1984

Concept/Vocabulary Analysis
Text: 1984 by George Orwell (Signet Classic)

Plot Summary
In 1984, Winston Smith lives in London which is part of the country Oceania.
The world is divided into three countries that include the entire globe --
Oceania, Eurasia, and Eastasia. Oceania, and both of the others, is a
totalitarian society let by Big Brother, which censors everyone's behavior,
even their thoughts. Winston is disgusted with is oppressed life and secretly
longs to join the rumored Brotherhood, a supposed group of underground
rebels intent on overthrowing the government. Winston meets Julia and they
secretly fall in love and have an affair, something which is considered a crime.
One day, while walking home, Winston encounters O'Brian, an inner party member, who gives
Winston his address. Winston had exchanged glances with O'Brian before and had drams
about him giving him the impression that O'Brian was a member of the Brotherhood. Since
Julia hated the party as much as Winston did, they went to O'Brian's house together where they
were introduced into the Brother hood. O'Brian is actually a faithful member of the Inner-Party
and this is actually a trap for Winston, a trap that O'Brian has been cleverly setting for seven
years. Winston and Julia are sent to the Ministry of Love which is a sort of rehabilitation center
for criminals accused of throughtcrime. There, Winston is separated from Julia, and tortured
until his beliefs coincided with those of the Party. Winston denounces everything he believed,
even his love for Julia, and was released back into the public where he wastes his days at the
Chestnut Tree drinking gin.

Organizational
1984 is divided into three primary books, each separated into smaller chapters marked by
roman numerals.

Book 1 is 104 pages and divided into eight chapters. This first part of
the book is devoted to introducing the major characters, themes of the
novels, Winston’s life and that of minor Party members, and the world
of the proles/poor. One of the most important plot developments in
this first section is Winston’s discovery of Charrington’s antique shop.

Book 2 is 120 pages divided into ten chapters. This is the bulk of the book; Winston’s affair
with Julia blossoms, he meets O’Brien, makes contact with the Brotherhood, and he begins to
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rent out the room above the antique shop. Beyond the new relationship bonds that develop,
the theme of psychological manipulation is brought to the forefront as Winston begins to recall
childhood memories and how much they have been manipulated or dictated by the Party.

Side note – In this part, chapter 9 is the longest chapter in the entire book lasting 38
pages. It is primarily filled with the book The Theory and Practice of Oligarchical
Collectivism by Emmanuel Goldstein. This chapter often seems like a never ending lull
from the action that had filled 1984 to this point and can be challenging for students.

The differences between Winston and Julia begin to develop and become more apparent to the
reader up to the point that the Thought Police arrive and arrest Winston ending his affair and
rebellion against the Party.

Book 3 is the final book and is only 72 pages that are divided into 6
chapters. This portion is filled with the graphic and horrific torture of
Winston by O’Brien in the Ministry of Love. The torture is not so much to
extract information from Winston, but to brainwash him into agreeing
and believing the Parties ideology. He is only released after betraying
Julia to ensure his self-preservation. This final act breaks him far worse
than death would have been; he believes that he is limited by his body,
that knowledge and personal expression cannot help one transcend from the quotidian things
of a mortal life, therefore he has no reason to think, act or rebel. The last line of the book is,
“He loved Big Brother.”

The Central Question

How much power should a government have?

Throughout all of 1984 the image of "Big Brother" and an endless

presence of security is beyond oblivious. Yet, the citizens seem to
have no rights beyond going to work, getting up to exercise, and
thinking what The Party wants them too. Does the government
have right to spy on all of its citizens? Should there be freedom of
speech/thought? Or, in the name of preserving order, should the government control all
thought and information? These are all questions that Weston asks in 1984, and are still
pertinent to ask today.

What power does an individual have against the masses?

