The novel 1984, story of a totalitarian society which is controlled by a character known as Big Brother. Big Brother has the ultimate power over the people in society. He controls the minds of the inviduals. In this dictatorial society it is a man by the name of Winston Smith, who stands out. He realizes that Big Brother makes everything go his way. He also has realize that Big Brother has the ability to change everything as he pleases, even the past. As the novel begins, Smith is just as every other person in the society with physical problems in this case it is an ulcer in his ankle. Winston, who was thirty-nine, and had a varicose ulcer above [Winstons] right ankle... however, he is insane by societys standards because he is able to think for himself. Through out the book, he soon begins to discover many things that the Party, who controls everything, is hiding; he tries to hide that he knows such things. Due to the fact that if the Thought Police ,undercover police who watch the people, found out; he would be put into a jail and tried to be made into another zombie that follows Big Brother without question.
It seems that the place where Winston lives is not adequate for formal living. The hallway smelt of boiled and old rags. They lived in a prison; since the people living in this society were always being watched, even when they were in the privacy of their home. Telescreen received and transmittedany sound that Winston made, above the level of a very low whisper, would be picked by it, moreover, so long as he remained within the field of visionhe could be seen as well as heard. The Party also shows the citizens and reminds them of Big Brother, as to fear him, obey him, and not to question anything he says. the poster with the enormous face gazed from the wall. It was one of those pictures which are so contrived that the eyes follow you about when you move. BIG BROTHER IS WATCHING YOU, the caption beneath it ran. This propaganda was everywhere so that everyone is brainwash into, doublethink which is the believing of two opposing ideas and holds both to be true. They also used a thing called Doublespeak; this was a word made up in the new language of Newspeak. Doublespeak means that you can believe two things that are contrary to each other, yet hold both to be true; for example, that the sky is blue and green at the same time.
Big Brother and the Party make all the rules that the people have to follow and that no one would question. No one can show any emotions including happiness, sorrow, also when having sexual intercourse there is suppose to be no pleasure. Intercourse is suppose to be just for the reproduction; to go against the Party in any of the rules put into order by them was also out of the question due to the fact,sex may lead to love, which is love that is taken away from Big Brother and the Party will not allow that. However it is Winston, who starts to feel frustrated by the oppression of the strict and rigid government. He begins to think negativity towards Big Brother and is said to have a Thought crime. He feels the need to show these emotions, but he cannot trust anyone because he could end up dead; that is why he decided to express all of his feelings in a diary. The diary will only be his to write in and read and therefore keep him safe. Since he will not allow or share this diary with anyone.
Smith is not suppose to be thinking for himself, they are all to listen to the telescreen and do as it tells every individual in society what to do. The party made a plan so that the members of this society do not even know the time or date which they are in. This is a way to control the past, present, and future in an attempt to freeze time. To begin with, he did not know with and certainty that it was 1984I was never possible nowadays to pin down any date within a year or two. It is important for them not to be aware of the exact date, therefore they will not know what is happening at the time, in the past, or even in the future to keep the people in check and blind from the other people of the world . That is why Winston decides to record time for his own reference. He starts to write in his diary, which he has to buy secretly because it is illegal to write things down, yet alone think bad about the Party or Big Brother. He had given a quick glance up and down the street and then had slipped inside and had bought the book for two dollars fifty. This shows that Winston really want to express his thoughts. He wants to write about all the bad things that the Party is doing, but he falls into a problem, he does not know for whom the diary should be written to or who will read it. He thinks that this diary will be for the future generations. For whom, it suddenly occurred to him to wonder, was he writing this diary? For the future, for the unborn.
The people of Ocania are forced to love Big Brother and hate the enemy which was made to be a man by the name of Goldstein. Everyday, everyone would gather to express their hate for Goldstein who was the enemy as they watched him come on the screen in the two minute hate. The Hate has started. As usual, the face of Emmanuel Goldstein, the Enemy of the People, had flashed onto the screen. The people in the crowd released all the hate for Goldstein by screaming and throwing things at the screen. Most people would release all type of emotions at the Hate this included anger, happiness, desire for sexual activity during the Two Minute Hate. At one point Winston sees that he is not screaming at the screen because of his hate for Goldstein, but rather because he hates a certain girl which he desires. He hated her because she was young and pretty and sexy, because he wanted to go to bed with her and would never do so, because round her sweep supple waistthere was only the odious scarlet sash, aggressive symbol for chastity. Winston begins to think he wants to kill her because he cannot have sex with this girl, Julia. Julia to Winston is the ideal citizen of Ocania, he hates her because it reminds him of Big Brother and what he stands for.
