1.) “What is it for? The flashing of a badge, look, everyone, all is in order, I belong here. Why don’t women have to prove to one another that they are women? Some form of unbuttoning, some split crotch routine, just as casual. A doglike sniffing.” (73)
In this quote from The Handmaid’s Tale, Margaret Atwood compares the social aspects of men and women’s lives. By questioning the idiosyncrasy of men to prove themselves, she sparks the notion that perhaps the reason for this new “civilization” isn’t in fact for the greater good. Perhaps this snippet into Offred’s wonderments is alluding to the real reason behind the great reform; Men need to further convince themselves that they are men, and only by subordinating women from society can they do so.
2.) “He won’t look at me. He looks down at the floor, where the cat is rubbing itself against his legs, mewing and mewing plaintively. It wants food, but how can there be any food when the apartment is so empty?” (74)
In this quote from The Handmaid’s Tale, Margaret Atwood uses a dream to demonstrate where Offred’s mind is. Their apartment, more specifically their first apartment, represents the heart, where the furnishings in the apartment represent love, happiness, sadness, and all emotion. When the cat mews, asking for food, it’s similar to Offred yearning for someone to provide her with affection. But how could one have any hope for that affection, when the world around them is seemingly purged of such a thing?
3.) “The sitting room would once have been called a drawing room, perhaps; then a living room. Or maybe it’s a parlor, the kind with a spider and flies.” (79)
Atwood draws upon this old nursery rhyme called The Spider and the Fly to show that Offred is never entirely sure what is coming next in her life. The first verse of the rhyme is as follows.
"Will you walk into my parlor?" said the Spider to the Fly, “’Tis the prettiest little parlor that ever you did spy; the way into my parlor is up a winding stair, and I have many curious things to show you when you are there.”
"Oh no, no," said the Fly, "to ask me is in vain; for who goes up your winding stair can ne'er come down again."
The rest of the rhyme is about the spider attempting to convince the fly to enter his web. Eventually, the spider succeeds, and the fly is never heard from again. Such is the tale of Offred and the Handmaids. Once they are taken into the abode of a Commander, they leave their old lives behind and become new people.
Mary, Howitt. "The Spider and the Fly". Wikipedia. Web. 8/25/10. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Spider_and_the_Fly_%28poem%29>.
“It makes me feel slightly ill, as if I’m in a closed car on a hot muggy day with an older woman wearing too much face powder. This is what the sitting room is like, despite it’s elegance.” (80)
In another life, one not too distant, perhaps Offred would have enjoyed such vanities as face powder and perfume, but not today. Today it disgusts her and creates a brutally uncomfortable atmosphere. Today, as all other days, Offred is not herself. Atwood uses this as a method of showing exactly how times have changed, where women simply cannot be women as they once were. They are tools meant for breeding, stripped of all vanity or self-image.
4.) “Household: That is what we are. The commander is the head of the household. The house is what he holds. To have and to hold, till death do us part. The hold of a ship. Hollow.” (81)
Again it can be seen in this quote from Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale, how her heart and life are hollow, void of meaning. Atwood uses a special literary device and spells it out in a way that accurately represents how Offred’s wandering mind works. Atwood follows her thoughts exactly as they pop into her mind, which leads to an interesting procession of words. Stream-of-consciousness is its name, word-plays are its game.
5.) “They show us only victories, never defeats. Who wants bad news?” (83)
Good and bad are in the eye of the beholder. In this quote from The Handmaid’s Tale, Margaret Atwood describes something recognizable in two other well known Utopia novels: 1894 by George Orwell, and Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury. In Atwoods tale, the newscaster relays all the good news of the day: People being caught, hangings, etc. This is far too similar to Fahrenheit 451 and 1984 to be coincidence. Atwood utilizes the default news because it is a plausible alteration to today’s society. She wants the reader to be familiar with the concept, and if they have indeed read the other two novels, they will be.
