Oppression And Individualism In George Orwell's 1984

George Orwell’s 1984 is a dystopian novel written in 1949 to warn society about the dangers of totalitarianism. In a country where the only political mechanism is the Party, run by Big Brother, the population is constantly monitored through the use of telescreens, and all opponents of the Party virtually disappear. Due to his fatalism, the protagonist Winston Smith lives in constant fear of being vaporized by the Party, but this does not stop him from having unorthodox ideas about politics and humanity. Consequently, Winston must suppress his thoughts so the Party does not suspect him of “thoughtcrime.” This book demonstrates key concepts discussed in Thomas C. Foster’s How to Read Literature Like a Professor: A Lively and Entertaining Guide to Reading Between the Lines in order to develop its themes. Ideas such as communion, sickness, sex, violence, and politics work to expand the reader’s understanding of oppression and individualism. One of the first concepts discussed in How to Read Literature Like a Professor is communion. Foster explains, “whenever people

According to Foster, political literature is “Writing that engages the reality of its world—that thinks about human problems, including those in the social and political realm, that addresses the rights of persons and the wrongs of those in power…” as well as writing that reflects the political milieu in which the author writes (117, 123). Before writing 1984, Orwell saw firsthand how totalitarianism affected in Spain, and he even joined the Loyalists during the Spanish Civil War (cite???). Fashioned after the totalitarian regime in Spain, the Party employs what traitor Emmanuel Goldstein calls “oligarchical collectivism” to maintain power (Orwell 184). Throughout the novel, it is apparent how the people suffer from the oppression of the Party. Individuality and free thinking is stifled, and the Party monitors the population to stop any signs of