Examples Of Oppression In 1984

Ellie Hefetz Ms. Novick-Carson AP English IV 15 February 2024 Orwell’s Cautionary Tale: Examining Resistance and Oppression in Nineteen Eighty-Four George Orwell died from tuberculosis in January of 1950, just months after the release of his novel Nineteen Eighty-Four in 1949, but his impulse to publish his novel was stronger than his pain. While suffering from tuberculosis, he was able to finish his manuscript, but his health deteriorated over time (Bastian). Orwell understood the vitality of his message, driving him to publish his novel despite his illness. In his dystopian novel, George Orwell showcases the dangers of having a totalitarian government, including propaganda and oppression. The novel takes place in Oceania, a fictionalized

Although Winston Smith strives to resist the Party, he fails, illustrating Orwell's warning that individuals should fight against a totalitarian government and society should resist unwavering obedience to power in the dystopian novel Nineteen Eighty-Four. In the first half of the novel, Winston attempts to find the truth about the past; however, he is unsuccessful due to the constant rewriting of history by the Party. Winston works at the Records Department of the Ministry of Truth, where he rewrites history. Rewriting history makes him feel “as though he were wandering in the forests of the sea bottom, lost in a monstrous world where he himself was the monster”. He was alone in the night. The past was dead, the future was unimaginable” (Orwell 21). As an employee who changes Oceania’s history, Winston sees how far the Party will go to remain in power and feels lost because he has no sense of history. He hates being a citizen in Oceania, a result of power distribution, but he can not do anything about it without educating himself on Oceania's

If an event is hurtful to the Party’s reputation, they can erase any person or action from every news source in Oceania. The Party will do this whenever they see fit, quickly and efficiently. Tying into the process of doublethink, the concept of believing two ideas that contradict each other. Lillian Feder, a writer at The Georgia Review, describes that Winston perceives the world as "labyrinthine" because it is like a maze, something that should have an ending/stop point but a person can not seem to find it (396). Winston feels that he is walking through a never-ending maze because he will never find his end goal: the truth about the past. Winston can search for eternity, but he will continuously run into dead ends so long as the Party has power. Through Winston’s affair with Julia, Orwell showcases the desire for humanity and individualism, which the Party suppresses, ensuring loyalty from the citizens. Near the middle of the novel, when Winston and Julia have their first meeting, they walk through the woods when Winston spots a bird singing. He wonders why the bird was singing because “No mate, no rival” was watching