Julia in 1984

I have mixed feelings about Julia. Obviously in Book One you have this speculation about her and you are not sure you can trust her. Winston would be terrified to make eye contact with her for too long, not to mention her dedication to the Junior Anti-Sex League and her seemingly obsessive adoration for the Party. In the first chapter of Book Two, we learn that she is actually in love with Winston. All of the trepidation and uneasiness felt towards her is now suddenly vanquished with the words “I love you”.

                Winston is not stupid and knows that this could be a trap. He ultimately goes through with it and meets her in this secret location surrounded by vacant meadows and lush bushes and trees. We learn that this girl, Julia, is the exact opposite of what Winston believed she was. She even tore off her Junior Anti-Sex League sash and through it to the side. They eventually have sex in the country and she tells him that she has done this with many Party members, but not the inner Party members whom she refers to as “swine”. Winston is thrilled that she has had sex with a score of members and wishes that it had been hundreds or thousands of members. He believes that the more times she has, the greater the emphasis of rebellion. Julia is seen as this reckless and savvy and sexy character that is cunning but also incredibly smart at dodging the cameras of the Party and undermining their authority. At first I was just in complete awe of her and her courage and her ability to laugh at the society she lives in even though it is the only thing she has ever known. She is significantly younger than Winston and could have virtually been sucked in to the Party’s views easily. However even though she is able to outsmart the Party and still have all of these mature and youthful emotions inside of her, I found her to be a little cruel as well. There is a part where she mentions her first sexual affair with a 60 year old man at only 16 which she almost boasts about. The man eventually kills himself to avoid being executed by the Party, in which she feels no guilt or anger for, but only feels lucky and happy that he did not end up confessing her name. It is quickly mentioned and then she throws it away like it is some old memory from her youth. It just rubbed me the wrong way. I do not hate her knowing that, but it shows another side of her that makes you think twice about her. I definitely see her and Winston rebelling already with their affair, and they could possibly make the rebellion even bigger and beyond just sex.