Logan Lawson

Mrs. Harnett
AP Literature
April 28, 2016
1984
George Orwell, June 8, 1949
Genre:

Dystopian

Historical Context:

Post World War 2 United Kingdom

Setting:

Airstrip One, formerly known as Great Britain, part of Oceania

Character Analysis:

Winston Smith Member of the Ruling Party, skinny, frail, smart,

philosophical, reflective, 39 years-old, dreamer, hates totalitarian
government rules
Julia Winstons lover, beautiful, dark hair, works in Fiction
Department of at Ministry of Truth, enjoys sex, claims to have
slept with party members, rational, hopeful, rebellion against the
government is inward
OBrien Mysterious, powerful, member of Inner party,
sophisticated, believed by Winston to be part of Brotherhood
Big Brother Never appears nor may exist, ruler of Oceania, face
is on everything in town, printed on posters, coins, broadcasted,
televised, haunts Winston making him angered and imaginative
Mr. Charrington old man, runs a store, kind, charitable, seems to
share interests of the past with Winston, seems to support the
rebellion and relationship with Julia, allows them to rent a room
without a telescreen, secretly a member of Thought Police
Syme works at Ministry of Truth, sociable, loving, specializes in
language, Winston thinks hes too smart to favor the government
Parsons works at Ministry of Truth, fat, gloomy, annoying, dull
wife, curious kids who are part of Junior Spies
Emmanuel Goldstein never appears, legendary leader of
brotherhood, most dangerous and threatening man in Oceania

Conflicts:

man vs. society Winstons struggle against the government

Man vs. Man Winston vs. Julia, Winston vs. OBrien, Winston
vs. Parsons
Man vs. Self Winston inward struggle to make decisions
regarding his rebellion
Symbols:

Big Brother = face of the party in its public manifestation,

vagueness of the elite party members
Glass paperweight = attempt to reconnect with the past, it shatters
when the Thought Police arrest him
St. Clements Church = lost past, parties corrupt control of the past,
where the telescreen was hiding behind
Place where there is no darkness = Winstons approach to the
future
Telescreens = government monitoring its subjects and totalitarian
governments use technology to not educate the population
Red-Armed Prole Woman = one legitimate hope for long-term
future, proles will rebel against the government

Themes:

Dangers of Totalitarianism, Psychological manipulation, physical

control, control of information and history, technology, language as
mind control

Mood:

secretive, curious, fearful, boorish

Tone:

mellow, secretive, dull

Style Analysis:

Newspeak, direct sentences,

Famous Quotes:

Perhaps one did not want to be loved so much as to be understood.

He who controls the past controls the future. He who controls the
present controls the past.

Plot synopsis:

Winston is a low-ranked member of the ruling Party in London,

Oceania. Everywhere he goes, he is being watched by the Party
through telescreens and posters of Big Brother. The government is
inventing a new language called Newspeak, which tries to
eliminate all vocabulary regarding rebellion. Thinking about
rebellion is classified as thought crime, the worst of all. Winston is
frustrated by the restraints placed by the Party on sex, thought, and
self-expression. He also has illegally bought a diary to keep his
criminal thoughts in. Interested in a powerful party member named
OBrien, Winston thinks he is secretly a member of the
Brotherhood. Winston works in the Ministry of the Truth, where he
makes sure the history is correctly aligned with how the Party
wants it to be. One day during work, he sees a young, beautiful girl
staring at him, and he thinks that she will turn him in for thought
crime. Changing history bothers Winston because Oceania has not

always been in an alliance with Eastasia and in a war against

Eurasia. Another fact that bothers him is that the Party claims that
Emmanuel Goldstein, the leader of Brotherhood, is the most
dangerous man alive. Winston spends most of his time roaming
around the poor neighborhoods away from the Party monitoring.
One day, Winston receives a letter from Julia, the dark-haired girl,
saying that she loves him. They begin having an affair, and to get
out of the monitoring of the Party, they rent a room on the second
story of a prole house, the same place at which Winston purchased
his diary. As their relationship progresses, Winston becomes more
anxious about being caught, while Julia is carefree and living in the
moment. Winstons hatred for the Party continues to grow and one
day receives a letter saying OBrien wants to see him. Winston
and Julia go to OBriens luxurious home because he is a powerful
member of the Inner Party. OBrien tells them that he too hates the
Party and is secretly a member of the Brotherhood. He
indoctrinates both Winston and Julia into the Brotherhood and
gives them a novel written by Emmanuel Goldstein called the
manifesto of Brotherhood. Winston and Julia read the book in their
secret room, but then soldiers come into the room and take them
away. Mr. Charrington is secretly a member of the Thought Police.
Winston is separated from Julia and brought to the Ministry of
Love where OBrien turns out to be a Party spy and trapped
Winston into openly committed a crime against the Party. After
many months of brainwashing and torture, Winston is finally sent
to the dreaded Room 101, where the people who dont conform are
sent. OBrien makes him confess his worst fear, and Winston tells
him he has been having horrid dreams about rats. OBrien then
straps a cage to his face saying that the rats will eat his face, but
right before he lets them go, Winston says that he wants OBrien to
do it to Sofia. Getting what he wanted, OBrien lets Winston go
into the world again. When he sees Julia again, he has no feelings
for her. Winston finally accepts the Party and loves Big Brother.