“The proles are human beings . . . we are not human.” (165)

This statement brings into question what exactly makes us human. Through Winston, Orwell is promoting the idea that being human is more than just being flesh and blood with 23 chromosomes. Being human, it seems, requires independent thought and action. Because The Party is taking away this ability from its members, it is effectively rendering them inhuman. The proles lie outside this control and therefore are untouched by most of The Party's actions throughout Oceania. While The Party has stripped all that it is to be human from its members, the humanity of the proles has been left intact. They serve as a reminder to the reader that we must remain conscious beings, for it is the only thing that differentiates us from animals.

“The proper thing was to kill yourself before they got to you.” (102)

This concept of killing oneself out of honor draws from the Japanese samurai tradition of Hara-Kiri were they to fall into enemy hands or somehow bring shame upon themselves or their family. In this same vein, Winston shows that death is clearly favorable to being tortured – and eventually killed – in the Ministry of Love. In comparing behavior in Oceania to that in a country that was also so entrenched in control – keeping outsiders out for hundreds of years – Orwell makes it clear that The Party means serious business and is not willing to make compromises for anyone. Citizens are clearly held to the highest standards and achieving anything less is unacceptable.

SOURCE: "Hara-kiri - Definition and More from the Free Merriam-Webster Dictionary." Dictionary and Thesaurus - Merriam-Webster Online. Web. 17 May 2010. http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/hara-kiri.

Prefix of “Victory”

In Ocean, many things exist with the prefix of “victory” - Victory Gin, Victory Cigarettes, and Victory Coffee to name a few. This is done with the goal of inspiring people to make sacrifices, such as in the quality of their food stuffs, during war time. In the case of Oceania, this is the war against Eurasia. This tactic is parallel to what the American government did during World War II so that troops could be properly fed and equipped. Orwell uses this similarity to show that Oceania really does have a goal – to win the war – and also that the nation is not invincible. If Oceania were invincible, the entire country would not have to sacrifice anything in order to win.

SOURCE: "Victory Gardens during World War II." The Wessels Living History Farm, the Story of Agricultural Innovation. Web. 16 May 2010. http://www.livinghistoryfarm.org/farminginthe40s/crops_02.html.

“I think I exist.” (259)

This quote is essentially a reworking of Descartes' “I think therefore I am.” With it, Orwell shows that Winston is conscious of what is going on around him: he is not yet part of the brainwashed masses. Obviously Descartes thought philosophically – a line of thought that would be frowned upon by the government of Oceania. For Winston to be thinking in such a way shows that his resistance to The Party is more than superficial – he doesn't disagree just for the sake of disagreeing or because someone has told him to, but because he understands the issues and situation at hand.

SOURCE: "Rene Descartes: 'I Think Therefore I Am'" Read Books Online Free - Romance Novels Online. Web. 16 May 2010. http://www.publicbookshelf.com/public_html/Outline_of_Great_Books_Volume_I/ithinkth_bga.html.

The Lottery

The Lottery in Oceania is synonymous with the Lottery in present-day society. It is something that lots of people get excited about – buying a lottery ticket on your 18th birthday is a rite of passage – but yet the stories of actually winning are few and far between. Even when there is a “big winner” it is usually someone in some far-flung locale; knowing a winner is very rare. And yet countless people continue to play week after week. Orwell uses this to show that, even though the proles technically live outside the reign of The Party, they are still willing to blindly follow where The Party leads and never question how the actual system works. Instead, they continue to play and hope that someday they will get lucky, never realizing that the entire system is rigged because they never think to question authority – a grim warning for readers who may find themselves to be complacent.

“Your worst enemy . . . was your own nervous system.” (63)

In a society with so many formidable enemies watching your every move, it is ironic that Winston thinks that his downfall may be an internal source. Orwell uses this to show the phycological impact that The Party has upon its members. In our society, keeping a diary would cause no outward signs of distress on an individual. Yet in Oceania, Winston has been brainwashed that he thinks he is doing something inherently wrong. Because they have indoctrinated the citizens of Oceania, there is much less actually policing that needs to occur; eventually those breaking the law will slip-up and essentially turn themselves in to the authorities for criminal activities.

“Freedom is the freedom to say that two plus two make four. If that is granted, all else follows.” (81)

The Party has essentially stripped away all freedoms for its people, including the freedom to think logically. Obviously it is clear that if you have two items and then gain two more, you have four. But yet The Party proclaims that 2 + 2 = 5. With this, it seems to be impossible to differentiate the truth from the lies that the government puts forward. Orwell uses this extreme example to show how little freedom Winston and his comrades have and the threat that The Party believes will come if even the slightest rights and privileges are granted.

