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Examples Of Thoughtcrime In 1984

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The worth one places on something is often based on how much they sacrificed to meet that desire. Thus, the sacrifices one makes determines the value they place. In 1984, by George Orwell, the protagonist Winston Smith must go against everything he has ever known in order to pursue what he desires: Freedom and Julia.
1984, takes place in a utopian society we’re every aspect of life is controlled by “Big Brother.” The story follows Winston Smith, a member of this utopian society where every action, word and thought are monitored. Throughout the story, Winston commits various “thoughtcrimes”, which are punishable by death, against “Big Brother” in order to escape its tyranny. We see the things he commits these crimes with, specifically with his diary and Julia, to be what he cherishes most. At the start of the book, Winston’s first “thoughtcrime” was writing in his diary. In this society, expressing thought is against the law and …show more content…

Up until he is tortured into loving “Big Brother,” the sacrifices Winston made were all in the name of attacking “Big Brother” and him seeking freedom of thought. The risks he took, that ultimately wound him broken in the ministry of love, all were in the name of what he truly loved and cared for. In the end, the power of an “all-powerful” government was made apparent when everything Winston loved, including Julia, were sacrificed by Winston. The torture and the mental strain Winston was subjected to broke him as he devoted all of his love toward “Big Brother” and nothing else. George Orwell use of sacrifice as a tool to convey love and what character cared about not only showed the power of free-thinking but also the dangers of a totalitarian government like “Big Brother.” By showing the sacrifices a normal individual is willing to make when pressured by the government, it showed his audience the power a government can have on one’s thoughts and

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