6.) “Arousal and orgasm are no longer thought necessary; They would be a symptom of frivolity merely, like jazz garters or beauty spots: Superfluous distractions for the light minded.” (94)
Again, 1984 by George Orwell already had the claim to fame on this little idea as well. As the character O’brian says, “Procreation will be an annual formality like the renewal of a ration card. We shall abolish the orgasm.” Such was one of the ideals of the Party that governed Oceana in the a differing “Utopian” universe. Atwood uses this as an ideal in The Handmaid’s Tale because it is but a single movement in the campaign to remove any personal, defining experiences from citizens’ lives.
7.) “Its and old one, he said, a curio of sorts. From the seventies, I think. A Vogue” (157)
By using this magazine in particular, Atwood demonstrates the extent to which the Commander is rebelling against society. Vogue was and still is a very popular fashion magazine, which epitomizes the appearances and vanities that were, in The Handmaids Tale, removed from everyday life. By using this magazine as the first that the Commander procures, it demonstrates that there will always be those who go against the grain, sometimes positioned in the most unlikely places.
Anthony, Shine. "Vogue: The Illustrated History". Culture Kiosque. Web. 8/25/10. <http://www.culturekiosque.com/nouveau/style/vogue.html>.
8.) “And sometimes from the sitting room there will be the thin sound of Serena’s voice, from a disc made long ago and played now with the volume low, so she won’t be caught listening as she sits there knitting, remembering her own former and amputated glory: Hallelujah.” (55)
This line, Hallelujah, is the title of a song by Leonard Cohen. It involves a man who see’s, mistakenly, a woman bathing on the roof of her house. He then feels he has sinned and spends the rest of his life repenting for this. In The Handmaids Tale, Atwood creates a world that similarly has a system which doesn’t involve lust. In “school” the aunts attempt to teach the girls that lust, vanity, and self-appearance have no value, and the true believers should be ashamed should they take part in such actions.
Cohen, Leonard. "Leonard Cohen Lyrics". AZ Lyrics. Web. 8/25/10. <http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/leonardcohen/hallelujah.html>.
9.) “In God we trust, all others pay cash” (173)
Here Atwood references a book written by Jean Shepherd. The book uses this same phrase for its title, and is partly about a country-boy-turned-city-slicker who reconnects with his childhood friend and reminisces about the past. On his way to said meet-up, in the opening scene, while having a conversation with his taxi driver, he’s told that “a guy can get used to anything, if he’s gotta.” These two events - reminiscing and being forced to change - correlate precisely two of the basic themes of The Handmaids Tale.
Shepherd, Jean. "In God We Trust: All Others Pay Cash". Barnes & Noble. Web. 8/26/10. <http://search.barnesandnoble.com/In-God-We-Trust/Jean-Shepherd/e/9780385021746#TABS>.
10.) “At the corner we turn to one another in the usual way. ‘Under His Eye,’ says the new, treacherous Ofglen. ‘Under His Eye,’ I say, trying to sound fervent.” (285)
This standard farewell greeting, used between those who wish to appear as believers, is outstandingly similar to the catch phrase of George Orwell’s 1984 : Big Brother is watching you. It also depicts the smooth transitions between wives. The previous Ofglen hung herself, thus, a new woman appears to take her place. She is now Ofglen, and always has been Ofglen. Atwood drew upon Orwell’s 1984 here and created her own eradication system akin to the method of removing an unlucky someone from Oceanic past, present, and future.
“He was not a monster, to her. Probably had some endearing train: he whistled, offkey, in the shower, he had a yen for truffles, he called his dog Leibchen and made it sit up for little pieces of raw steak. How easy it is for us to invent a humanity, for anyone at all. What an available temptation.” (146)
Atwood gives us this snippet of Offred’s memory to show us that even the most horrible people can seem soft-hearted and compassionate. Offred struggles with this concept as she spends more and more time with the commander, often forcing herself to put on a facade, because despite his calm presence, she does not feel completely comfortable around him. One night, while sitting with the commander in his office, Offred “wanted to turn [her] back on him - it was as if he were in the bathroom with [her] - but [she] didn’t dare. For him, [she] must remember, [she is] only a whim.”
