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1984 (Paperback)
by George Orwell
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Author: George Orwell
Publisher: Signet Classics; Reissue edition
Pub. in: July, 1950
ISBN: 0451524934
Pages: 336
Measurements: 6.6 x 5.2 x 0.9 inches
Origin of product: USA
Order code: BA00429
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George Orwell's classic novel, 1984, is set in a grim world where life is stripped down to its basis. Winston Smith, the main charachter, is just one of many Outer Party members, those who live under the support of the government, but also live under many government restrictions. The government controls everything, and Big Brother sits at the top of a totalitarian society. In the mind of Winston, Big Brother watches all. Winston differs from many of the Outer Party in the fact that he remembers the past. He can recall that years earlier, Oceania, the massive third of the world formed by the Americas, Australasia, and Airstrip One(Great Britain), was at war with Eastasia, another massive sect of the globe. Yet, in the year 1984, Oceania wars with Eurasia, and has always warred with Eurasia. The Government, enforced by the Thought Police, controls even the past. Any history is changed in accordance with current events. If Oceania is at war with Eurasia, it has always been at war with Eurasia. Any evidence that suggests otherwise is destroyed at once.
Winston slowly becomes aware of the wrongdoings of the Party, and seeks out ways to defy it. He first purchases a diary and begins writing in it, which, although not directly forbidden, is an act of thoughtcrime. He even subconsciously writes pages of the phrase "DOWN WITH BIG BROTHER". As his awareness progresses, he takes increasing risks. He returns to the store where he purchased the diary, and buys a piecce of coral encased in glass. This makes him feel connected to the beauty of the past. The largest of these risks is his secret love affair with another Party member. He is later contacted by a man by the name of O'Brian, and inner party member. Winston and his lover meet with this cryptic figure and discuss a secret rebellion called the Brotherhood. Winston and Julia immediately join in the hope of bringing the Party to its knees.
All in all, this book expresses Orwell’s deep fear of what the world is becoming. In this grim novel, war is constant, and neverending. I would imagine that is what the outcome of World War II would seem like. It also expresses the fear of a totalitarian rule that strips life down to its bare essentials. The Party tries to make this seem like a benefit for the entire society, but in reality, all the Party wants is the power to stay in power. It is almost a grim prediction of the rise of modern totalarialism. The government, in essence, is almost similar to that of the Soviet Union. This everlasting war can easily be compared to the Cold War. This nearly prophetic view of the future presents an interesting view of society, and therefore is a must read.
This book and Animal Farm are the two best known works of George Orwell. In conclusion, this novel is a masterpiece of political speculation that serves as a warning to us all. Read it for yourself to see why it brought Orwell world-wide fame.
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General readers
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From Merriam-Webster's Encyclopedia of Literature:
Novel by George Orwell, published in 1949 as a warning about the menaces of totalitarianism. The novel is set in an imaginary future world that is dominated by three perpetually warring totalitarian police states. The book's hero, Winston Smith, is a minor party functionary in one of these states. His longing for truth and decency leads him to secretly rebel against the government. Smith has a love affair with a like-minded woman, but they are both arrested by the Thought Police. The ensuing imprisonment, torture, and reeducation of Smith are intended not merely to break him physically or make him submit but to root out his independent mental existence and his spiritual dignity. Orwell's warning of the dangers of totalitarianism made a deep impression on his contemporaries and upon subsequent readers, and the book's title and many of its coinages, such as NEWSPEAK, became bywords for modern political abuses.
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Mark Wakely (MSL quote), USA
<2007-01-08 00:00>
This is a story that, unfortunately, seems to be slowly coming true. Many science fiction titles are escapist literature that either imagine a very different world(s) from our own, or at the very least, hold out some hopeful message - in other words, the good guys usually manage to win. This is neither kind of book. And it is science fiction because the sinister use of technology is what allows Big Brother to invade everyone's privacy and dictate what the characters can do or say, with severe, nightmarish punishment for "disobedience." There have other novels that have seized upon this idea of an anti-utopia, but Orwell was one of the first to place it in a realistic future, and in a chilling this-is-all-too-possible way.
