Appearance
1984
This is a boring polemic that provides absolutely no insight into actually existing models of state repression. In any case, everybody's moved over to the American model, so Orwell's scrawlings would do well to stick around on their crusty little island.
1984
Okay all this book was about was random sex, the destruction of human nature, and the ending of all morales. However I must admit that Orwell had a prphetic sense when it camr to the idea of being watched constantly by the government. This book lacked a decent plot as well. THS BOOK SHOULD NOT BE READ UNLESS YOU LOVE THE DESTRCTION OF THE WONDERFUL HUMAN NATURE GOD CREATED.
1984
I feel relatively uneasy about saying something negative for such a classic as 1984. But, learning the book's lesson about what the world would be like if one's individuality were lost, I'll say what I truly feel. I think this book is slow and depressing. In fact, the only reason that I kept reading on was because of the introduction of Julia in the story. I found her character intriguing. Why was she put there? Who is she? Can her motives be trusted? It was only after I read the story, that I realized she was created by the author for the sole purpose of being used as a barometer for Winston's (the protagonist in the story) individuality. What Julia means to Winston is an indication of how much Winston has lost of himself. His ability to think and remember the past.In 1984, the world is divided into 3 superpowers. Winston belongs to the Ingsoc Party (a contraction of [Eng]lish [Soc]ialism) where to have thoughts in opposition or in deviance with propaganda meant capture and subsequent brainwashing by the Thought Police. Everyone in the Party is watched and monitored by telescreens (two-way TVs that broadcast as well as receive) and hidden microphones. A new language called Newspeak is a rapidly decreasing subset of English created to make the expression of rebellious thought an impossiblity. On top of this, all books and works of literature were being rewritten in Newspeak and their essential meaning contorted to serve the purposes of the Party.If George Orwell's vision of the future haunts you, then his objective was achieved. His main goal in writing this book was to both set a mood and give a warning. The mood he sets is for what an extreme Socialist state would look like twenty years from the time he wrote the story. His warning is of what would happen if Socialism were perverted by the ruling class where power becomes an end and not just the means.The ideas presented in this book are powerful and well thought-out. However, the story itself is dull and uneventful. If you like a story that you can read and reflect on afterwards, this is your book. If you like faster-paced stories, pass on this one.LEAP rating (each out of 5):============================L (Language) - 3 (humorless, basic English dialogue)E (Erotica) - 0.5 (go Julia go)A (Action) - 0 (n/a - goes hand in hand with the story being dull)P (Plot) - 3 (dull story, good vision)
1984
To me this novel is unmistakingly about religious doctrine, not just totalitarian governments and the terrors associated with revolution. The way people are told to believe in the Party (Christianity) even though they have the intelligence to reason that it is totally illogical. I can see no difference between someone who has faith and someone who is prepared to use doublethink to mentally condition themselves. Both require the user to operate at two levels - to apply scientific fact for instance to construct televisions and rocket engines, and then to be able to switch into illogical rambling and decide that they believe an obscure doctrine that has no basis in fact.That is why Orwells ideas cannot be dismissed as "far-fetched" and irrelevant. If the faithful ever gain the whip hand of society we may well see ourselves being repressed into acceptance of ignorance and the worship of Big Brother (God). What is it they tell us as children? That God is omnipotent and can see everything? Does that sound similar? The telescreens and microphones are simply an extensions of God`s apparent omnipotence and the Thought Police the modern dy equivalent of the Spanish Inquistion.I found it very ironic that one reader claims that his desert island books would be 1984 and the Bible. The former is a book that warns against society discarding intelligent thought and reason, the latter is a book that through the ages has caused that to occur.Everyone should read this book if they can. There are many levels of comparison other than that of religion of course, but it is here that I see the most relevance to contempoary society.
1984
I am a second year high school English teacher and I just read this book for the first time because I loved Animal Farm and I am now trying to figure out a way to talk my district into including it in the curriculum.I am not a very political person (I don't even vote), but this is a very interesting read about a society that never existed, but is coming very close to emerging: a society in which someone is ALWAYS watching (think reality TV mixed with Bush's phone taps).If you have never read this book, do yourself a favor and pick it up.
1984
As a summer reading assignment, I was assigned this book to read and appreciated Orwell's sense of imagination. I reccomend this novel to anyone who is interested in the world of make believe. People who appreciate descriptive writing will certainly enjoy reading this novel. However, this novel will probably not appeal to people who enjoy novels that tell stories. I found the novel extremely boring because it is all about Orwell's vision of an unstable society, it does not give the reader the desire to read on.