1984 by George Orwell: Totalitarianism and Mind Control
Winston’s Life in Oceania
Where does Winston live?
Winston Smith lives in an old Victory Mansion, a block of flats. His flat is on the seventh floor. The country where he lives is called Oceania.
Who are the Thought Police? What do they do?
The Thought Police are civil servants who work for the Party in Oceania. They have a telescreen in every room in every home and in every public place. They have also hidden microphones and spies. They control people’s actions, words, and thoughts. You have to think what the Party says.
Orwell’s Warning About Totalitarianism
What was George Orwell warning us about?
George Orwell was warning us about a horrible future and the possible dangers of totalitarian power. The government from Oceania was only interested in power. They didn’t care about individuals and their feelings, or about happiness or even money. The only aim of this government is power itself, and they held power by making people suffer. Power was used to change the reality that the citizens or civil servants thought they knew.
How can they control people’s minds?
They can control people’s minds by making them suffer, rewriting history. People never know the truth about the past. If people never know the truth about the past, how can they ever discover the lies about the present? There is the Ministry of Truth. It changes the news from one day to another. He burns the past.
Nobody notices it, except a few ones.
People are always frightened. Oceania is always at war with another country. During ‘Two Minutes Hate’ people shout at pictures of Big Brother’s enemy, Goldstein, and a hated Eurasian soldier. The message of the book is to be careful of people who hold the power and not to forget to think and freedom.
Winston Smith: A Rebel in the Ministry of Truth
Who is Winston Smith?
Winston Smith is a civil servant who works in the Ministry of Truth. He is about thirty-nine. He destroys, burns pieces of news, old newspapers, and changes them with new news. Nobody knows if they are true or not.
He was married to a woman, but after some months, as they didn’t have children she left him. The party only wants marriages to have children. He has never seen his wife again. He hates Big Brother and knows that the party is controlling everything. He doesn’t show this, but he starts to write a diary.
Big Brother and the Party’s Control
Who is Big Brother?
Big Brother is a face that appears on all the telescreens. He is the President of the Party, but nobody has ever seen him in person. Maybe he doesn’t exist. He controls everything, the thoughts, the feelings, the actions. You have to believe what the Party says, if not you’re killed or vaporized as they say.
What are the things he always sees?
He always sees telescreens with the sentence “Big Brother is Watching You.” They’re everywhere.
What did he see on the telescreen?
He sees the slogans of the Party.
What were the three slogans?
The slogans of the Party are: “War is Peace,” “Freedom is Slavery,” “Ignorance is Strength.”
What was the name of the Ministry where Winston worked?
Winston worked at the Ministry of Truth, changing the news. They destroy the last news and put false ones into the newspapers.