11.) “I see it as I go down the stairs, round, convex, a pier glass, like the eye of a fish, and myself in it like a distorted shadow, a parody of something, some fairy-tale figure in a red cloak.” (9)
Little Red Riding Hood. It is a story we all grew up hearing, and one that the endings have been changed to better suit the audience at hand. Atwood uses this comparison to perhaps show that Offred’s end is not set in stone, no matter how bleak her future looks. She may get eaten up by society, or perhaps her own hunter will come along and take her from harm’s way.
http://www.pitt.edu/~dash/type0333.html
12.) “Not a Dandelion in sight here, the lawns are picked clean. I long for one, just one, rubbishy and insolently random and hard to rid of and perennially yellow under the sun. Cheerful and plebian, shining for all alike. Rings, we would make from them and crowns and necklaces, stains from the bitter milk on our fingers. Or I’d hold one under her chin: Do you like butter? Smelling them, she’d get pollen on her nose. Or was that buttercups” (212)
Many flowers are associated with different traits, such as strength, courage, tenderness, or hope. While the dandelion is associated with love, affection and desire, the buttercup is associated with humility and neatness. The lack of dandelions symbolizes the lack of love in Gilead. When Offred confuses these two flowers, she is in turn confusing their meanings and this relates directly with her life. Once upon a time, she had been full of lust, going so far as to steal another woman’s wife. Now, forced to live a life of humility as a buttercup, it is no wonder she craves the sight of an affectionate dandelion.
Karlsen, Kathleen. "Find Your Flower: Flower Symbols and Meanings ". Living Arts Originals. Web. 8/26/10. <http://www.livingartsoriginals.com/infoflowersymbolism.htm#buttercup>.
13.) “For Adam was first formed, then Eve. And Adam was not deceived but the woman, being deceived was in the transgression.” (221)
In Other words, Man came first, then woman, and it was woman who first sinned. Atwood uses this ancient bible passage as a basis for shoving women beneath the feet of men and using them only for the breeding purpose. For according to the legal interpretation of the bible, they had their chance, and they blew it. Now let them fulfill their duty, and their duty alone.
14.) “And sometimes it happened, for a time. That kind of love comes and goes and is hard to remember afterwards, like pain. You would look at the man one day and you would think, I loved you, and the tense would be past, and you would be filled with a sense of wonder, because it was such an amazing and precarious and dumb thing to have done; and you would know too why your friends had been evasive about it, at the time.” (226)
Offred has been through a lot at this point, yet throughout everything, she has continued to hold a single thought in her head. She thinks about love, or rather, the pain she endures from the lack of love. Here Atwood compares love to pain. This pain, caused by love, makes Offred question love’s worth, for she does not know where one draws the line between the two. Is her love from her past life with Luke worth the pain that resulted? There was Luke’s wife’s pain, Offred’s pain when they were separated, and then the pain of losing their daughter? Atwood words certainly make one wonder how large of a grasp we should let other take upon our hearts.
15.) “Better never means better for everyone, he says. It always means worse, for some.” (211)
Government operates in funny ways. There are constant reforms that move in and out, each of which attempt to satisfy a certain group. There is always a group targeting the Upper class, often the Republicans hold this position, then there is also a group targeting the lower/middle class. Neither group can be satisfied while the other is also fighting for satisfaction. The idea of creating a world where men are the theoretical “upper class,” women are the “lower class,“ and all the minority races and religions are wiped away, is Atwood’s way of creating a more believable society. If she had created a world where everything was equal, it would simply be unfathomable. Human nature would not allow it; There always needs to be someone at the top of the food chain.
