![]() Through the Ministry of Truth, the Party engages in omnipresent government surveillance, historical negationism, and constant propaganda to persecute individuality and independent thinking. Great Britain, now known as Airstrip One, has become a province of the totalitarian superstate Oceania, which is led by Big Brother, a dictatorial leader supported by an intense cult of personality manufactured by the Party's Thought Police. The story takes place in an imagined future in an unknown year believed to be 1984, when much of the world is in perpetual war. More broadly, the novel examines the role of truth and facts within societies and the ways in which they can be manipulated. Orwell, a democratic socialist, modelled the authoritarian state in the novel on the Soviet Union in the era of Stalinism, and Nazi Germany. Thematically, it centres on the consequences of totalitarianism, mass surveillance and repressive regimentation of people and behaviours within society. It was published on 8 June 1949 by Secker & Warburg as Orwell's ninth and final book completed in his lifetime. This post is part of the series: 1984 Study Guideĭon’t get sent to room 101 for failing your 1984 exam.Nineteen Eighty-Four (also published as 1984) is a dystopian social science fiction novel and cautionary tale by English writer George Orwell. He is a former party member who runs the Brotherhood that fights against Big Brother.Īmpleforth - A poet in The Ministry of Truth, Ampleforth is arrested for leaving the word God in a poem.įeel free to share your 1984 character analysis by clicking “comments” above.įind more brilliant Bright Hub Education Study Guides here. Winston believes Parsons is safe from thoughtcrime and is surprised to see him arrested.Įmmanuel Goldstein - Oceania’s public enemy #1 probably doesn’t exist either. Parsons - a dull, stupid neighbor and co-worker of Winston whose children are obnoxious and members of the Junior Spies. Syme - The ministry’s expert on Newspeak disappears, as Winston predicts, because he is too intelligent. Charrington is a member of the Thought Police. Charrington - Winston rents a room above Charrington’s shop, only to find out that Mr. Loving Big Brother is the ultimate sign of party loyalty. The party severs all familial ties, yet uses a familial, loving image to win hearts. He’s the public persona of the party, yet in reality probably does not exist.Īnalysis: The character itself is ironic in many ways. It is unclear whether he was rebellious in the past or whether he has always been a strict party supporter.īig Brother - Big Brother is always watching. He knows an awful lot about things he should not know about. O’Brien becomes Winston’s main torturer and converter.Īnalysis: O’Brien remains a mystery. Winston shows up with Julia, proclaims his hatred for the party, and receives instructions from O’Brien on how to receive a book that divulges the party’s secrets. O’Brien gives Winston his address and invites Winston over. O’Brien - Winston believes O’Brien, an inner party member, shares his hatred for the party. Other than a desire for intercourse and their hatred for the party, the two have very little in common. Of course, by calling her that name, he is giving her a compliment. ![]() Whereas Winston seeks to destroy the party and overthrow the government, Julia desires only to break enough rules to have fun.Īnalysis: Winston calls Julia a “rebel only from the waist down,” a polite way of calling her immoral. The two meet in the countryside at a location discovered while Julia participated in Junior Anti-Sex League community hikes. Julia - Winston’s lover sends him a secret note proclaiming her love for him. His fatalism causes him to test the limits of rebelliousness and eventually displays just how powerful the party is. ![]() Winston’s most dominant attribute is fatalism, the belief that everything will end up bad (kind of like being a Cleveland sports fan). He desires more than anything to have a real love affair. He constantly drinks gin and secretly harbors ill will toward Big Brother and the party. As with all criminals, he is caught and confesses.Īnalysis: Winston is weak and sick as the novel begins. Guilty of thoughtcrime, manifested through the purchase of a diary, writing “DOWN WITH BIG BROTHER”, and having a romantic encounter. He works in the ministry of truth as a minor party member. Winston Smith - The novel’s protagonist makes an unlikely rebel.
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