1984 Reflection

I think it is safe to say that the ending of 1984 was not the most uplifting. I, myself, believed and wished for Winston to rebel and actually make some sort of change or difference in his country. I also tend to enjoy works of literature or films or music or anything artistic that tends to be authentic; it probably does not have the happiest themes or outcomes but it is honest and it does not sugarcoat anything. I think that is what I like the most about this story. Even though it takes place in a fictitious society I do find genuine themes and realistic demonstrations of society, especially for Orwell’s era in the 40s and 50s. Obviously I am not happy or content with how things played out in the end. I could almost feel the torture being put upon Winston and feel true shame on myself believing in O’Brien from the beginning. I too was mesmerized by O’Brien and was genuinely shocked to see him working for the Ministry of Love. I am a little curious as to why he waited so long to arrest Winston if he has been watching him for seven years. I understand him wanting to gather enough evidence but it never really seemed like that was how the Party handled these kinds of events especially ones dealing with thoughtcrime or hating the Party. I think a good word to summarize part three would be disturbing. From the torture, to hearing about how Parsons was arrested, to the women in his cell, the rats, comparing the Party to past totalitarian regimes, and the massive paradox of love and power. O’Brien kept saying that Winston must love Big Brother without really giving him a reason why. People need reasoning to trust something-we are not robots. It seems like that was what O’Brien was trying to say the Party was doing but making it sound like it actually benefits the people. I wish Winston could have hated Big Brother until the end. But I think I would not hold on long enough either. After all that has happened to him, Big Brother was the only thing that did not betray him, and he does not even know him.