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4.05 AVERAGE
4.05 AVERAGE
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
dark
emotional
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
challenging
dark
reflective
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
challenging
dark
funny
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Winston is dumb
find this review on my blog https://victoriasshelves.wixsite.com/blog/post/1984-by-george-orwell-review
I don't like Dystopian books. I loved the Hunger Games but I hated Divergent. Satan knows why. Lately, I have taken the task to read more adult books and books that present serious, thought provoking themes. Don’t take me wrong, the Hunger Games presented a serious theme but nothing compares to the Handmaid’s Tale and 1984 by George Orwell, which I will be (trying) reviewing today.
We live in an era where Google, Apple and who knows how many other companies around the globe, know about our daily step count, what we buy, what we like to eat or drink, what we read, where we go (google activity - check it out- you will be amazed, apparently I spent 60 hours a month on a train) and even our shoe size. A few people managed to do what we were all trying to avoid - put us in a database in the most sneaky way possible, by using technology as we can’t avoid it.
In an era when altering the news and changing facts its press-a-button easy to do, where we are being constantly watched either through our social media but also through CCTV everywhere, we are not very far away from the dystopian world Winston in 1984 lives in. This book, written in 1949 was a prophetic story of the world of today and a possible world of the future.
The story follows Winston, an average guy who works in a ministry of the party. Great Britain is now called Airstrip One and it is part of the superstate Oceania which is ruled by the Party and it’s leader, Big Brother. The party has rules for everything, no touching, no speaking to the opposite sex, sex is only for reproductive reasons, you do not dare think of how life was before the Party. You do not dare think about freedom as the Thought Police is watching you and people who think differently are easy to spot and taken away. Writing is forbidden, the language has been simplified to the point where people can’t use words such as amazing or splending, it has simplified to the point where no one can express themselves freely or able to think outside that - it is called Newspeak. In every house and every room there is a Telescreen that watches your every move, something like a smart tv with a camera or an amazon echo. Scary right?
Winston is starting to defy those rules, one by one. I won’t tell you exactly what he is doing as I don’t want to spoil anything in the book. It is scary to read about everyday things like a stroll, or sex or even going to a pub being forbidden and Winston having to check two and three times over his shoulder that no one is watching him. The idea of him getting caught won’t leave him alone and he is becoming a bit paranoid in the end. In the story, books are banned and this is the easiest way to brainwash someone or forbid them from having a different view of the world. It reminded me a lot of Discipline and Punish of Michel Foucault, where he explains that individuals mind their every move whether consciously or subconsciously due to the notion that they are being watched.
All in all, 1984 it’s really easy to read and Winston is a quite likeable character. I felt his doubts and anxieties as well as his desire to break the rules. The ending is quite scary and even though some might find the book dragging on, please do read it till the end. It is worth it.
I don't like Dystopian books. I loved the Hunger Games but I hated Divergent. Satan knows why. Lately, I have taken the task to read more adult books and books that present serious, thought provoking themes. Don’t take me wrong, the Hunger Games presented a serious theme but nothing compares to the Handmaid’s Tale and 1984 by George Orwell, which I will be (trying) reviewing today.
We live in an era where Google, Apple and who knows how many other companies around the globe, know about our daily step count, what we buy, what we like to eat or drink, what we read, where we go (google activity - check it out- you will be amazed, apparently I spent 60 hours a month on a train) and even our shoe size. A few people managed to do what we were all trying to avoid - put us in a database in the most sneaky way possible, by using technology as we can’t avoid it.
In an era when altering the news and changing facts its press-a-button easy to do, where we are being constantly watched either through our social media but also through CCTV everywhere, we are not very far away from the dystopian world Winston in 1984 lives in. This book, written in 1949 was a prophetic story of the world of today and a possible world of the future.
The story follows Winston, an average guy who works in a ministry of the party. Great Britain is now called Airstrip One and it is part of the superstate Oceania which is ruled by the Party and it’s leader, Big Brother. The party has rules for everything, no touching, no speaking to the opposite sex, sex is only for reproductive reasons, you do not dare think of how life was before the Party. You do not dare think about freedom as the Thought Police is watching you and people who think differently are easy to spot and taken away. Writing is forbidden, the language has been simplified to the point where people can’t use words such as amazing or splending, it has simplified to the point where no one can express themselves freely or able to think outside that - it is called Newspeak. In every house and every room there is a Telescreen that watches your every move, something like a smart tv with a camera or an amazon echo. Scary right?
Winston is starting to defy those rules, one by one. I won’t tell you exactly what he is doing as I don’t want to spoil anything in the book. It is scary to read about everyday things like a stroll, or sex or even going to a pub being forbidden and Winston having to check two and three times over his shoulder that no one is watching him. The idea of him getting caught won’t leave him alone and he is becoming a bit paranoid in the end. In the story, books are banned and this is the easiest way to brainwash someone or forbid them from having a different view of the world. It reminded me a lot of Discipline and Punish of Michel Foucault, where he explains that individuals mind their every move whether consciously or subconsciously due to the notion that they are being watched.
All in all, 1984 it’s really easy to read and Winston is a quite likeable character. I felt his doubts and anxieties as well as his desire to break the rules. The ending is quite scary and even though some might find the book dragging on, please do read it till the end. It is worth it.
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I feel I’ll have a different view on it once in some years. A thought provoking book for sure
adventurous
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
dark
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Dark. Upsetting. Psychologically enervating. Brilliant. A must read for all.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, War
Moderate: Sexual content
1984 presents an anti-thesis for the art of religion. It presents the 3 core pillars for any follower, namely Freedom, Peace and Love.
The freedom to believe anything, yet you would be insane to not believe the past. The past that is constantly rewritten to keep the present valid.
The peace of never to fight again, by waging a perpetual war. Your enemy does not matter, as it is anyone and everyone that is not you.
The love for the ultimate supreme. It does not mater if he exists or not, because as it is told, he is.
——
1984 tells a story of an atheist, and his inner turmoils as he turns religious through actions and thoughts. It is the battle against one’s egos, where the rational must be surrendered as all roads lead to one.
It is a battle he can only win through surrender.
The freedom to believe anything, yet you would be insane to not believe the past. The past that is constantly rewritten to keep the present valid.
The peace of never to fight again, by waging a perpetual war. Your enemy does not matter, as it is anyone and everyone that is not you.
The love for the ultimate supreme. It does not mater if he exists or not, because as it is told, he is.
——
1984 tells a story of an atheist, and his inner turmoils as he turns religious through actions and thoughts. It is the battle against one’s egos, where the rational must be surrendered as all roads lead to one.
It is a battle he can only win through surrender.