16.) “If you didn’t work it out it was because you had the wrong attitude. Everything that went on in your life was thought to be due to some positive or negative power emanating from inside your head.” (227)
There is a theory called The Law of Attraction. It states that thoughts directly influence reality, meaning that good things come from positive thoughts, and doubleplusungood things come from negative thoughts. The principles of The Law of Attraction infringe upon every known law of nature, so it is sometimes described as “an illusion created by the connection between self confidence and success or ones own perception.” This being said, it only make sense that Offred would apply these concepts to life, as she has issues in both self confidence and success.
Karlsen, Kathleen. "Law of Attraction". Wikipedia. Web. 8/27/10. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Law_of_Attraction>.
Tuesday, August 31, 2010
1984
1.) “Oceania, ‘tis for thee.” (25)
This title of this national song is suspiciously similar to My Country ‘Tis of Thee by Samuel Smith. The original lyrics represent freedom and praise our founding peoples for working as had as they did to create and protect our country. By using this well known patriotic song, but changing the lyrics, Orwell applies it to the new society. However, the sinister first chapter of 1984 outlining life shows that the song no longer fulfills it’s original purpose.
"My Country, 'Tis of Thee". Wikipedia. Web. 8/21/10. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/My_Country,_%27Tis_of_Thee>.
2.)"The Party said that Oceania had never been in alliance with Eurasia. He, Winston Smith, knew that Oceania had been in alliance with Eurasia as short a time as four years ago. But where did that knowledge exist? Only in his own consciousness, which in any case must soon be annihilated. And if all others accepted the lie which the Party imposed—if all records told the same tale—then the lie passed into history and became truth. 'Who controls the past' ran the Party slogan, 'controls the future: who controls the present controls the past.’” (32)
The Party slogan describes the extent to which life has been changed. Not only does the party control virtually every aspect of life in Oceania, it also controls every moment that has ever happened, and that ever will happen. It can change history at will. Simply knowing that an event happened a certain way is not nearly enough. In order to prove history, one must find it recorded, but chances are, the recordings will already be falsified. This way, Big Brother can claim to be anywhere at any time. He can do anything. He is all-powerful.
3.) The Purpose of Newspeak was not only to provide a medium of expression for the world-view and mental habits proper to the devotees of Ingsoc, but to make all other modes of thought impossible. It was intended that when Newspeak had been adopted once and for all and Oldspeak forgotten, a heretical thought - that is, a thought diverging from the principles of Ingsoc - should be literally unthinkable, at least so far as thought is dependent on words.” (Appendix, 246)
In his novel, 1984, Orwell bring to life the concept of mind control, but not in the average sense of the phrase. By eliminating words that could lead to heresy, the Party is on a path to remove individual thought, or anything else that may lead to heresy from society. Once the generation from before Big Brother and the Revolution is gone, society will have no memory of previous life; The people of Oceania won’t miss what they never knew, and they will forever believe what the Party tells them to believe.
4.) “What appealed to him about it was not so much it’s beauty as the air of belonging to an age quite different from the present one. The soft, rainwatery glass was not like any glass that he had ever seen. The thing was doubly attractive because of its apparent uselessness, though he could guess that it must once have been intended as a paperweight.” (81)
Throughout 1984, Winston is trying to recall his past. The glass hemisphere to which this quote refers is from the time that he desires to recall, and because of this he snatches quickly from the store. The glass represents his chase for the past and his yearning for the real world, and when he is at last discovered by the Thought Police in his heretical room above the store, the glass symbolically shatters along with his hopes and dreams.
5.) “Under the spreading chestnut tree, I sold you and you sold me. There lie they, and here lie we under the spreading chestnut tree” (66)
This is Orwell’s rendition of a poem called The Village Blacksmith by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. It is sung at the conviction of three men accused of heretical crimes. The Original poem depicts the satisfying life of a hardworking man who answers to only himself. Orwell rewriting a few lines from The Village Blacksmith, changing them from being about happiness to betrayal, represents the change in society brought about by Big Brother and the Party.
