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by George Orwell
How would you like your life to be controlled by unseen people, where one thing done wrong can mean death? That’s the world Winston Smith lives in, in the year 1984.
Winston lives in “Airstrip One” (England), where everything is closely monitored by the Party and the Thought Police. No one dares step out of line because “Big Brother is watching you.” It is a world where the past is rewritten to make it seem like what is happening now had always been that way. It is a world where Winston and his girlfriend Julia join a brotherhood they think is trying to destroy the Party.
The book’s main character is Winston, but Julia plays a big role, too. Both are rebels of sorts, out to defy the Party and Big Brother. Another sort of major character is O’Brien, Winston’s boss, and there are many minor characters, such as Parsons, a completely brainwashed Party member who is deathly afraid of doing anything wrong.
A theme in this book is that you can’t rule on fear and hate. Winston proposes that the country tries to run on the basis of love; people wouldn’t be scared out of their wits that they’ll do something wrong, and they’ll cooperate better. In a world ruled by terror and hate, people would eventually rise up and revolt against the government. That theme’s played out in this book mainly by Winston and Julia, who are trying to defy the government.
This book doesn’t really remind me of anything I’ve read or seen on TV before, but I thought it was interesting that gin was called “Victory Gin”, sort of like how President Bush called French Fries “Freedom Fries” after a disagreement with France. Also, at the beginning of World War II, things with German names were renamed, such as dachshunds, which were renamed “Liberty Pups”. Anne R.
- Reviewed by Anne R.
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Hennepin County Library
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