1984: Nineteen Eighty-four and Winston Smith Essay

Submitted By shannonkowal
Words: 650
Pages: 3
Open Document
Kowal 1

In George Orwell’s 1984, the protagonist, Winston Smith, faces many different forms of torture, more specifically near the end of the novel. He is captured and taken to the Ministry of Love for betraying the Party. Winston is put through four different stages of torture. During this process, Winston loses his right to having his own thoughts and beliefs. The time leading up to, and once he betrays Julia it causes Winston mental pain; and he is faced with his biggest fear-rats. These are all examples that the worst torture Winston endures is purely mental, and not physical. To start, Winston loses the right to believe what he chooses when he undergoes the psychological torture with O’Brien. He uses physical pain to force Winston to believe what the party says is true, even if Winston knows keep down that it is a lie. The moment where Winston honestly believes what O’Brien is saying is after O’Brien repeatedly shocks him, and he finally sees five fingers, even though O’Brien was only holding up four: “But there had been a moment-he did not know how long, thirty seconds perhaps-of luminous certainty, when each new suggestion of O’Brien’s filled up a patch of emptiness and became absolute truth.” (270-271) Another example that shows Winston is losing the right to having his own opinions is in the middle of Winston’s torture; he is trying to tell O’Brien his own thoughts about the Party, but O’Brien stop him. Winston says, “You are ruling over us for our own good’, he said feebly. ‘You believe that human beings are not fit to govern themselves and therefore____’ He started and almost cried out… ‘That was stupid, Winston, stupid!’ he said. [O’Brien] (275) Winston completely loses the right to having a voice in his society. Next, as Winston undergoes torture, he would never think to betray Julia. However once he does, it really affects him. All Winston ever does is care and love Julia, and then he discovers that she betrays him right away. O’Brien says to Winston, “She betrayed you, Winston. Immediately-
Kowal 2 unreservedly. I have seldom seen anyone come over to us so promptly.” (271) Later on, once Winston is released, he runs into Julia and it is quite awkward: “There did not seem to be anything more to say. The wind plastered their thin overalls against their bodies. Almost at once, it was embarrassing to sit there in silence.” (306) The idea that Winston has now lost Julia, along with his freedom of thought and choice is
Show More

Related Documents: 1984: Nineteen Eighty-four and Winston Smith Essay

Essay on 1984: Nineteen Eighty-four and Winston Smith

Honors-4 June 12 2013 1984 Growing up in a society that nurtures pessimism, it is not surprising that George Orwell reared a bleak view of the world. For Orwell, 1984 is the encompassment of his dismal vision he has for the future society. 1984 reveals that the future Orwell foresees is controlled by one group, The Party, that hovers over every aspect of life and thus has no tolerance for any diversion from their rigid set beliefs, nor any tolerance for humanity. Winston Smith, Orwell’s protagonist…

Words 1066 - Pages 5

Censorship in 1984 by George Orwell Essay

made by the Party in this novel, the truth is left ambiguous and the reader is not told whether the documents are truly destroyed. For example, a picture which Winston throws into one early in the novel is produced later during his torture session, if only to be thrown back in an instant later. Nineteen Eighty-Four (sometimes written 1984) is a 1949 dystopian novel by George Orwell about an oligarchical, collectivist society. Life in the Oceania province of Airstrip One is a world of perpetual war…

Words 1329 - Pages 6

Essay English Grade 12 ISU Checkpoint 3

Christopher Vecchi Ms. Spencer Hill ENG 4U 27 May 2015 The Plight of an Insurgent George Orwell creates a dark, depressing and pessimistic world in his novel Nineteen Eighty-Four, where the government has full control over its subjects. The protagonist, Winston Smith, is a Party member who has grown to resent the society that he lives in. He is portrayed as an individual that begins to lose his sanity due to the strict rules of society. There are only two possible outcomes, he either conforms to…

Words 1967 - Pages 8

1984: Government's Attempt to Control the Mind and Bodies of Its Citiz Essay

1984: Government's Attempt to Control The Mind and Bodies of Its Citizens The novel Nineteen Eighty-Four by George Orwell is an American classic which explores the human mind when it comes to power, corruption, control, and the ultimate utopian society. Orwell indirectly proposes that power given to the government will ultimately become corrupt and they will attempt to force all to conform to their one set standard. He also sets forth the idea that the corrupted government will attempt to…

Words 1231 - Pages 5

Role Of Religion In George Orwell's 1984

George Orwell’s 1984 was written to warn us about the potentially dangerous future that lies ahead. The Party sought complete sovereignty over the people for their own selfish reasons. Winston Smith, the protagonist, commits many treasonous acts against the party with Julia, his lover. Eventually, Winston and Julia are captured by the party and put through many types of tortures at a multitude of degrees in order to rule out all opposition and teach them to love Big Brother, their undivided ruler…

Words 648 - Pages 3

Essay about My Story

George Orwell’s satire Nineteen-Eighty Four & Frank Darabont’s The Shawshank Redemption disturbingly portrays dangers of unlimited power & corruption. These texts show us the dangers that unrestricted supremacy may lead to. Orwell’s Nineteen-Eighty Four gives an insight into a totalitarian government. He warns about the acceptance of the government intrusion into ones private sphere. This is depicted through the use of telescreens, with the protagonist Winston Smith writing in his diary…

Words 771 - Pages 4

George Orwell Research Paper

Than Others”” (Atwood). Yet, despite this constant need for power and the power changes within the farm, it is the human nature of superior animals to defeat greed and ultimately save humanity. Orwell’s perspective on society was also shown in 1984, a story that depicts the most horrifying future possible, one with complete regimentation, hypocrisy, cruelty and denial of human rights and dignity. The suffocating government dominated the society within the novel, evidenced by the way that even…

Words 2343 - Pages 10

1984: Nineteen Eighty-four and Book Essay

After reading the book 1984 which was assigned to me in my literature class in high school I found reading more enjoyable and encouraged to read books more often. I was also able to take examples and situations from the book and relate them to real world situations causing them to act as an early warning to me despite being in a fictional book due to its realism and relationship to what is happening in real life. The different phrases and hidden meanings gave me a better perception of intellectual…

Words 737 - Pages 3

Essay on Nineteen Eighty Four Literacy Criticism

Nineteen Eighty-Four Also known as: 1984 Date: 1949 Author: George Orwell From: 1984, Bloom's Guides. Nineteen Eighty-Four is told in three sections, comprising eight, ten, and six chapters respectively. The narration is from the third person, with an omniscience limited to Winston's perspective. The first section covers the beginning of Winston's personal treason, his background, and his hopes. In the second, Winston becomes romantically involved with Julia and the two develop their dual rebellion…

Words 7443 - Pages 30

Who Is The Hero In George Orwell's Nineteen Eighty-Four

Winston Smith is the protagonist of a novel, Nineteen Eighty-Four composed by George Orwell and distributed in 1949. The novel displays an imaginary future of 1984 administered by a gathering known as the Party, whose despot is called Big Brother. The Party controls all parts of individuals' lives, including their musings. The name of the state is Oceania where Winston is an occupant. He loathes the social frameworks that administer the residents therein. They are led by extreme dread. They have…

Words 1269 - Pages 6