However, as the novel keeps going the girl starts to show that she has some interest in him. During a time that they see each other, Julia falls on her face when they are about four feet away. As Winston gives her a hand to help her up, she slips a note into Winstons hand. She held out her free hand to him, and he helped her up. She had regained some of her color and appeared very much betterthe girl had slipped something into his hand. This note begins to awake a sense of love in Winston, his inner feelings begin to awaken once again when he reads the note that was slipped into his hand and it says I love you. At the sight on the worlds I love you the desire to stay alive had welled up in him, and the taking of minor risk suddenly seemed stupid. Winston starts to feel hope that they could be together at some time. He would do anything to be with her, even break the rules. The note helps Winston do something that he wanted to do for a very long time, and that is to think for him. He changes from being an average person who follows rules, to someone who thinks and does what he wants and not what Big Brother or the society wants him to do.
Winston starts to develop an obsession with a man, OBrien. OBrien is a member from the Inner Party the ones that make the laws rather then being just a man that follows them, despite the fact that he is a member of the Party Winston thinks that he is against Big Brother. Momentarily he caught OBrien eye There was a fraction of a second when their eyes met, and for as long as it took to happen Winston knew yes, he knew! That OBrien was thinking the same thing as himselfOBrien seemed to be saying: I know precisely what you are feeling. I know your contempt, your hatred, and your disgust. But dont worry I am on your side! Winston thinks that OBrien has ideas of his own, that he is able to think by himself as Winston does and begins to develop a feeling of trust towards him.
Winston feels that OBrien is on the same page as Winston. Winston thinks that he and OBrien will meet up and start talking about each others ideas. OBrien has an opportunity and gives Winston his address, indicating he would like to meet with him to give him a dictionary. This meeting would be a time that OBrien and Winston would be able to talk of going against Big Brother. This is something that would relate to the job that Winston has as a writer for the government. Somewhat absent-mindedly OBrien felt two of his pocket and then produced a small leather-covered notebook and a gold ink pencil. Immediately beneath the telescreen, in such a position that anyone who was watching at the other end of the instrument could read what he was watching, he scribbles an address, tore out the page, and handed it to Winston. I am usually at home in the evenings he said. If not, servant will give you the dictionary. After this incident, Winston thought even more that OBrien and he have the same thoughts against Big Brother and the Party; even though OBrien never said that he was against it, and he never will. Smith assumes that OBrien is part of the secret organization of the Brotherhood is never really confirm his alliance.
He soon starts to trust OBrien and he starts to develop ways to go against the government. Therefore, Winston wants to find a place where he can be alone and there are no telescreens which will invade his privacy. The only place that he could go that had none was the shop where he had previously bought the notebook, which now was his diary, so thats where he went. That was the only place he thought did not have a telescreen due to what Mr. Chappington had said. However, he could not show any interest in the shop unless it was for something else. So to he decided to buy a paper weight that symbolized that he was connecting him self with the past. He wanted to recover his memories of it, for example when his mother died and other things that were very blurry when he tried to remember. The gentlemen who own the shop told Smith that he could use the room upstairs if he wanted, he would later use this room as a place to be with Julia, since he wanted to have a place that they had privacy; then they would not have to run off to the country side.
Winston starts to have a certain sense of false security that he could break all of the laws and still get away with it. Since it was so easy to get a room, Mr.Charrington had made no difficulty about letting the room nor did he seem shocked of becoming offensively knowing when it was made clear that Winston wanted the room for the purpose of a love affair. Julia has become a part of him which he cannot ever leave. He knows that he is breaking rules and that sooner or later he will get caught, but he does not care as long as he is with her. Their first love making had been simply an act of will. But after the second time it was different. The smell of her hair, the taste of her mouthseemed to have hot inside himShe had become a physical necessity, something that he not only wanted but felt he has a right to when she said that she could not come, he has a feeling that she was cheating him. Winston started to feel real love for her and complete trust. He is now doing whatever he wishes to do not caring if he gets caught, the love for Julia has blinded him or released his real self into the world.
