1984

"...They threaten you with something-something you can't stand up to. And then you say, 'Don't do it to me, do it to somebody else.' And perhaps you might pretend afterwards, what it was only a trick and that you just said it to make them stop and didn't really mean it. But that isn't true. At the time when it happens you do mean it. You think there's no other way of saving yourself...you want it to happen to the other person. You don't give a damn what they suffer. All you care about is yourself." (240) In the scene where O'Brien is torturing Winston and even goes as far as almost letting rats eat Winston's face, O'Brien knows that Winston fears rats and that this ideas of rats eating his face would surely break him. O'Brien is right because Winston tells  O'Brien to do this to Julia and not him. Later on, Julia confesses to Winston that when she was in a similar situation she betrayed Winston as well. Maybe if Winston an...

"Only the disciplined mind can see reality, Winston. You believe that reality is something objective, external, existing in its own right. You also believe that the nature of reality is self-evident. When you delude yourself into thinking that you see something, you assume that everyone else sees the same thing as you. But I tell you, Winston, that reality is not external. Reality exists in the human mind, and nowhere else" (205). O'Brien's conversation with Winston makes it clear as to why the people of Oceania are blinded by the madness of the Party. The Party has instilled a certain way of thinking that forces the citizens of Oceania to believe every single word that the Party says no matter how crazy it may sound. This is why O'Brien says that reality exists only in the human mind and not externally because the Party ingrains their philosophy in the minds of the people of Oceania and this is why they must only believe what they know in their mind and not wha...

"The terrible thing that the Party had done was to persuade you that mere impulses, mere feelings, were of no account. When once you were in the grip of the Party. what you felt or did not feel. What you did or refrained from doing, made literally no difference. Whatever happened you vanished, and neither you nor your actions were ever heard of again...They were governed by private loyalties which they did not question. What mattered were individual relationships, and a completely helpless gesture, an embrace, a tear, a word spoke to a dying man, could have value in itself" (136). This particular quote stood out to me because it highlights one of the main aspects of the Party and the people of Oceania. The Party wants its citizens to live their life without any emotions, while the people of Oceania allow them to do this because they do not know any better. If anyone from Oceania does try to rebel against the Party, eventually the Party will vaporize them. The only people wh...

"She had already turned to go, but she did rather fretfully come back or a moment. She even leaned out over the cliff face to see where he was pointing. He was standing a little behind her, and he put his hand on her waist to steady her. At this moment it suddenly occurred to him how completely alone they were. There was not even a bird awake. In a place like this the danger that there would be a hidden microphone was very small, and even if there was a microphone it would only pick up sounds. It was the hottest, sleepiest hour of the afternoon. The sun blazed down upon them, the sweat tickled his face. And the thought struck him.." (112). From this passage about Winston wanting to kill his wife Katharine, and a previous passage about how Winston wanted to rape and kill Julia makes me believe that Winston is truly a terrible person. Even if the government does instill a hostile way of thinking towards women, Winston can control his thoughts and even has thoughts that are co...