Chapters 1-4
Honestly, I don't even know where to begin with this book. So many different thoughts are going through my head it's hard to just pick one to talk about. I think where I will start is with the children and how they are depicted in this book. I find it really disturbing to read about how a little kid want's to go to the town's square to watch a hanging. The fact that he's upset he can't go doesn't help either. I do get that way, way back in the day it was a public thing to hang someone, but I never really thought the people would let their children participate in the event. It's creepy to me that when violent actions happen the people in this book treat it like a trip to the comedy club! It's not funny to see someone get hung, or blown up in a shower of blood and guts! It's deterring! I think that's why this book is so great though; it make a person think about what if that was normal. What if people found violent outrageously funny and entreating. When I think about it ancient Greece come to my mind. They used to watch people beat each other to the death as a regular form of entertainment. To them it might as well have been a party. It just shows how much society impacts our own views.
Another aspect of the book I wanted to hit was, how fragile I think this type of a society this really is. Winston has the job of rewriting history constantly, and it is so hard to go along with that from a readers point of view. I would think someone would notice that the past keeps changing to conform to the present, but the people are kept to dumb to notice! It's aggravating to me that no one can do anything to stop them. Then it makes me think, just how fragile is this network of craziness? I would like to believe that if someone wanted to, and know how to, they could overturn all these finely tuned lies. But, it would be near impossible with constant surveillance, and the people being keep stupid. I would like to think somehow their entire system could be unhinged with the filk of a switch... But, that would be entirely too easy.
I love your comment in the second paragraph. The society is extremely fragile, which is why BB holds the reins so tightly. He has to! Any totalitarian state is fragile because it relies on fear rather than trust or good will. Parallels with abusive relationships could also be drawn here...
ReplyDeleteAnd as creepy as it is that people no longer respond to pain and suffering of others, it serves a purpose. What do you suppose it is? Why would Orwell portray people in that manner? Why does he NEED to?