There are few novels in the history of 20th century literature as important as the book George Orwell wrote. "1984" (we will describe the summary in the article) is an anti-utopia that tells of a society of the future that lives under the yoke of totalitarian power.
The origins of the novel
Writer George Orwell completed work on his main book in 1948. The title of the novel “1984” is a hidden reference to the date of its creation (the last two numbers are reversed). Orwell’s book contains many hidden hints and metaphors.
The novel was written in the early post-war years, when the whole of Europe experienced the horrors of Nazism and the Holocaust. Of course, these tragic events influenced the attitude of Orwell and were reflected in his work. First of all, the writer on the pages of "1984" continued to develop those ideas that he laid the foundation for his other famous story - "Farmyard", written a little earlier.
Also, the author himself admitted to the great influence of the novel of the Russian writer Yevgeny Zamyatin “We”. This book was one of the first examples of a new genre of dystopia, which became popular amid the terrible events of the 20th century.
Winston smith
The main character of the work is Winston Smith. At the time of the story, he is about 39 years old (that is, he was born in 1944 or 1945). The biography of this ordinary resident of London is a detailed cast of the era. Orwell, with the help of the memoirs of his protagonist, restores to the reader a picture of the history of several decades.
In the 1950s there was a nuclear war in the world . Many states were destroyed because of it or, at least, power changed everywhere. In Britain, the old government was also swept away by revolutionary events on the ruins of a destroyed country. The totalitarian AngsoS party began to rule.
Her leadership launched a full-scale repression directed against their opponents in the UK. Everyone became victims of this policy - from objectionable military men to ordinary citizens. Winston Smith's parents were also repressed. Since the main character was a child at that time, he did not exactly know what happened to them. Most likely, they died in a concentration camp or were "dispersed" (this was one of the newest methods of execution).
Ministry of Truth
The writer George Orwell decided to make his protagonist a simple member of a totalitarian and intimidated society in order to more clearly show everyday life in conditions of fear and constant upheaval. Smith works in the ministry of truth. This is one of the government structures invented by the author.
The name of the ministry is black irony and a vivid example of doublethink. In fact, it was engaged in total propaganda, which completely misinterpreted the events. Employees of the ministry (including Smith) rigged the facts, lied to the media, etc. All their activity was aimed at preserving the power of the ruling party and instilling in the citizens loyalty and slavish worship. In fact, the dystopian novel depicts an analogue of the Ministry of Propaganda in the Third Reich. Its head was one of the most famous and odious Nazis - Joseph Goebbels.
Doublethink
The novel “One Thousand Nine Hundred and Eighty-Four” in one of its first scenes shows the daily work day of Winston Smith. He is busy faking the headlines of previous newspapers regarding news of price changes. The typesetter changes the information as if the price of chocolate has actually fallen in price. Of course, this "economic success" became possible only thanks to the AngsoC policy.
The price change episode shows yet another psychological phenomenon invented by Orwell. The author called it doublethinking. This is the ability of people to truly believe in completely different things. Another striking example of doublethink is the slogans depicted on the wall of the building where Smith worked. They are: "War is peace, ignorance is power, freedom is slavery."
Despite the apparent absurdity, all the inhabitants of London believed in these slogans with all their heart and mind. And those who dare to doubt their reliability at least a little were destroyed by punitive bodies. It was a policy of negative selection. It (already in the real world) was successfully applied by the totalitarian regimes of the 20th century.
Thought crime
The entire dystopian novel is saturated with a fantastic absurdity, to which society has suffered, suffered from a nuclear war, revolutions and the horrors of state terror. The authorities monitored their citizens 24 hours a day using the latest technology (cameras, television screens, etc.). In exactly the same way, the state massively conveyed to the residents the information necessary for the regime (via non-deactivated radio, newspapers, etc.).
The plot is based on the fact that Smith, who worked in the Ministry of Truth, despite widespread doublethink, begins to doubt what the party says. In fact, he commits the most serious crime in his society - mental crime. This is yet another “fabrication” by Orwell, inspired by the totalitarian regimes of the middle of the 20th century. Indeed, any resident of Oceania (as Smith’s native land was now called), at least thinking about something that runs counter to the party’s line, was annihilated.
Two minutes of hate
The first few chapters of his book, Orwell introduces the reader to the dystopian world of the future. Winston Smith is present at the two-minute hate. This event is regularly held at official government offices. Two-minute sessions are general meetings that feature video reports that explain to viewers how important it is to hate enemies.
The main enemies of Oceania are Eurasia and Ostasia. According to Orwell, the political geography of the world is a map roughly divided between the three countries. Eurasia is the successor of the Soviet Union, where neo-Bolshevism is the official ideology. Very little is known about Ostasia. In the novel there are references to the fact that this state lives according to the so-called cult of death.
Oceania Wars
One way or another, all three countries exist within the framework of totalitarian ideologies. These states are waging a continuous world war. The conflict goes on at that time, to which the narrative in the novel belongs. London (the capital of Oceania) is far from the fronts, so only information carefully processed by the Ministry of Truth comes here.