Weston seeks to be an individual, unique from the rest. He seeks out the past, love, and
knowledge; things that the masses did not seek out. He felt different during the 2 Minuet Hate
and was not moved by the mob mentality. Searching for The Brotherhood, Weston seeks to
fight against the masses -- The Party. Can the individual stand up against the masses? In the
end of 1984, this is the question.
1984 | Williamson BYU
Themes
The Danger of Totalitarianism -- One of the major themes that is not masked in
any way. Orwell wrote 1984 to warn its readers in the Western World of the
dangers of a totalitarian society. With the fear of spreading communism after
the end of World War II and the development of the Cold War, Orwell wanted
to reveal what widespread cruelties and oppression he had
witnessed in communist countries. 1984's dystopia view of
what a pure totalitarian society would be like fosters a fear of totalitarianism.
The governing party's abuse of absolute power. The censorship of the media
and its information. The inappropriate use of technology. And the control
exerted over the individual. The book is based on Winston's discontent with this form of
government and his desire for something new.

Control -- An overarching theme that can be broken down into smaller portions. Control over
the individual through psychological manipulation, physical control, control of information and
history, and language as mind control. Each of these themes relating back to the major theme
of the dangers of totalitarianism, can and do stand on their own.

The psychological manipulation stems from the constant reminded that "Big
Brother Is Watching," the endless presence of the telescreens, the constant
stream of propaganda, the "Hate" moments, etc. Most of the forms of
manipulation are developed through technology and fictional enemies
created by the Party to do just that - manipulate.

The use of language as mind control is one of Orwell's masterful messages left in 1984. The use
of newspeak - which had the goal of altering the structure of the language so that it would be
impossible to even conceive certain ideas since there would be no words with which to
describe or think them - is prevalent throughout the novel. The constant refinement of
newspeak causes its effects to bleed into that of the psychological manipulation and the control
of information.

Physical control is expressed through the mandatory workout times with the Physical Jerks, the
long and monotonies days of work, and the continual state of exhaustion. There is also the
physical removal of anyone suspected of thinking of being disloyal to The Party and their
sentence to the Ministry of Love. In the last book, the idea of physical control develops more
fully when Winston is subject to physical torture until he breaks and
agrees with all The Party says.

The control of information and history ironically sits, in part, with

Winston and his work in the Ministry of Truth. The Party does not allow

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 individual records to be kept, only The Party's official record can be
kept -- and this record is often rewritten to ensure that the Party
always looks its best. They control the past, and therefore are able
to justify all their actions in the present and predict the future.

Setting
The story is centered in Oceania, one of the three totalitarian superpowers that rule the world
using censorship and pure terror. Most of the time is focus in London and the surrounding land
just outside of the city where the prolos live. While it is center here, there are two locations
that are also of great importance -- Mr. Charrington's rented room and the Ministry of Love.

Another important setting is Mr. Charrington's rented room where Winston and Julia are able
to hideaway and make love while hidden from the telescreens and the constant watching of the
Party.

The final book is set in the Ministry of Love, the rehabilitation center where anything but love is
shown to the residence. In this center torture and brainwashing techniques are used in order
to completely conform its prisoners into the thinking and beliefs of the Party only to be later
killed, sent to forced labor camps or even released back into society.

Point of View
Orwell's prose is very descriptive and informative. He portrays terrifying
images and conveys horrifying truths in a calm voice that contrasts
effectively with the true horrors of his message. Foreshadowing and
suspense in used to heighten this exciting novel.

1984 is written in third person limited omniscient from the perspective of

Winston. All the information and emotions that are expressed throughout
the book come from Winston; because of this the readers also become
confused as they come to understand Oceania through Winston's eyes. By the end, when the
reader experiences the brutal and explicit language of the torture scene, the reader is similarly
tortured. The reader becomes Winston -- until his departure from free will at the end. This
causes the reader to feel particular awful since they have gotten used to sympathizing with
him, to experiencing things with him. All this is possible because of the Third Person Limited
Omniscient Narrative Technique used by Orwell in 1984.

Literary Terms
There are a number of terms that can be taught in conjunction with this novel, here only
follows a few:
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Allegory -- Where every aspect of a story is representative, usually symbolic, of something else,
usually a larger abstract concept or important historical/geopolitical event. Some read 1984 as
a political allegory while others read it as a religious allegory; each reading produces a very
different reading and drastically different feelings at the end.

