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Literary analysis of 1984 by george orwell
What is the theme of 1984 by george orwell
Themes in 1984 by george orwell
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The novel 1984 by George Orwell, focuses on the physical and mental torture of Winston Smith as he goes through the Party’s corrupt ways of mind control. Throughout the chapters of Part Three, Orwell showcases the aftermath of Winston and Julia’s affair in the hotel. This included Winston being tortured into accepting the Party and loving Big Brother: “Who controls the past controls the future; who controls the present controls the past,” (204) While Winston is still being tortured, O’Brien is making him repeat these words so that he will soon accept the Party. However, Winston is very stubborn and doesn’t want to believe this. Winston still has the mindset of rebelling before he was caught by the Thought Police.
This is demonstrated through many events throughout the story. Consistently, Winston is faced with the physiological strain of being watched by the government. In the beginning of the story, knowing this, he wrote “Down with big brother” in his journal (Orwell 18). From this moment after, he continues to have a lingering idea of the ‘thought police’ coming after him. He has convinced himself that there is nothing he can do about it, and they will soon come to get him.
In George Orwell’s lasting novel 1984, he creates a society where no free thought or free will is allowed. Even thoughts (Thoughtcrimes) or facial expressions (Facecrimes) can end in torture and eventually, disappearance. In this novel, Winston Smith’s fate is sealed from the beginning but he still tries to exercise his own free will. Winston often knows that his actions will get him caught, but he continues to make his own (bad) decisions: "Whether he wrote DOWN WITH BIG BROTHER, or if he refrained from writing it, made no difference. Whether he went on with the diary, or whether he did not go on with it, made no difference.
Winston succumbs to the power of The Party and betrays Julia in order to save himself; “Do it to Julia! Do it to Julia! Not me! Julia! I don’t care what you do to her.
In 1984 he is a person with high moral standards and values, the one to question the Party and how they rule. Despite this, he gives into the demands of power while being tortured, in this moment Winston is facing his “unendurable fear” of rats because the Party wants him to change the way he thinks. The text says, “ But he had suddenly understood that in the whole world there was only one person to whom he could transfer his punishment- one body that he could thrust between himself and the rats. And he was shouting frantically, over and over: ‘ Do it to Julia! Do it to Julia!
The beauty of life is how unpredictable it can be. Day by day, we the people, can decide on the smallest detail of our life with almost no limit to what we can choose. But for a moment, imagine that this right is taken away and replaced with a government that controls every aspect of the citizens' lives and minds to do what they are ordered to do. This is the world set in the book 1984 by George Orwell, which we experience through the eyes of the protagonist Winston, a working-class citizen. While the story unfolds, a specific detail can be observed in the actions taken by Winston, a little bit under the side but key for the ignition of the events in the story.
1984, the novel by George Orwell is an anti-totalitarian, cautionary tale centering around Winston Smith, a rebelling citizen of the fictional super-state of Oceania. Winston himself is a working member of the state, and as far as the ruling party of Big Brother initially knows, an ordinary member. The difference between Winston and the rest of the members is his ability to think, more specifically his ability to think against the party. Despite his resistance throughout the novel, and what could be falsely perceived as heroism, Winston Smith is less hero, more true human. As previously mentioned, Winston certainly showed resistance throughout the book, despite the eventual collapse of his beliefs forced upon him by O’Brien at the
In the novel 1984, Orwell strategically develops a totalitarian regime that negatively influences its citizens and their quality of life. One universal theme presented by Orwell is that everyone’s mind is corruptible, it is just a matter of how far you push them mentally and physically. In one example, Winston surrenders his love for Julia in fear of losing his life in a near-death experience with rats. This moment is significant as Winston and Julia promised each other that they would never sacrifice their love for one another under any circumstances.
In a society like the one in 1984, these seemingly small acts are huge acts of rebellion. The totalitarian government does not allow free thought, actions, or emotions. Eventually, both Winston and Julia are discovered and captured. They are tortured and subjected to brainwashing. Torture and brainwashing are not uncommon in this dooming society.
In the novel 1984, the author George Orwell conveys a powerful message about a totalitarian government and that it would be a horrendous act upon the people. Since that government rules by focusing mainly on the justification of inciting fear through control. The split of three sections in the novel influences the intensity of the main character’s, Winston’s, drastic change and desire to be set free from the chains enforced by a totalitarian government, the Party. The gloomy setting helps invoke the bleary outcome of the fear a totalitarian government produces and how it affects what it means to be an individual. Orwell applies man versus society to portray how a totalitarian government desires power in order to control everything, Winston’s
10 BIZARRE TRADITIONS FROM AROUND THE WORLD From funny to glory, rituals from around the world could leave one shell-shocked. With innumerable races and ethnicities populating the face of the Earth, the rituals are in plenty and a list of the weird, wacky, unbelievable ones are compiled here. Take a look. 1.
The Party and O’ Brien wanted to break Winston’s spirit. The only way he knew how to do this was to use fear by destroying whatever strength Winston had. Fear can also brainwash a person into thinking something is right or something is wrong. For example, when he was released by O’Brien he believed in The Party’s teachings and beliefs. “forty years it had taken him to learn what kind of smile was hidden beneath the dark mustache…
Imagine a monster, but not just any monster, a human monster. With legs and arms, who can walk and talk just like a normal human (because it is human). Or at least made out of dead human body parts. Living and breathing by having rotting skin and recycled lungs. Terrifying, right?
I vaguely remember one of my friends in elementary school coming into class with bright neon, animal printed pants. I recall thinking to myself that she was daring for wearing such flashy pants. I overheard some of my classmates giggling and gossiping about her jeans and I was relieved that I never acted out of the norm. Even so, I was brought up in an extremely modest household. We are told to be humble and to never to speak out unless it is absolutely necessary.
In 1984, George Orwell writes about a dystopian society called Oceania with a totalitarian government. Winston, the main character, is an Outer Party member and works for the government who is under the rule of “Big Brother” and the Inner Party. The Party’s purpose is to rule Oceania with absolutism and have control over its citizens by using propaganda, censorship, and the brainwashing of children. Today, many modern-day countries use these techniques to maintain their power including: North Korea, Saudi Arabia, and Nazi Germany. First, North Korea and Oceania use propaganda to encourage patriotism to make themselves look better to citizens in order to keep a totalitarian rule.