Winston is content with having Julia on his side, but he wished that he could have another comrade in his fight against the Party and Big Brother. This is when he starts to think that OBrien will be the person that will be on his side. Winston accepted the invitation that OBrien had extended to him. Therefore, Winston and Julia both decide to go to OBriens apartment. Winstons heart was thumping so hard that he doubted whether he would be able to speak it had been a rash act to come here at all, and sheer folly to arrive together. He decided to bring Julia, since Winston assumes that OBrien is part of the underground organization known as the Brotherhood. OBrien never confirmes that he was or was not part of the Brotherhood. Winston did all of the talking, We believe that there is some kind of conspiracy, some kind of secret organization working against the Party and that you are involved in itMartin is one of us, said OBrien impassively After the meeting at the apartment of OBrien, Winston thought that for sure they were both on the same side. Winston starts to tell OBrien everything that he thinks about the government without any real conformation that OBrien was really on their side; Winston start to talk to him and tells the weakness that Winston and Julia have .
OBrien gave a book, the book; to Winston, which was known as the book of the Brotherhood. This book held the secrets of Emmanuel Goldstein. meanwhile there was the book A heavy black volume, amateurishly bounded, with no name or title on the cover. The idea of the book was so show the Brotherhood; it also gave people such as Winston hope that things will change.
After the meeting with OBrien, Winston and Julia spent more time together in the hideaway and also reading the book. Until the day that they always knew was going to come actually did. The Party decides to arrest them. This came in the way of a voice. You are dead, said an iron voice behind themIt was starting, it was starting at last! They could do nothingthe picture had fallen to the floor, uncovering the telescreen behind it. That was the end of everything that they had wished for, such as a new society without Big Brother and the Party. It was the end of the past, which they tried to recover and the only thing that was to come was death. They were arrested and taken separately into the Ministry of Love. At the Ministry of Love after Winston is arrested, he sees OBrien, and Winston had no idea that OBrien had set up a trap and Winston had fallen for it. Winston found out that the whole time OBrien had been controlling him into thinking that he was on Winstons side, but he was not.
At the Ministry of Love, Winston is interrogated and beaten constantly. With the first blow on the elbow the nightmare had startedThe confession was a formality thought the torture was real. How many times he had been beaten, how long the beating had continued, he could not remember. The beatings were meant to hurt him physically, but subconsencily it was also hurting his mental state. He started to become very blurry minded and did not care about anything anymore. The beatings were a test of how strong he was. This was also a showing that he was very stupid for even trying to go against the Party and Big Brother. He is being destroyed at the Ministry and also shaped into another of Big Brothers zombies who do not think for themselves but are told what to do by the Party. Even though the torture is extreme he is still able to think for himself. how can you stop people from remembering things? Cried WinstonHow can you control memory? You have not controlled mine! Even though Winston can think for himself, he had fallen rather easily into the trap set by OBrien by believing that he was part of the Brotherhood.
After being tortured, Winston was not the same person he was before. OBriens main goal is to change Winston into another robot which follows the Party without question. OBrien has to break Winston so that his mind is that of a childs and he has to relearn everything. By being able to break him, ultimately Winston will follow the rules that the Party has set for Ocania. They have destroyed his body and the only thing left is to destroy his mind. How can I help it? Said Winston two and two is four. Nothing is true, unless the party states it is true. Sometimes Winston, sometimes they are five. Sometimes they are three you must try harderbecome sane. OBrien needs Winston to believe what the Party believes, not what he sees. The Party tells Winston what he sees and what he is to think. He shall not trust himself; he is dependent on the Party.
At this point, the path that Winston is following is that of the Party. The party has even made Winston believe that two and two is five. Winston is now nothing more then a robot which follows order. He is no longer an individual who actually thinks for himself, he does not care about anything. He is given orders; he follows them without any question. Winston has won the war with himself and now loves Big Brother. He is the one thing he did not want to be.
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