1984

by George Orwell

Reviewed by Michael Zhao

Fall 2016

REVIEW: 1984 by George Orwell

ISBN#: 0451524934

THE STORY:

Winston Smith is a man who lives in London, now a city in Oceania, a new superstate formed when the United States absorbed the British empire. Oceania is ruled by a government with complete control over its citizens’ thoughts and actions, directed by the omnipresent Big Brother. The story begins on what Winston presumes is April 4, 1984, though he is unsure if he is correct due to the government continually rewriting history, which is also
Winston’s job. Winston becomes disillusioned with the government after seeing a picture that proved the alibi of some accused former party leaders, and tries to discover the real past. One day, a woman at the ministry where Winston works hands him a note saying that she loves him. The woman, Julia, and Winston then begin an affair (which is also illegal) and meet regularly in a room rented to them by Mr. Charrington under the assumption that it has no telescreen. Winston is also initiated into the mysterious Brotherhood, a group against the government, by a party member named O’Brien. Suddenly, the Thought Police from the government capture Winston and Julia by storming their rented room, and Mr. Charrington and O’Brien reveal themselves to be members of the Thought Police. O’Brien takes Winston and Julia separately to torture them, and forces Winston to say that he loves Big Brother and accept party principles. O’Brien fails to make Winston betray Julia, however. In a final attempt to force Winston to repudiate Julia, O’Brien send Winston to Room 101, a room full of every prisoner’s worst nightmare. (261)

MY OPINION:

This book was very interesting from the beginning, as the author immediately drew me into the central conflict of the story. I was also very interested in the book’s use of “Newspeak”, a form of modified English designed by the government to control the character’s thoughts. The author also expertly built up a sense of conflict and tension by having the main character disregard the law and keeping the reader, which in this case was me, guessing when he would be caught. Additionally, by excluding certain information in the beginning of the book, the author made me very interested in how the government did some things, like control its citizens or torture criminals. My only difficulties with the book were trying to understand the vocabulary, which was sometimes difficult, trying to make place of the context of the book, since this is a dystopian novel set in 1984 and published in 1949, and trying to make sense of what was true or not, since things were sometimes presented as a truth and later revealed to be a falsehood. I think this book is best for older middle schoolers and high schoolers due to references to sex, drinking, and other inappropriate themes for younger children. I would rate this book nine out of ten stars, and if I went back in time, I would definitely choose to read this book again. (230)

STUDY QUESTIONS AND VOCABULARY:

FIRST SECTION

1. Who is the mustachio’d man whose face appears everywhere?

1a. The man is Big Brother. (pg. 2)

2. Who is the greatest enemy of the people?

2a. Emmanuel Goldstein is the greatest enemy of the people. (pg. 11)

3. What does Winston see in O’Brien’s eyes?

3a. Winston sees the same loathing for Big Brother that he has in O’Brien’s eyes. (pg. 17)

4. What is Winston’s job?

4a. Winston’s job is to rewrite outdated and obsolete news articles as ordered by the state. (pg. 78)

5. What does Winston see that makes him doubt the party?

5a. Winston sees a photo which proves the alibi (and therefore innocence) of some accused party leaders and traitors. (pg. 78)

aureole (pg. 12)

palimpsest (pg. 40)

pannikin (pg. 50)

enema (pg. 65)

tableaux (pg. 99)

MIDDLE SECTION

6.  What does the note Julia passed to Winston say?

6a. The note says “I love you.” (pg. 108)

7. Why does the party prohibit sex?

7a. The party prohibits sex so they can channel that sexual frustration into fever and party worship. (pg. 132)

8. Why does Winston believe he can trust O’Brien?

8a. Winston believes he can trust O’Brien because O’Brien committed a minor thoughtcrime by mentioning Syme, an unperson, making Winston feel that O’Brien is a partner in crime. (pg. 157)

9. Who initiates Winston into the brotherhood?

9a. O’Brien initiates Winston into the brotherhood. (pg. 172)

10. Who is the member of the Thought Police that finally catches Winston?

10a. Mr. Charrington is the member of the Thought Police that finally catches Winston. (pg. 224)

orthodoxy (pg. 133)

bolster (noun) (pg. 143)

decanter (pg. 173)

empirical (pg. 189)

impudently (pg. 212)

                               

LAST SECTION

11. Why is Ampleforth thrown into jail?

11a. Ampleforth left the word “God” in a Rudyard Kipling poem translation. (pg. 230)

12. Though O’Brien is holding up four fingers, what does Winston say he sees?

12a. Under torture, Winston gives into O’Brien and says he sees five fingers. (pg. 258)

13. What does Winston write on his slate?

13a. Winston writes party slogans on his slate: freedom is slavery, two and two makes five, and God is power. (pg. 277)

14. How does O’Brien successfully torture Winston into revealing Julia?

14a. Knowing that Winston has a fear of rats, O’Brien places a cage of rats next to Winston, and threatens to release them to eat his body. (pg. 286)

15. What song does Winston think he hears at the Chestnut Café?

15a. “Under the spreading chestnut tree, I sold you and you sold me-” (pg. 293)

desultorily (pg. 231)

sanctimonious (pg. 234)

digression (pg. 266)

inviolate (pg. 280)

equivocation (pg. 297)