Rhetorical Analysis Of 1984 By George Orwell

During 1984 by George Orwell, the main character, Winston, yearns to remember what life was like before ‘the Party’ took over. However, as the government has brainwashed people and begun to control their minds, Winston finds himself unable to remember or have any proof regarding the truth about the past. In this particular passage, Winston reflects on how the party controls everyone, seemingly hopeless about ever knowing the truth instead of being controlled by the Party. He considers how ‘the Party’ possesses the capability to turn any lie into the truth, just because of the fact that they are the governing force in the society, and they declare how people should think. As people’s minds are what shape our world, when the government controls people’s minds, the government ultimately shapes the world. Orwell begins the passage by using

He describes the government as a “huge force” that “press[es] down” on their people—“penetrat[ing] inside your skull, battering against your brain, frightening you out of your beliefs.” Orwell’s use of imagery serves to display how Winston believes that the government causes people to lose their minds and individuality. Instead, the government’s beliefs become strictly pressed upon them like a “battering against your brain” (80). Additionally, the tone of the passage starts off angry and rebellious, yet shifts to a more hopeless tone at the end. Through using words like “inevitable” and “demanded,” Winston recognizes that the Party possesses total control over their minds, and he most likely will not be able to do anything about it. Instead of releasing his anger through rebellion, he realizes that the Party’s ways likely will not be able to be changed. The sly way that the government shapes people’s minds is indicated through Orwell’s use of the word “tacitly” to describe how they block people off from “external reality” (80). Based on this word choice, readers