"The Village Blacksmith". Wikipedia. 8/21/10 <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Village_Blacksmith >.
6.) “There would be mention of bishops in their lawn sleeves, the judges in their ermine robes, the pillory, the stocks, the treadmill, the cat-o-nine tails, the Lord Mayor’s Banquet, and the practice of kissing the Pope’s toe. There was also something called Jus Primae Noctis, which would probably not be mentioned in a textbook for children. It was the law by which every capitalist had the right to sleep with any woman working in one of his factories. How could you tell how much of it was lies?” (63)
In the 15th century, Jus Primae Noctis was a belief that the Lord of a manor had the right to “share the wedding bed with his peasants’ brides.” This was in the 15th century. In 1984, Big Brother and the Party release an official document depicting life before the Revolution. This document compares our society today with the Middle Ages, stating that we enjoyed many of the same devices for execution, punishment, and torture that were around then. This is ironic, because due to the hierarchy of Oceania, with the proles, workers, outer circle, inner circle, and Big Brother it seems as if current - meaning Oceanic - It seems as if Orwell’s society is as close to the middle ages in order as is possible.
Wettlaufer, Jörg . "The jus primae noctis as a male power display: A review of historic sources with evolutionary interpretation.". Evolution and Human Behavior. Web. 8/21/10 <http://www.fibri.de/jus/arthbes.htm>.
7.) ‘If there is hope, it lies in the proles… Because only there, in those swarming disregarded masses, eighty-five per cent of the population of Oceania, could the force to destroy the party ever be generated.” (60)
There is an old Aesop fable called The Bundle of Sticks. In said fable, a man gives his sons a number of sticks. The sticks were initially tied in a large bundle, and each son was instructed to try and break them. Each son tried and failed. Then the father removed sticks from the bundle and had his sons snap them. At this point, the sons realized their father’s message. “Union gives strength.” Winston realizes this as well. He knows that in order to mass enough strength to defeat the party, the Proles must organize and retaliate. By referencing the same notion that the father gave to his sons, Orwell warns the reader that whatever government is used, it must appease the masses, whoever they may be.
"The Bundle of Sticks an Aesop's Fable". Aesop's Fables. Web. 8/22/10 <http://www.aesops-fables.org.uk/aesop-fable-the-bundle-of-sticks.htm>.
8.) “Heavy physical work, the care of home and children, petty quarrels with neighbors, films, football, beer, and above all, gambling filled up the horizon of the mind. To keep them in control was not difficult.” (63)
It sounds like Orwell is describing large aspects of life as we know it today. This illustrates why it wasn’t difficult to keep the Proles in order. Thy should they change what doesn’t need to be changed? They had a better quality of life, and felt that they were living for what they had, despite the shorter life expectancy, which, when the novel was written, was the average life expectancy in modern (real life) society. This represents the Party’s mistake of controlling too many aspects of its members’ lives. While the Proles have never rebelled, because they live lives with entertainment and feelings, the Party members are full of heretical thoughts and actions because they have been oppressed and sheltered since the Revolution. Although the Party made this mistake in creating such a society for its members, this quote also quite possibly foreshadows the lack of movement from the Proles against Big Brother upon which Winston so heavily relies.
9.) “For a moment he was tempted to take it into one of the water closets and read it at once. But that would be a shocking folly, as he well knew. There was no place where you could be more certain that the telescreens were watched continuously.” (89)
Bathrooms are one of those places one simply does not expect to be watched. By labeling the private safe-haven of our world, Orwell again makes it clear the extent to which the Party keeps tabs on its members. Orwell creates the Party, which in turn gives the members instincts - acknowledging the cameras, for instance - that keep them in existence. The party, they must remember, has the power to watch at all times, as well as the power to wipe any event or any person from the history of the world.