And the parallels with our modern world are especially profound, parallels that are obvious all around us. The growing number of surveillance cameras on street corners, the ironic (but deliberately) named Patriot Act, the rise of political and religious intolerance in the world...all of it does not bode well for the future of our basic liberties. Orwell got in right back in 1948, and although he was primarily referring to the "red menace" of his era, the tactics used by suppressive governments are tempting for any government because of the control such tactics provide, liberties be damned. Your agenda- whatever it is- can more easily be achieved if you can identify your enemies early on and thwart their every move. The problem is, when your enemies are law-abiding citizens whose political (or religious) views don't match your own- and that's the only "crime"- you've stepped over the boundary of national security and entered the realm of repression. And to stop open criticism of these tactics, these governments (including the repressive one in 1984) invariable claim that the critics are "unpatriotic," "traitors," maybe even "terrorists." Sound familiar? Repressive governments have been using these tactics for centuries; only now, modern technology makes it a whole lot easier- and yes, unfortunately, a lot more tempting.
Of course we don't want real terrorists. The problem is, a "quick fix" of sweeping powers put into the hands of a relatively few like-minded individuals- with checks and balances muted if not totally brushed aside- can, will, and has lead to abuse of those powers, primarily for political and personal gains. That was the real message of 1984, and it's one we should never forget. And if the citizens of a repressive government either don't recognize the danger- or worse yet, vigorously defend it under some mistaken notion of being "patriotic" themselves, surrendering their own liberties in the process- that just makes it all the easier for the incumbents to remain in power, with little chance for genuine reform or change.
It's all there in this great book, 1984, which deserves to be widely read forever and amen.
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Norburn (MSL quote), USA
<2007-01-08 00:00>
This is one of those rare books that isn't necessarily a pleasure to read but is definitely worth reading. Orwell's novel manages to affect you long after you've read it - possibly even haunt you. It's a bleak novel (some might say downright depressing) - but it's also powerful and uncompromising.
Over 50 years have passed since 1984 was published (the year itself came and went over 20 years ago) yet this novel is still relevant today. 1984 is a remarkably ambitious work; unflinching and perceptive. Orwell isn't just telling a story though; he is using this novel as a soap box to warn us all of the dangers of totalitarian governments.
1984 is a novel about big ideas; about the machinery of totalitarian governments and how people can be manipulated and controlled by those in power. I did find however that the characters weren't as developed as I would have liked, as if Orwell felt they were a secondary consideration. As a result, I found the novel lacked a personal quality that I think would have made it all the more compelling. Winston Smith is not an especially sympathetic character (or for that matter, all that memorable a character). What is memorable about 1984 is the world Orwell creates - a world of contradiction, oppression, and betrayal.
This is not a book that will bring a smile to your face. Its message is delivered with a heavy hand but 1984 will make you think. If it doesn't make you paranoid, it should at least make you cynical.
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Loki Malinger (MSL quote), USA
<2007-01-08 00:00>
I found the O'Brien character in 1984 to be unrealistic. The idea of someone intelligent enough to run a sophisticated surveillance state acting against economic progress and enjoying ruling over people in the most brutal and barbaric way is not realistic. Compare this to Koestler's Darkness at Noon, in my opinion a far superior novel, where the state is run by violent but stupid brutes who would not be intelligent enough to run a sort of 1984 dystopia.
However, this is still a great novel in that it accurately predicted the inevitable surveillance of everyone's lives that has been a reality, and is increasingly becoming more and more prevalent, with the surface justification being anti-terrorism. Winston, an isolated individual, can do nothing against the powerful bureaucracy and his attempt to oppose the state just leads to him being crushed. The imagery is the strongest part of the novel, with, for example the "10 minutes of hatred" and the "Ministry of Truth" propagated lies. It has become a part of our language, and both sides on the political spectrum lionize Orwell to demonstrate that the other side is immoral even while engaging in Orwellian language themselves in the same breath.
However, Orwell, a miserable pessimist, like so many science fiction writers could see no solutions, and so 1984 has become a symbol of a future that must be opposed. He did not think of any possible solutions but only illustrated a future in which individuals were crushed by an omnipotent bureaucracy which only enjoyed crushing people.
Orwell makes the bureaucracy one-dimensional, and as Dr. Dolan from the online newspaper the Exile points out, his choice of the name "O'Brien" demonstrates his particular form of British racism. Authors do not pick names randomly and Orwell was implying something without actually wanting to provide any details, because 1984 is on the whole a rant, but a very good rant that conjures up powerful imagery. If Orwell had created a more realistic portrayal of the future, even a more realistic dystopia, it may not have been as powerful in its effect on the reader.
Since someone inevitably will make use of surveillance technology, either through the government, or if the government's powers were severely repressed, as libertarians believe is necessary to ensure progress and freedom, then through powerful corporations who bend the law and use their profits to surveil and manipulate the populace, and evade government attempts to stop them. Inevitably the power of surveillance will lie in someone's hands; it's just a matter of who. Thus the vast majority of individuals who simply view surveillance with superstitious hostility have not really thought about the issue much, and may simply have a desire to believe their lives are being controlled in the same way that many people, from environmentalists to religious zealots, pray for the end of the world.
