George Orwells Nineteen Eighty-Four :: 1984 Essays

George Orwell is the pen name of Eric Arthur Blair, a British writer with political conscience. He was born in India but educated in England at Eton College. He served the Indian Imperial Police in Burma from 1922 to 1927. In sick health, he returned to Europe to live in poverty as a struggling writer. Orwell joined the Republican forces in the Spanish civil war, and wrote a chilling account of this experience. He went on to write many books, mostly autobiographical, and achieved successes as a brilliant writer. 2. SynopsisThe novel takes place in a theoretical and fictional dystopian totalitarian society. The story begins in London on April 4, 1984 after an atomic world war divides the world into three states. London is the capital of Oceania which is run by INGSOC(English Socialism). The controllers are called "The Party." The Party is divided into two sections, The Inner Party, and The Outer Party which are the "Rich" and the "middle-class." There is a third group of people called "The Proles," or "The Proletariat" which are the poor, and considered to be animals by the party. The main leader of this government is Big Brother. The novel is told in third person and partly first person, and is also divided into three parts. In the first part the main character and his conflicts with the world he lives in are revealed. Winston Smith is a bureaucrat who works for the government by altering history at the Ministry of Truth. He begins to ponder the reason things are so bad and commits a terrible crime. In the second part, he falls in love with Julia, and is taken in by a man named O'Brien, a member of the anti-party society called the Brotherhood. O'Brien turns out to be a true member of The Inner Party. Winston and Julia are captured and hauled off to the Ministry of Love (Minilove in Newspeak). Here, during the final part of the story, Winston is incarcerated and rehabilitated by The Party. O'Brien constantly tel ls Winston that Winston is crazy, and that he is trying to help him. During these sessions he reveals the true purposes of INGSOC. The party's goals can be summed up in their mottoes. "WAR IS PEACE, FREEDOM IS SLAVERY, and IGNORANCE IS STRENGTH(Orwell, 7)."3. ThemeUnder the rule of INGSOC, members of The Party are engrossed in their work. It is essential that the government keeps its people happy in order to avoid rebellions and "thought crimes.