In the two-minute hate, where Smith is present, the audience will again (like every day before) learn about the enemy plans of Ostasia and Eurasia. They must be destroyed. The whole economy of Oceania is subordinate to this goal. All resources and energy of the population are spent on supporting the front. Such an economic bias was normal for true totalitarian states that existed during the years of Orwell's life. "1984" is a novel that clearly depicts the consequences of the triumph of such regimes.
O'Brien and Julia
At the two-minute hate, Smith meets two characters who will later turn out to be key in the whole novel. Firstly, this is a member of the party O'Brien (his name is unknown). Smith hopes that he also doubts what the party is saying. Orwell worked on this character for a long time. "1984" (a brief summary is impossible without mentioning other characters) reveals a few facts of his biography. Nevertheless, the author himself said that this mysterious person has an important prototype - Gletkin from Arthur Koestler's novel “Blinding Darkness”.
The second important character is Julia, also a member of the party. At first, Smith was suspicious of her, fearing that she was spying on him and could report to punitive organs. Once Winston went to a residential area of proles (proletarians - the lower class in society), where he visited a trading shop. Such travels were undesirable for party members. On his way back, Smith ran into Julia. He was horrified at the thought that the girl could convey where she saw him.
Secret meetings
However, the next day, Julia sent Winston a secret note in which she confessed her love. To do this openly was quite problematic - the relationship between men and women was extremely strictly controlled by AngsoCom. According to official ideology, all feelings were considered a relic of the past, and any sexual intercourse was only biological in nature, it was a necessary measure for the birth of offspring.
But Julia and Winston understand that between them is more than just a public duty. They begin to meet secretly, appointing each other in uninhabited places. In the area of the gaps, the couple rents an apartment in the same trading shop where Smith once went.
Goldstein
Soon the main characters of the work decide to open before O'Brien. They hope that this mysterious and sympathetic person can pair with the mysterious Brotherhood. The most controversial rumors were circulating about this organization. According to Smith, the Brotherhood consisted of opponents of the regime, who tried to fight the “Angsots”.
The main characters meet with O'Brien. He admits that he is truly part of the Brotherhood. The party official secretly gives Julia and Winston a book authored by a certain Goldstein. State propaganda called him the internal enemy No. 1. He was an oppositionist who was trying to destroy the totalitarian regime of Oceania.
Denouement
We can say with confidence that "1984" is a novel with an unexpected plot. Some time after the fatal conversation with O'Brien, Winston and Julia were captured by the police in their safe house. It turned out that the owner of the shop from which they rented an apartment was a secret informant of the authorities. The thought police specialized in the search and capture of traitors whose thoughts were contrary to party ideology.
Couple apart. Smith found himself in the dungeons of the ministry of love, which Orwell also invented. "1984" (a summary of which you will find in this article) at this point approaches its denouement. Now caught Winston will have to go through all the interrogations and tortures that are carried out as usual on state traitors.
Smith's abdication
To the surprise of the protagonist, O'Brien becomes his executioner - the same person whom he trusted, telling about his doubts in AngsoC. Smith suffers physical torture, however, he does not give up his beliefs (this was what was required of him). Before that, novels in English did not contain such a thing. Orwell described in detail the bullying and psychological state of Smith, who suffered pain and humiliation.
Winston gradually began to concede to O'Brien. Inwardly, he hoped that he would succeed in deceiving the ministry of love by making all the necessary confessions, but not rejecting his convictions with his heart. Finally, Smith had one last thing that he had not yet recanted — love of Julia. But even that feeling was destroyed. O'Brien, during his last torture, pressed Smith's long-standing fear of children. It was a fear of rats. Winston was confined to a cage, inside of which there were hungry carnivorous rodents.
The fear turned out to be so acute that Smith agreed to confess to anything to stop the torture. After that, he was released from the Ministry of Love and Room 101. In the final scene of the novel, the main novel sits in a cafe, drinks alcohol, listens to the radio and realizes that it has recovered from its own doubts about the party’s rightness.
The meaning of the novel
The finale showed what Orwell really wanted to portray. "1984" (a brief summary we presented to you) is a novel about how the repressive machine of a totalitarian state can destroy any person. Even Smith, who had resisted tyranny to the last, finally gave up. At first he was physically destroyed (in the literal sense of the word - he began to lose his teeth, etc.). Then he finally lost his convictions.
The unfortunate ending only added cult romance to the novel. He instantly became a bestseller. Up to this point, a similar book has not yet been published in the world. Previous dystopian novels could not boast of the elaborate and described artistic world that Orwell had invented.
However, as mentioned above, the English writer did not need to compose anything. In fact, he only logically developed all the phenomena that generated Nazism and other totalitarian regimes in the first half of the 20th century.
The success of the novel is also explained by many metaphors that migrated to all languages of the world. This already described doublethink, "Angsots," two minutes of hatred, etc. Orwell became the author of the famous formula "twice two - exactly five", which described the principle of false propaganda, as well as the image of Big Brother. References to "1984" are important components of modern Western mass culture.