Orwell, George - 1984 (3)

Orwell

• Is socialist • He took part in the Spanish Civil War and he wrote Homage to Catalonia • His mast important works are Animal Farm (It refers to the communism of Stalin) and 1984

1984

• It is a dystopia • Described with the canons of realism but not real • Negative description • Set in the future • Orwell wrote the novel in 1948 • Criticizes the Soviet dictatorship, but in general all dictatorships The action takes place in the near future (1984 in fact); the world is divided into three immense super states: Oceania, Eurasia, Eastasia. London is the main city of Oceania. The political leadership of Oceania's Big Brother, omniscient and infallible, that no one has seen in person. Beneath him is the party inside, the outside and the great mass of his subjects. Everywhere are posters with the face of Big Brother. The recurrent slogan: "Peace is war", "freedom is slavery", "ignorance is strength". The Ministry of Truth, in which he works the protagonist Winston Smith, is in charge of censoring books and newspapers are not in line with the official policy, to alter history and reduce the expressive possibilities of language. As monitored by cameras, Smith begins to live a life based on principles opposed to those of the regime keeps a secret diary, reconstructs the past, falls in love with a work colleague, Julia, it gives more space to individual feelings . Along with O'Brien, a fellow worker, the two begin to work in an underground organization, the League of the Brotherhood. They do not know that O'Brien is a spy who is a double agent. Smith was arrested, subjected to torture and unspeakable degradation. Eventually he is forced to denounce Julia. O'Brien tells Smith that is not enough to confess and submit: Big Brother wants to have its own soul and the heart of every subject before putting it to death.