Irony -- Where an event occurs which is unexpected, in the sense that it is somehow in absurd
or mocking opposition to what would be expected or appropriate. 1984
is filled with irony. Each of the Ministries stand as a symbol for irony -
Ministry of Truth dedicated to destroying truth, Ministry of Love
dedicated to hate and torture, Ministry of Peace dedicated to war. The
slogans are deeply ironic. Winston Smith enters "Victory mansions" but
there is no victory for him. The list can go on.

Paradox -- Where a situation is created which cannot possible exist, because different elements
of it cancel each other out. "Doublethink" refers to the paradox where history is changed, and
then claimed to have never been changed.

Satire -- A literary mode based on criticism of people and society through ridicule. The satirist
aims to reduce the practices attacked by laughing scornfully at them -- and by witty enough to
allow the reader to laugh, also. Ridicule, irony, exaggeration, and several other techniques are
almost always present. It is very important that the students understand what this is before
and while reading 1984, the entire book is a book of satire. This novel is a satiric statement on
what could happen if people in the world didn't recognize the problems and do something
about it.

Vocabulary Issues
Language is a very important aspect of 1984 -- the power it has to control minds, doublespeak,
doublethink, newspeak. While most of the vocabulary used throughout the book will be easy
for students to understand, there are the occasional words that students may stumble on.
Because of this, wonderful vocabulary list can be developed and taught in conjunction with the
book. Examples of possible list can be found at the following links:

http://classiclit.about.com/od/nineteeneightyfour/a/aa_1984vocab.htm

http://www.foothilltech.org/rgeib/english/orwell/vocabulary.htm

http://www.vocabulary.com/VUctnineteen.html

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Background Knowledge
It is important that the students understand what totalitarianism and democratic socialism are
so that they can understand what 1984 is warning against. Teaching the students about the
Cold War and the concerns of the time will help the students
understand why Orwell felt that a satirical dystopia warning for
what might happen in the future was needed and appropriate.

Helping them learn about Stalin-era Soviet Union will allow them
to make connections throughout the book; the "Two Minutes'
Hate" and its relationship to Stalinism's habitual demonstration
of its enemies and rivals, the very description of Big Brother
himself and the physical resemblance to Stalin, while The Party's
great enemy, Emmanuel Goldstein, resembles Leon Trotsky.

1984 is also filled with an extensive and institutional use of

propaganda. Students will come to your class with different understandings of what this
means. They will have learned them from movies and even their history classes. By providing
them with common information about what it is, students will be able to better understand the
themes of control in 1984.

While it is important to help the students understand this background knowledge and how it
was present in the past, it is important also to tap into their knowledge of the current modern
day. Encourage them to see how propaganda exist today, even in their own communities. Help
them realize that there are totalitarian nations in the world still. Help them recognize the
existence of propaganda in their own lives. Some may even know of the use of hidden cameras
in a number of cities across the United States and in England.

There is almost limitless background information that the students might bring with them,
because of this it is important that as teachers we evaluate what it is and seek to bring them all
together in their understanding. Because of the present-day application for a number of the
themes and motifs there are countless sources that can be used to ensure an strong and sure
scaffolding be created for teaching 1984.

Implications for Students of Diversity

1984 is based on a constant struggle between the uneven
distribution of wealth and political power. The diversity ranges
from the poor and powerless Proles that make up 85% of
Oceania's population contrasting the very rich and all powerful

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Inner Party that only makes up 2% of Oceania's population.

Because of the diversity expressed in the book, it is important to remember that your students
also experience similar forms of diversity, and they may become sensitive topics in class. Be
aware of the diversity that exists in your own classroom. Students and parents will have
different political, social, and economic views from one another. 1984 brings all of these topics
to the surface. Because of this it is important that it does not seem that you are promoting one
ideology over the other, or speaking down or bad about different social classes, and do not
allow your students to do it either.

Gender Issues
In 1984 gender is an issue in a different manner than might be expected, relationship between
men and women are based on procreation only and not love. Women
are taught that sex is wrong and dirty and unnecessary. The Party
does not promote any love except the love for Big Brother. The Party
attempts to make gender a non-issue; women are completely equal
to men in the society of 1984.

