So Far In 1984

Book One:

Book one starts by introducing the protagonist, Winston, who works for the outer party. He lives in a very old apartment building that is literally falling apart. It is apparent that Winston does not like the Big and the Party, which is the government entity that controls London. Winston writes about how he dislikes the party and the way his society works. There are four different ministries that control the government: the Ministry of Truth which controls the news, entertainment, education, and the arts. The Ministry of Peace is in charge of war. The Ministry of Love controls law and order. Finally the Ministry of Plenty is responsible for all economic affairs.

Winston works for the Ministry of Truth, he rectifies “mistakes” that have been “proven” false, he rewrites historical documents to improve the Party’s appearance and strength. Winston knows that the Party lies about past events because three people were executed for treason even though they had been in a cafe during the time of their supposed crimes, Winston even had photographic evidence but he destroyed it out of fear.

There are frequent events called The Two Minutes of Hate where everybody chants and yells about how much everybody hates a traitor named Goldstein. Winston doesn’t agree with it but against his will he joins in with the chants. During one of the two minutes of hate Winston momentarily locked eyes with an inner party member named O’Brien, who was not chanting or yelling like everybody else, so Winston believes that they both think the same way and that the look they shared was some sort of confirmation of that thought.

One night Winston went on a soul searching walk through a part of town that is inhabited by the lowest social class. While on his walk he discovered that he was in the same area where he had bought his diary so he decided to go inside the store and look around. He started talking to Mr. Charrington, an old man who owns the store, who taught Winston a part of a song from before the party controlled the government which Winston very much enjoyed. Mr. Charrington also showed him the  upstairs, which was a small room some nice pre revolution furniture and a bed, Winston didn’t buy any of it because it would be too difficult to get back to his house.

On his way back home he noticed that he was being followed by a dark haired girl that he recognized and suspected as being a part of the thought police, which is a group that arrests and often kills people that think against the party.        

Character List:

Winston Smith -  A minor member of the ruling Party in near-future London, Winston Smith is a thin, frail, and intellectual thirty-nine-year-old. Winston hates the totalitarian control and enforced repression that are characteristic of his government. He harbors revolutionary dreams.

Julia -  Winston’s lover, a beautiful dark-haired girl working in the Fiction Department at the Ministry of Truth. Julia enjoys sex, and claims to have had affairs with many Party members. Julia is sensible and optimistic. Her rebellion against the Party is small and personal.

O’Brien -  A mysterious, powerful, and sophisticated member of the Inner Party whom Winston believes is also a member of the Brotherhood, the legendary group of anti-Party rebels.

Big Brother -  Big Brother, the perceived ruler of Oceania, is an extremely important figure. Everywhere Winston looks he sees posters of Big Brother’s face bearing the message “BIG BROTHER IS WATCHING YOU.” Big Brother’s image is stamped on coins and broadcast on the unavoidable telescreens; it haunts Winston’s life and fills him with hatred and fascination.

Mr. Charrington -  An old man who runs a secondhand store in the prole district. Kindly and encouraging, Mr. Charrington seems to share Winston’s interest in the past. He also seems to support Winston’s rebellion against the Party and his relationship with Julia, since he rents Winston a room without a telescreen in which to carry out his affair.

Syme -  An intelligent, outgoing man who works with Winston at the Ministry of Truth. Syme specializes in language. As the novel opens, he is working on a new edition of the Newspeak dictionary. Winston believes Syme is too intelligent to stay in the Party’s favor.

Parsons -  A fat, obnoxious, and dull Party member who lives near Winston and works at the Ministry of Truth. He has a dull wife and a group of suspicious, ill-mannered children who are members of the Junior Spies.

Emmanuel Goldstein -  According to the Party, Goldstein is the legendary leader of the Brotherhood. He seems to have been a Party leader who fell out of favor with the regime. In any case, the Party describes him as the most dangerous man in Oceania.

Book Two (So far):

One morning Winston saw the dark haired girl that had been following him, but has her arm in a sling and falls to the ground while walking. Winston went to go help her up and she discreetly gave him a note that, because he thought she was from the thought police, said to commit suicide. Unexpectedly the note said “I love you.”

Many days had gone by before Winston was actually able to speak with the woman, she told him that they would speak further in Victory square, where she had given him directions to meet her at a secluded area in the country, outside the city.

They both met at the predetermined location in the country, they talked for a while and Winston learned that her name was Julia and that she has had scores of sexual encounters with other party members. Winston viewed this as a good thing because he thought of it as a form of rebellion against the party because sex for pleasure was prohibited. They do the deed and then fall asleep.

After their first real encounter they met several times in an old abandoned church. Winston learned while talking with Julia that she doesn’t care about rebellion against the party just having a good time when she can. She also said that the party prohibits sex for pleasure so that the people will focus their frustration on the party’s enemies.

Winston told Julia about a hike he went on with his ex wife where he thought about pushing her off a cliff but didn’t because he doesn’t think that it would accomplish anything, Julia informed him that she would have done it.

Winston rented the room above Mr. Charrington’s shop for his meet up with Julia, when she arrived she had brought sugar, coffee, and bread. All of these items were incredibly difficult to obtain but she purchased them off the black market. While in bed Julia sees a rat and Winston was terrified for some reason, after julia had left Winston thought about living inside the glass paperweight with julia undisturbed forever.

Symbols:  

Big Brother represents the totalitarian government which controls Oceania and the party a person who probably isn’t even real. On posters he is seen with a large mustache which resembles Stalin, who controlled communist Russia.

The glass paperweight in Mr. Charrington’s spare room and Winston and Julia are the coral, unfortunately the paperweight translucent the coral can clearly be seen, therefore it is only a matter of time before someone notices what Winston and Julia are doing.