Peace is War; Welcome to 1984 (Nineteen Eighty-four - George Orwell)

Member Name: Puggers

Product:	Nineteen Eighty-four - George Orwell
Date:	25/03/09 (249 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Bleak, haunting writing, memorable and striking storyline.

Disadvantages: Not an uplifting read.

If imitation amounts to flattery, George Orwell's Nineteen Eighty-Four has, it is reasonable to say, been flattered rather a lot. Apart from all manner of derivative dystopian fiction, the author's classic has of course provided the inspiration for one of the most enduring, if not endearing, televisual hits of the last decade in Big Brother. What is remarkable is that for all these reworkings of the bleak, isolating themes and omnipresent antagonist of Orwell's novel, Nineteen Eighty-Four is still as chilling and affecting reading it today as it ever was - perhaps even more so, in that it reflects some of the fears and paranoia of modern society as much as it provides a glimpse of a grim future.

Winston Smith is a lower-order clerk in the Ministry of Truth, one of the branches of England's ruling party (although the country is here rebranded simply as part of 'Oceania', one of three super-states, which are at constant, shifting war with each other). His job within the typically misnamed Ministry is to update the archives and historical records in accordance with the current Party line; if Oceania stop being at war with Eurasia, for instance, and wage war on Eastasia, it is Smith's role to pore over past newspaper reports and articles, changing any 'mistakes' so that it is apparent that Oceania and Eastasia have always been at war, whilst there has always been peace with Eurasia.

Being a member of the Outer Party, Smith is considered marginally better than the Proles; the lowest of the low. However, he, like everyone else, is under constant suspicion and constant surveillance; even in his own home, he is watched at all hours. On the streets, great billboards bearing the eyes of the Party's ultimate leader remind the civilians of what was once London - "Big Brother is watching you".

In his mind, one of the few places the Party does not monitor, Winston holds the Party and its ideals in contempt; elsewhere he must show the same love of Big Brother as everyone else, although he is constantly wondering; do other people think ungood thoughts ("bad" being one of many deleted words)? Are there others out there who delight in thinking things that would have them instantly imprisoned, probably killed, if they were to give them voice? Or does everyone else really love the Party and accept the constant corrections of history, the gradual suppression of opinion and free will?

Nineteen Eighty-Four, then, relates Winston's descent into rebellion. However, this is not a tale of the underclasses rising up and claiming back the country; they are far too downtrodden for that. Rebellion here is by means of thoughtcrime; the refusal to accept the Party's way of thinking, sympathising with those who would oppose Big Brother or try to present an alternative "truth".

This, it turns out, is a far more powerful way of presenting resistance. Orwell constructs a society of fear and mistrust in which true opinions and secrets are hidden behind impeccably constructed fronts - no-one is ever quite able to tell who they can trust, and with the penalties for being caught out as a thoughtcriminal being so severe, concepts like trust and friendship fall by the wayside. Even families are riven by paranoia and mistrust; children are encouraged to report any anti-Party behaviour, imagined or real, in their parents, and love for other people becomes supplanted by love for Big Brother only.

The most powerful sections of Orwell's novel are perhaps after he sets out this bleak, lonely world. When Winston discovers that he is not alone in thinking anti-party thoughts, it is as if he is born again. A new world is opened up to him, one in which he is no longer alone, and can lower his guard and be true to himself. The contrast between this and the world he has to return to is striking and deeply affecting; one can feel the elation Winston experiences, but the fear of discovery and the unspoken consequences it would bring never disappear.

Orwell creates in Nineteen Eighty-Four a world that is full of contradictions and disguises; the Party motto testament to this - "War is Peace. Freedom is Slavery. Ignorance is Strength." His characters are similarly two-sided, adding a depth to the novel that is not always explored, yet is often hinted at; we know that some people commit thoughtcrimes despite the love of the Party they publically declare - we can speculate how many people live a double-life of this sort, although we don't know the reality, an obscuring of the truth that gives the story its power.

This is a wonderful, devastating novel in so many ways. It both mirrors certain aspects of our own reality and presents an alternate one that is utterly terrifying in its hopelessness. It is perhaps this mixture of familiarity and fiction that makes it such a powerful tale. Winston's story is one written with outstanding skill and imagination, and its effects can be seen throughout popular culture, from the aforementioned reimagining of the Big Brother concept to Room 101, the Thought Police and the oft-used adjective "Orwellian", which has come to stand for the central themes and visions of the novel. With a gripping narrative, sucker-punch of an ending and life unlimited beyond its pages, Nineteen Eighty-Four is haunting, essential reading.

Summary: The original Orwellian vision of a terrifying future.