10.) “’I bet that picture’s got bugs behind it,’ said Julia. ‘I’ll take it down and give it a good cleaning someday.’” (122)
If only she had taken it down and cleaned it someday, they might have managed to evade the Thought Police. For though Julia meant earwigs or ants or spiders, there was a type of bug much worse behind the picture. This was Orwell’s ironic way of foreshadowing the demise of the rebelling couple, for even though they were seemingly safe, their own lack of securing the location ended their long and fruitful run.
11.) “How easy it was, thought Winston, if you did not look about you, to believe that the physical type set up by the party as an ideal - tall, muscular youths and deep bosomed maidens, blonde-haired, vital, sunburnt, carefree - existed and even predominated.” (53)
For years, the media has been leading people on, showing them what it means to truly be a man or a woman. According to the media, men are strong, determined, and attractive, and though women are likewise attractive, they are more easily influenced by love, are less controlling, and they are overall the dominated sex. Common poses for clothes advertising often portray a young, pretty woman looking upwards, as if gazing at a tall, muscular youth. Orwell utilizes the media as a method of population control because it gives an extra sense of believability to the story. The media is alive and well in our world, as well as Oceania.
"Media and Girls". Media Awareness Network. Web. 8/22/10 http://www.media-awareness.ca/english/issues/stereotyping/women_and_girls/women_girls.cfm.
"How the Media Define Masculinity". Media Awareness Network. 8/22/10 http://www.media-awareness.ca/english/issues/stereotyping/men_and_masculinity/masculinity_defining.cfm.
12.) “Freedom is the freedom to say that two plus two make four. If that is granted, all else follows.” (69)
Winston wants more than anything to be able to use his mind and to satisfy his craving of knowledge. He wants to be free. This statement make the claim that as long as you can do simple addition, you will be able to live in a world of sanity and reason. However, O’Brien crushes this premise and removes any hope Winston may have had. By continuing the theory that two plus two equal four throughout the novel, Orwell establishes it as Winston’s sanity, and when the theory is crushed, his sanity is crushed as well.
13.) “What was worst of all was that by means of such organization as the Spies they were systematically turned into ungovernable little savages, and yet this produces in them no tendency whatever to rebel against the discipline of the Party. On the contrary, they adored the Party and everything connected with it. The songs, the processions, the banners, the hiking, the drilling with dummy rifles, the yelling of slogans, the worship of Big brother - it was all a sort of glorious game to them.” (24)
Before and during World War II, Hitler created a group called Hitler Youth (HJ). Boys ages 10 to 18 were recruited and places in two different age groups, and then received military and weapons training, and underwent basic assault tactics. By 1940, nearly every boy over the age of 10 was recruited to the HJ. The Party uses tactics similar to those of Adolf Hitler, one of the world’s harshest rulers, to control their population. By robbing their innocence and converting children into tools for Party, Orwell again shows the full extent of control that Big Brother has gained over Oceania.
"Hitler Youth". Wikipedia. Web. 8/24/10. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hitler_Youth.
"Hitler Youth". Historical Boys' Uniforms. 8/24/10 http://histclo.com/youth/youth/org/nat/hitler/hitler.htm.
14.) “Winston’s entrails seemed to have turned to ice…The room was full of solid men in black uniforms, with iron-shod boots and truncheons in their hands…It occurred to Winston that for the first time in his life he was looking at a member of the thought police.” (183)
The Nazi SS were organized by Hitler as his secret guard. They were honored with the duty of carrying out millions of arrests, tortures, and killings of thousands of people deemed “inferior” to themselves. While Orwell’s Thought Police did not torture and kill their captives right away, they did strike unthinkable amounts of fear into the hearts of their victims. Again, Orwell applies methods of control used in Nazi Germany to demonstrate the lengths to which the party was willing to go to reach total domination.
"Schutzstaffel". Wikipedia. Web. 8/24/10. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schutzstaffel>.