It is important to recognize that though The Party wishes to make

gender and sex a non-issue, there are still graphic sex scenes found in the book.

Research Issues/Project Ideas

The options are endless, here follow only a few while countless more can be found on the
English Companion Ning found at http://englishcompanion.ning.com/.

 Find and read several articles about surveillance in the modern world (these should all
be dated within the last couple of years—either your teacher or Ms. Hall the librarian
can help you source them).Write a 2-3 page argument claiming that 1984 either is or is
not relevant as a modern text. Use both of your articles and 1984 to support your
argument, and include a Works Cited page.
 Find and read several articles about surveillance in the modern world (these should all
be dated within the last couple of years—either your teacher or Ms. Hall the librarian
can help you source them). Create either a comic book of at least 4 pages or a short
story of 2-3 pages which tells the story of a character living in a world of surveillance. As
Doctorow did in Little Brother, you should make references to 1984 and tie in some of
the same themes. Include a Bibliography (not annotated) of the articles you used.
 Find and read several articles about the Stanford Prison experiment, the Milgram
experiment, or both, and write a 2-3 page paper about how they can deepen our

1984 | Williamson BYU

 understanding of 1984 in some way. Use both of your articles and 1984 to support your
argument, and include a Works Cited page.
 With a parent’s permission, view the movie version of 1984. Write a 2-3 page paper
comparing the book and the movie, making an argument as to whether or not the movie
is a good depiction. You should include references to both the book and the movie in
your paper.
 Find and read several articles about surveillance in the modern world (these should all
be dated within the last couple of years—either your teacher or Ms. Hall the librarian
can help you source them).Write a 2-3 page argument claiming that 1984 either is or is
not relevant as a modern text. Use both of your articles and 1984 to support your
argument, and include a Works Cited page.
 Find and read several articles about surveillance in the modern world (these should all
be dated within the last couple of years—either your teacher or Ms. Hall the librarian
can help you source them). Create either a comic book of at least 4 pages or a short
story of 2-3 pages which tells the story of a character living in a world of surveillance. As
Doctorow did in Little Brother, you should make references to 1984 and tie in some of
the same themes. Include a Bibliography (not annotated) of the articles you used.
 Find and read several articles about the Stanford Prison experiment, the Milgram
experiment, or both, and write a 2-3 page paper about how they can deepen our
understanding of 1984 in some way. Use both of your articles and 1984 to support your
argument, and include a Works Cited page.
 With a parent’s permission, view the movie version of 1984. Write a 2-3 page paper
comparing the book and the movie, making an argument as to whether or not the movie
is a good depiction. You should include references to both the book and the movie in
your paper.
 Find and read several articles about surveillance in the modern world (these should all
be dated within the last couple of years—either your teacher or Ms. Hall the librarian
can help you source them).Write a 2-3 page argument claiming that 1984 either is or is
not relevant as a modern text. Use both of your articles and 1984 to support your
argument, and include a Works Cited page.
 Find and read several articles about surveillance in the modern world (these should all
be dated within the last couple of years—either your teacher or Ms. Hall the librarian
can help you source them). Create either a comic book of at least 4 pages or a short
story of 2-3 pages which tells the story of a character living in a world of surveillance. As
Doctorow did in Little Brother, you should make references to 1984 and tie in some of
the same themes. Include a Bibliography (not annotated) of the articles you used.
 Find and read several articles about the Stanford Prison experiment, the Milgram
experiment, or both, and write a 2-3 page paper about how they can deepen our

1984 | Williamson BYU

 understanding of 1984 in some way. Use both of your articles and 1984 to support your
argument, and include a Works Cited page.
 With a parent’s permission, view the movie version of 1984. Write a 2-3 page paper
comparing the book and the movie, making an argument as to whether or not the movie
is a good depiction. You should include references to both the book and the movie in
your paper.
(These ideas come from Mr. Bravo's and Mr. Keer's 1984 Perfect 100 Final)

1984 | Williamson BYU