George Orwell, 1984

What an oustanding book! It was based on my dad's insistence that I decided to read this fantastic piece of science fiction, thinking all the while that it would be incomprehensible and full of old vocabulary like many 'classic novels'. However, I was very wrong. George Orwell, it is clear to say, was a genius. In 1984, he makes us question the very condition of humankind whilst creating a set of ideas that are, frankly, pure brilliant. This is a thrilling view of what society could have become after the Second World War (that is, a totalitarian regime ruled by the godlike figure of Big Brother) which makes the reader think and analyse the way we live today. I could go on about this book for ages, it is so witty! Read it.

"It was a bright cold day in April and the clocks were striking thirteen." This is the first sentence of an immortal classic narrating Winston Smith's life under the dictatorship of Oceania headed by Big Brother. Sex and family have been turned from things of pleasure in people's lives to means of control over them. Everyone is divided into three classes: the Inner Party, controlled by Big Brother to a limited extent and living in comfort, the proles, poor but free, and the Outer Party, who are monitered 24/7 and living in poverty. Oceania is at war with Eurasia (later Eastasia). When Winston Smith buys a blank book with the intention of writing a diary in it, he has guilty feelings, knowing that it is thoughtcrime. In this diary, he writes of his former life before the war and in it, you see his inner longing to be free of Big Brother once and for all. This is an excellent book and it is a shame that I only know one teenager who has read it. Everyone 13 and older should read this, in my opinion.

Novels depicting an individual staving off an infinitely more powerful foe are often, while enjoyable, set in fantasy universes that ultimately have no relevance to real life and leave no lasting impression on the reader. However; the primary reason that THIS book is so effective at gripping the reader is because every event is actually feasible. Written in the aftermath of world war two; when it seemed more than likely that nationalism and tyranny would grip the entire planet, this book provides an insight into the anatomy of a distopia. The reader is perpetually aware that most of the horrific details of Oceania, Eurasia and Eastasia are based on real regimes; each is a sickening amalgamation of every totalitarian government from the Nazis to the USSR. Joy, love and friendship are long dead in this world; and all that remains for the people of Oceania are blind obedience and hatred. Only Winston Smith can remember when things were not so; the new generation is transfixed by the opportunities for cruelty granted by the omnipresent Big Brother and "doublethink" prevents the intellectuals of the world from rebelling. Winston's world lacks everything that we hold dear; it doesn't even have a history. Every event is rigorously scrutinized and altered to conform to the needs of the present; from rationing details to allegiances in war. Winston lives without a past, without a future and without any possibility of escape. If you do not read this book at least once you will have missed out on a major personal development.

1984 by George Orwell is a highly antagonistic book of a totalitarianism government in a time of instability. The protagonist and narrator of the story is a man named Winston who believes that the government has been corrupting it's people into believe certain people or events never occured.

Parts of the novel seem to be able to link to everyday life governments and their actions within their countries, and more and more nations are using their own form of doublespeak to make deep or embarrassing mistakes, or jobs seem less so by re-arranging the words. (ie: local Garbageman= negative connotation, Regional Trash Collector= important/respectful connotation)

The description of the location in the novel was written excellently. While engrossed in the book, I felt as though I was there, with Winston, standing under what felt like a very dirty sky. Everything around us seemed dirty and over used. The chapter with everyone in the auditorium for the meeting with Big Brother emitted a strong sense of togetherness (even during the yelling and fighting as it was a group feeling) and naivity (no one knew the true identity of Big Brother and only few cared to find out)

The ending of the book was by far the best part. Like most books, I was expecting a happy ending, with Winston exposing the governments secrets and the civilians over-throwing it. However, it was refreshing to read that the government was consistent in their seeking and punishment of those committing Thoughtcrime and Winston's transformation into a government praiser made sense although we all, as readers, felt a sense of loss that our character had the evidence to destroy the government but not the time, nor people to assist him.

My only critism is the chapters containing the book of the brotherhood. Although this chapter contained information about how the government came to be, it was very dull to read.

Overall, 1984 is an excellent book to read and the curriculum in my school is very right in including it as a mandatory read.

George Orwell, Nineteen Eighty-Four - This is one of the few books that I think everyone should be made to read! It is such an incredible story, and yet so plausible when you are reading it. Bits of this book often spring to mind during my everyday life, which I think is always a sign of a good book.

It is certainly a disturbing book, but in my view a very important one and it really makes you confront a lot of difficult issues.

George Orwell, 1984 - I very much enjoyed 1984 by George Orwell. Orwell had a terrifying vision of the world we were gradually becoming in 1949. Though 1984 is long gone, his concerns can still be applicable today.

Winston Smith is a lone protagonist in a corrupt totalitarian socialist society called Ingsoc where one has no "friends," only "comrades." Orwell orchestrates a fearful and depressing image of a loss of individuality, freedom, and truth through his character Smith and his experiences with is environment. Smith knows there is something wrong, that he hates where he is. However, he feels he is all who understands. No one opposes the "Inner Party" without meeting certain death. Eventually, though, Smith comes across Julia, a woman that has the same discomforts as him. Here he is able to find a sense of pleasure, of freedom. As he enjoys brief moments out of his shackles with Julia, he begins to further discover truth. There are rumors of a society called the "Brotherhood," a group that resists Ingsoc. Smith and Julia stumble upon the "Brotherhood," and the truth really starts to unravel.

Orwell does an outstanding job of addressing the faults of society and the path the government seems to be headed toward. He loudly expresses his opinions "against totalitarianism and for democratic socialism." His hate for unchangeable caste systems and cruel oppression of the "proles" is blatant in this novel. This is a timeless story that will be enjoyed by generations to come.

George Orwell, Nineteen Eighty-Four - In this totalitarian nightmare, Winston Smith who works for the Inner Party's propaganda machine in the Ministry of Truth, finds hope, despite being forbidden, by writing and falling in love with Julia. However, their desperate struggle for freedom is crushed by the Thought Police. One of the most important political satires ever written. I urge everyone to read this truly brilliant book.

Nineteen-eighty-four by George Orwell is undisputably one of the most important pieces of political fictiion. It was written during a period of unprecedented political instability when we saw the end of the world's great imperial powers and the rise of a new age of politics. Democracy, Fascism and Communism were competing for dominance and the final conclusion of this struggle could not be predicted by anyone. The book was written back in 1949, with the author, Goeorge Orwell, looking towards the future date of 1984, where the world has been consumed by a totalitarian regime, a form of total communism that controls all aspects of life, including the past. This book is about control; the central argument being that whosoever controls the present also controls the past. This is the fundamental theme of the book and as such is represented in several forms, the most notable being that of the ubiquitous "Big Brother". Big Brother is the pillar upon which the entire system rests, for the party to maintain control over the people, he must been seen as being above error, above judgement and above criticism. In a system that has disposed of a conventional religion, God (the symbol of moral purity) must be replaced.

The main character, Winston, finds himself searching for another way of life, regardless of the risks. Every free thought is now a rebellion, with Winston's refusal to submit to "doublethink", to let go of his memories of the past lead him to increasingly extreme violations of the unwritten rules of the party. Winston finds himself beginning a love affair which brings him new found forms of emotion which has been oppressed by Big Brother.

1984 is such a powerful and important piece of political fiction that is as relevant and even necessary as when it was first written in 1949. It is a fiercly oppressive book that I firmly believe should be taught to today's youth. The messages, though frightening, are important and should be understood with the hope of generations to come. A true masterpiece.