
 * Attempts made to create total equality end up failing.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">Things are often not as they appear.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">Symbols
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">Big Brother: symbolizes the Party in the story and tyrannical governments that want power for the sole purpose of making the people submit to their rule.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">Oceania: symbolizes any nation that is turned to tyranny after the promise of equality and happiness. Examples would include Stalinist Russia and North Korea.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">Emmanuel Goldstein/Two Minutes' Hate: symbolizes the demonization of enemies of a nation at war or of nations that share opposite political views of a tyrannical nation. Examples would include Soviet and Nazi demonization of Americans and other NATO/Allies during the Cold War and World War II, respectively.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">Motifs
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">Doublethink: This is a Newspeak word meaning fooling one's brain into knowing something that they are told by the Party as opposed to something that they know from their own knowledge. One example of this in the story is when Oceania allies with Eurasia and is fighting against Eastasia, as opposed to the other way around. The people "doublethinked" (in Newspeak grammar) the thought of war with Eurasia out of their minds to allow themselves to believe what the government told them (namely, that Oceania had always been at war with Eastasia and never with Eurasia.)
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">The Brotherhood: This is an organization dedicated to the destruction of the Party and the return of less extreme methods of government. However, it is highly disputed as to whether the Brotherhood really exists. It is said to be lead by Emmanuel Goldstein and based in whatever nation Oceania is currently fighting. To find out if it is real or fake, a success or a failure, read the book!

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">Literary Analysis- CONTAINS SPOILERS!!!!!!
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;"> In a world like the one in the novel, one cannot assume anything about the world around them. There is no security, and even if one believes one knows something in the story, or in life, it may not actually be true. One theme demonstrated in the novel //1984// is that things are not always as they appear to be. This is shown through the characterization and plot of the story.

First, the characterization in the story shows the theme. One example of this is Mr. Charrington. Charrington was characterized to be a poor owner of an unsuccessful antiques shop in the most run- down section of London (as it is all equally run-down). He seems to be a kindly old man with absolutely no ties to the party whatsoever. He also offers to rent Winston a room where there is apparently no telescreen (96-97). However, this room is far from secure. As Winston reads "the book" and commits other criminal acts, the Party is watching him the whole time through a telescreen mounted behind a picture that Mr. Charrington had concealed there (222). Right after the telescreen was revealed, a much younger-looking Charrington lead a huge squad of police into the room where Winston and Julia had been hiding.

Another example of characterization in the story that shows the theme is O'Brien. Although it is revealed that he is a member of the Inner Party in the beginning of the story, Winston just has a feeling about O'Brien that he will help him fight the Party. In the middle of the story, it is revealed that O'Brien will help Winston and Julia become part of the Brotherhood. O'Brien invites them to his house and gives them a copy of "the book", swearing them into the organization. However, this is just a facade. When Winston is captured by the Thought Police, he is taken to the Ministry of Love (which is ironically named) to be tortured into liking the Party and loving Big Brother. When he is first put into the re-education process, it turns out that his torturer is O'Brien. O'Brien then showed no trace of rebellion against the Party and proceeded to torture and re-educate Winston into the ways of the Party.

The theme of the story is also shown in the plot. One very important element to the plot is Winston joining the Brotherhood and reading the "book". He is very committed to the destruction of the Party, and he truly believes that the Brotherhood and Emmanuel Goldstein exist and that they somehow can free the people of Oceania. However, this is not true. As he is being tortured in the Ministry of Love, Winston is told by O'Brien that the "book" was written by a committee of Inner Party members, and that it is simply a tool that they can use to root out possible traitors to the government. In addition, O'Brien implies that the Brotherhood probably doesn't exist. Winston got so caught up in the hope of overthrowing tyranny that he assumed things existed when, in reality, he had very little factual evidence to back his assumptions up.

In conclusion, the characterization and plot of the story show the theme. This theme is that things are not always as they appear to be. Winston assumed that things were as he saw them, and it ended up landing him in the Party's re-education program.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">Criticism
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;"> Overall, the book //1984// is very well written, and it does a wonderful job of describing and warning of the dystopian society in which people could end up living if they are not careful. He uses many literary elements very well during the course of the novel. For example, at the beginning of the book, he uses imagery to describe the conditions existing in Oceania. An example of this is: "It was a bright cold day in April, and the clocks were striking thirteen. Winston Smith, his chin nuzzled into his breast in an effort to escape the vile wind, slipped quickly through the glass doors of Victory Mansions, though not quickly enough to prevent a swirl of gritty dust from entering..." (1).

Although //1984// may appear to be similar to other political novels, it is very different. It can be seen as taking //Animal Farm// one step further, where the tyranny is increased to such a level that citizens do not even know that they are being tyrannized. For example, in //Animal Farm//, the animals know that Napoleon and the other pigs are being tyrants, and they can, to some degree, plan a revolution. In addition, they could also always escape to another farm. However, //1984// communicates the idea of absolute government power more powerfully, as it creates a feeling of hopelessness. The people are so trapped by the government that most don't even realize it, and the few that do realize it are quickly and harshly dealt with. In addition, the option of escape is cut off in //1984//, as the other two nations in the novel are just as oppressive. Furthermore, it is far easier to relate to the human characters in //1984// than it is to relate to the animals in //Animal Farm//. Another contributing factor to the horror in //1984// is the fact that it is not really based off of anything. //Animal Farm// was based off of the Russian Revolution and the following Stalinist takeover. Therefore, it has to stay relatively historically accurate in its representation of the events in the story. This also prohibits it from having a main character with whom the reader can connect on a relatively personal level. However, //1984// is told differently. Instead of being an account of events that have already happened, it simply serves as a stern warning regarding what could happen. This allows more of a fantasy to be created, and it also allows the events in the story to be more extreme. Furthermore, it lets there be a character with whom the reader can connect, making all of the events that happen to that character seem more serious.

Therefore, I believe that //1984// successfully delivered the message that it tries to communicate. It provides a window into what could happen in the world if humanity does not protect its freedoms. In addition, Orwell writes the piece artfully, which makes it all the more effective and easy to understand.

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 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">[|Animal Farm- Online Text]
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