Previous Next

Book Two, Chapter 8

‘You are prepared to cheat, to forge, to blackmail, to corrupt the minds of children, to distribute habit-forming drugs, to encourage prostitution, to disseminate venereal diseases—to do anything which is likely to cause demoralization and weaken the power of the Party? If, for example, it would somehow serve our interests to throw sulphuric acid in a child’s face—are you prepared to do that?’

In this passage from Book Two, Chapter 8, O’Brien interviews Winston and Julia when they have come to his apartment and reveal themselves as enemies of the Party. They believe that he is testing the limits of their commitment to overthrowing the party, but Winston later learns that O’Brien is recording their response to use it as an example of how depraved they are.

Book Three, Chapter 1

‘They got me a long time ago.’

When Winston first sees O’Brien at the Ministry of Love in Book Three, Chapter 1, Winston assumes that the Thought Police have arrested him. O’Brien’s response that they got him long ago is followed by the words, “said O’Brien with a mild, almost regretful irony.” This could be interpreted as him saying that he was once against the Party, but turned to its service, or it could just mean that he decided early on in his life to go along with the Party’s orthodoxy. Either way, however, it seems to reveal that deep down he is aware of the contradictions inherent in the Party’s philosophy.
 

Book Three, Chapter 2

‘But I tell you, Winston, that reality is not external. Reality exists in the human mind, and nowhere else. Not in the individual mind, which can make mistakes, and in any case soon perishes: only in the mind of the Party, which is collective and immortal. Whatever the Party holds to be the truth, is truth. It is impossible to see reality except by looking through the eyes of the Party.’

In this quote from Book Three, Chapter 2, O’Brien lays out one of the core concepts of the Party between sessions of torturing Winston. Winston had always understood that the Party sought to control truth, but O’Brien makes it clear that the Party sees itself as the only lens through which truth can even be defined. This perspective allows the Party to say that 2 + 2 = 5.

‘The first thing for you to understand is that in this place there are no martyrdoms.’

Here in Book Three, Chapter 2, O’Brien makes sure Winston understands that he will not die resisting the Thought Police and become a symbol for other rebels. The Thought Police have learned that they must convert their enemies to the Party’s way of thinking before killing them to ensure that others are not inspired by stories of thought-criminals who never give up their beliefs.

‘Never again will you be capable of love, or friendship, or joy of living, or laughter, or curiosity, or courage, or integrity. You will be hollow. We shall squeeze you empty, and then we shall fill you with ourselves.’

O’Brien describes the goal of the Thought Police in converting thought-criminals in Book Three, Chapter 2. Any aspect of human nature which allows resistance to the Party is systematically eliminated through torture. All that’s left is the Party and love for the Party. This condition accurately describes Winston as the reader sees him in the final chapter of the book.

Book Three, Chapter 3

‘If you want a picture of the future, imagine a boot stamping on a human face—for ever.’

In this quote from Book Three, Chapter 3, O’Brien is not merely being aggressive or insulting to Winston’s hope for a successful overthrow of the Party. He is also explaining that the Party must have resistance to exist. There will always be traitors. Even if people stop rebelling against the party, the Party will manufacture new traitors so that it can be seen crushing them. This act of crushing opposition is a necessary aspect of how the Party defines itself and maintains its power.

Previous section Julia Next section Big Brother

Popular pages: 1984

Take a Study Break