When this surveillance state uses its powers for its own selfish reasons and for the sheer thrill of power or when its tactics are unnecessarily brutal and disruptive, it must be opposed with every means necessary. However, if it allows legitimate free debate but only acts to disrupt organizations and movements that are nihilistically destructive, and people who seek to impose a 1984 dystopia upon us, then it may be a source of good. However, it is proper that our natural reaction is to be skeptical, and blunders the CIA and FBI continuously make demonstrate that we cannot blindly accept that they are a progressive force.
The fact that they allow their blunders to be revealed illustrates the unnecessary barbarity of some of their methods. The check on their power indeed comes from whistleblowers like Mike Levine, author of the bestselling expose of the CIA's involvement in the drug war (their interests were not in stopping people from using drugs) who point out their failures to discerning and curious individuals. If they go too far their will be a reaction against them and their power will be reduced, and individual agents purged.
Thus it is important that those who wield the powers of surveillance realize that the most important reason why they possess these powers is to prevent less scrupulous individuals from using these powers to malign and destroy decent individuals. In 1984, the reporting of events was changed to represent the interest of Big Brother. Readers naturally and correctly find this concept scary, and the CIA and FBI have, at times, used such tactics themselves to uneccessarily destroy the lives of dissenting individuals when the tactics of debate should have been used rather than brute suppression if the whistleblower really did not have a full understanding of the larger and correct motivations behind their tactics.
If, like Lenin, they see the cautious use of force as a weakness rather than a symbol of superiority, then it does not matter what political party, ideology, or interests they serve; they have gone too far and must be routed out and attacked, not just by intellectuals like Chomsky made inconsequential by his incessant and one-sided rants, but by intelligent and brave individuals, whether liberal, conservative, or apolitical. Certainly there are times when force or using coercive tactics may be necessary, but the less such tactics are used the better. Non-interference, laying back and letting events take their course until just the right moment rather than sticking their finger in every pie, is the best option.
Perhaps the key element is how they deal with exceptional individuals - scientists, literary figures, charismatic but intelligent politicians. If they only attempt to manipulate these individuals for their own end, controlling their every action, they may greatly reduce the good the individual could have produced.
It is right that we, non-members of the Surveillance Party, skeptically try to deduce the influence spooks have on our lives and political events. It is also natural that the spooks try to keep their actions secret; that's who they are. When they use barbaric and destructive tactics it should be pointed out at every opportunity. |
An American reader (MSL quote), USA
<2007-01-08 00:00>
While George Orwell's vision of what the year 1984 would be like was greatly wrong, it does not diminish the value of this book. I wanted to read a book that was suspenseful yet meaningful. I was suggested this book by a friend who had read it and enjoyed it. When you first begin to read the book it is easy to be turned off by the tone of the novel which seems almost depressing and cautionary. You are immediately given a description of what the world has become. The main character in this novel is a man by the name of Winston Smith, he is39 years old and lives in Oceania. Oceania is one of the three world powers; the other two are Eastasia and Eurasia. Winston Smith is a member of and works for the "party," which is the governing body of Oceania. He works in the Ministry of Truth, where he alters written records. His world is very depressing. He is constantly aware of the fact that he could be spied on at any minute. All the houses have telescreens which allow the "party" to monitor and communicate to the people of Oceania.
It is very clear form early on in the novel that Winston is not loyal to the party. He seems to remember a time when people where free and the world was a happier place, and has heard of a organization called the "brotherhood" whose purpose is to rebel against the party. Winston illegally buys a diary and begins to write down his thoughts; all of which are against the party. The simple act of buying the book and using it will mean his certain death. Winston also takes notice of a woman in his building by the name of Julia. At one point in the novel she makes contact with Winston by slipping him a paper with the words "I Love you" written on it. The two begin a love affair, they are only able to meet in secret places and Julia has claimed to have had many affairs with party members. Besides the strong sexual drives the two seem very different, she is much younger and not as concerned with the way things are, or joining any rebellion against the party.
The fact that the world is not like this even today 22 years later than what Orwell Predicted is irrelevant to the value of this novel. The importance and value of this novel are the ideas that Orwell brings up. The possibilities of what he thinks mankind is capable of becoming should be a warning. It is a book that should be read by anyone with power, because not only does Orwell create this world he also explains how it became like that. His ideas for how the world became so horrible are not out of this world concepts they are all, in a very strange way, completely rational. This book could be re-titled 2084 and it would hold just as much value. |
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