1984 Book Review Essay

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1984 BOOK REVIEW 1984 is based in the nation of Oceania. In a dystopic future where a governing body called “The Party” controls most everything. Free will is abolished through the illegalization of love, falsification of records, and invasion of privacy. Love is forbidden and even rebellious thought is a major crime. The punishment is treason and is punishable by death. They even arranged marriages that often end cold and in separation to discourage love from becoming strong. Yet, one of the book’s main themes is love. Or rather, the warped love of tortured towards his torturer. This love is displayed by Winston towards O'Brien and remains strong throughout the novel even when O'Brien tortures Winston to near death. The novel leaves us with …show more content…

Even though their love was seemingly so sound, it was eventually crushed by the tortures within the Ministry of Love. The tortures in Room 101 are so intense and painful that he screams to O'Brien, "Do it to Julia! Not me! Julia! I don't care what you do to her. Tear her face off, strip her to the bones. Not me! Julia! Not me!." (236) O'Brien realizes that his defeat of Winston is utterly devastating and complete. Winston has been crushed so totally that he would rather have Julia go through further torture than him. In this moment, all love for Julia is gone and completely shattered because, as she says later, "after that, you don't feel the same towards the other person any longer." (240) By forcing them to betray each other, the Party destroys the love between Winston and Julia. The love between them is so completely devastated that Winston's "flesh froze with horror at the thought" (239) of having sex with Julia after they had been released from the Ministry of Love. The Party orchestrated the entire love relationship between Winston and Julia and allowed the love to really develop greatly only so that it could be so extremely crushed. The only love that is sanctioned by the Party is the love of and for Big Brother. The Party

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