The Times

The Times in Oceania is like our very own New York Times; it is a newspaper that is respected and trusted throughout all of humanity – it's articles are considered to be the truth. And yet, through Winston's job, Orwell makes it clear that little to none of the information printed is real. This serves as an ominous reminder in a society that relies on the media for most-to-all of its information: just because something is printed doesn't make it true, so most sources should be taken with a grain of salt because it very easily could be subject to some sort of bias.

Two Minute Hate

Orwell portrays the Two Minute Hate as a terrifying outpouring of the rage contained inside ordinary citizens against a common enemy. For The Party to essentially promote their enemy in such a manner implies that there is a motive short of simply getting people to hate Goldstein – logically the overbearing Party would simply make Goldstein disappear rather than spend time denouncing him. The fact that so much time is devoted to putting Goldstein down implies that The Party aims to unify the masses against something so contrary to them that there is no threat of a coup.

“It was even possible, at moments, to switch one's hatred this way or that by a voluntary act.” (15)

This phrase is as counter-intuitive as they come and yet Orwell uses it to perfectly sum up everything for which The Party stands. From The Party's viewpoint, no one is hated until they are hated – that is, that any action may result in an individual crossing the line from ally to threat. Said action could have even been approved of previously: all that matters is that if The Party deems an individual to be an enemy there is nothing that can be done to reverse that decision. The Party does not operate logically but instead on whims that cannot be predetermined. Citizens of Oceania live in constant fear that today might be the day that the government takes a dislike to them and erases them form the public record forever.

“He loved Big Brother.” (298)

Orwell shows that Winston's spirit has been effectively killed to the point that he is filled with adoration for an entity that he previously detested. This is an interesting look into human nature and how we as people form our belief systems. Obviously, while Winston thought that his hatred of Big Brother was deep and all-consuming, he is willing to give up this conviction to survive. This serves to show that he really did not value his beliefs over his life, as he was willing to denounce the former to save the latter (no matter what he may have told O'Brien). Maybe humans are pre-programmed to save themselves no matter what the circumstances, because that is how Julia and Winston behave once they are captured.

Threat of Technology

Technology was developing at a rapid pace during Orwell's time, making many people fearful of its influence in the lives of everyday citizens. One of the biggest worries was that it would become to influential and therefore drastically alter society. The telescreens that Winston and his comrades encounter everyday serve as the threat of what is to come if technology continues to integrate into peoples' lives at such a rapid pace. Members of The Party live and die by the telescreens that watch their every action – an idea that seems to have foretold the advent of Facebook and Twitter that let you know even the most mundane aspects of other peoples' lives.

SOURCE: "Calisphere - The Rise of Technology." Calisphere - A World of Digital Resources. Web. 16 May 2010. http://www.calisphere.universityofcalifornia.edu/themed_collections/subtopic3b.html.

Control of Language

One can only communicate if they have the words with which to express themselves. Native speakers forget about this until they are dropped in a foreign land and don't have the power to ask the simplest of questions. This gap in the ability to communicate prevents certain ideas from being verbalized. With the invention and propagation of newspeak, these limits on communication are realized. Orwell uses this to show that, while society may think that what people think and saw may be uncontrollable, the ability to articulate ideas is taken away the ideas disappear too. In controlling what the people can say, The Party effectively can control how they think and therefore eliminate the chance for anti-Party thoughts.

Parallels/Reaction to the Red Scare

The spread of Communism was a major fear of Americans during Orwell's time, as highlighted with the Red Scare. During the Red Scare, people were suspicious of everyone they encountered and were willing to accuse them of crimes if they even thought that there was a link to Communism, which often resulted in false accusations that ruined lives. This parallels the children that turned their parents over to the Thought Police for what were essentially non-crimes. In this way 1984 serves as a reaction to the hysteria Orwell was experiencing and a warning for all those that were overreacting to the situation at hand.

SOURCE: "The Red Scare." UMKC School of Law. Web. 17 May 2010. http://www.law.umkc.edu/faculty/projects/ftrials/saccov/redscare.html.

“Who controls the past . . . controls the future. Who controls the present controls the past.” (34)

The Party rules because they can change anything to make them seem in the right. Without the ability to find information discrediting them, Party members have no option but to believe that their government is telling the truth. With this control over everything that ever has been, Orwell shows that Party members literally have no choice but to follow where the government leads them. To think anything else marks an individual as crazy, because clearly they have no resources with which to back-up their claims.

“WAR IS PEACE / FREEDOM IS SLAVERY / IGNORENCE IS STRENGTH.” (4)

In 1984, Orwell makes it clear that The Party and the totalitarian government it represents are founded on the idea of oxymorons – ironic when considering that this is the perfect embodiment of the illegal “doublethink.” This shows the double standard that exists in the society in which Winston lives: as long as you are in control, the rules don't apply to you. This is largely how The Party functions. Because they are in power, they are able to do things like turn off their telescreens. This power scares normal Party members because it is so contrary to the way they have been indoctrinated.