15.) “A thrush had alighted on a bough not five meters away, almost at the level of their faces… It spread out its wings, fitted them carefully into place again, ducked its head for a moment, as though making a sort of obeisance to the sun, then began to pour forth a torrent of a song.” (103)
In the poem “The Darkling Thrush” by Thomas Hardy, a thrush bursts out in a wondrous song despite the dark, desolate land in which it lives. The narrator, who is glum from the dreary season, questions how on earth the thrush could summon the joy to sing so blissfully. Perhaps the thrush’s reason is unknown as of yet, but will soon be revealed. Orwell writes a thrush’s song into the story to slightly foreshadow that there is reason for happiness even in the darkest of times. In Winston’s case, this happiness comes in the form of love, forbidden in society by the Party.
Hardy, Thomas. "The Darkling Thrush". Poetry Foundation. Web. 8/24/10. <http://www.poetryfoundation.org/archive/poem.html?id=173590>.
16.) “He pushed the picture out of his mind. It was a false memory. He was troubled by false memories occasionally. They did not matter so long as one knew them for what they were. Some things happened, others did not happen.” (243)
The party eventually turn Winston into a member, though at this point he does not yet fully understand. By labeling some memories as false and others as real, his own history can be written and re-written; all he needs to do is apply the label. Winston struggling to keep control of his mind is Orwell’s final foreshadow to the ultimate ending of Winston Smith. He will no longer be himself, but a member of the Party, a true believer.
This title of this national song is suspiciously similar to My Country ‘Tis of Thee by Samuel Smith. The original lyrics represent freedom and praise our founding peoples for working as had as they did to create and protect our country. By using this well known patriotic song, but changing the lyrics, Orwell applies it to the new society. However, the sinister first chapter of 1984 outlining life shows that the song no longer fulfills it’s original purpose.
"My Country, 'Tis of Thee". Wikipedia. Web. 8/21/10. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/My_Country,_%27Tis_of_Thee>.
2.)"The Party said that Oceania had never been in alliance with Eurasia. He, Winston Smith, knew that Oceania had been in alliance with Eurasia as short a time as four years ago. But where did that knowledge exist? Only in his own consciousness, which in any case must soon be annihilated. And if all others accepted the lie which the Party imposed—if all records told the same tale—then the lie passed into history and became truth. 'Who controls the past' ran the Party slogan, 'controls the future: who controls the present controls the past.’” (32)
The Party slogan describes the extent to which life has been changed. Not only does the party control virtually every aspect of life in Oceania, it also controls every moment that has ever happened, and that ever will happen. It can change history at will. Simply knowing that an event happened a certain way is not nearly enough. In order to prove history, one must find it recorded, but chances are, the recordings will already be falsified. This way, Big Brother can claim to be anywhere at any time. He can do anything. He is all-powerful.
3.) The Purpose of Newspeak was not only to provide a medium of expression for the world-view and mental habits proper to the devotees of Ingsoc, but to make all other modes of thought impossible. It was intended that when Newspeak had been adopted once and for all and Oldspeak forgotten, a heretical thought - that is, a thought diverging from the principles of Ingsoc - should be literally unthinkable, at least so far as thought is dependent on words.” (Appendix, 246)
In his novel, 1984, Orwell bring to life the concept of mind control, but not in the average sense of the phrase. By eliminating words that could lead to heresy, the Party is on a path to remove individual thought, or anything else that may lead to heresy from society. Once the generation from before Big Brother and the Revolution is gone, society will have no memory of previous life; The people of Oceania won’t miss what they never knew, and they will forever believe what the Party tells them to believe.
4.) “What appealed to him about it was not so much it’s beauty as the air of belonging to an age quite different from the present one. The soft, rainwatery glass was not like any glass that he had ever seen. The thing was doubly attractive because of its apparent uselessness, though he could guess that it must once have been intended as a paperweight.” (81)
Throughout 1984, Winston is trying to recall his past. The glass hemisphere to which this quote refers is from the time that he desires to recall, and because of this he snatches quickly from the store. The glass represents his chase for the past and his yearning for the real world, and when he is at last discovered by the Thought Police in his heretical room above the store, the glass symbolically shatters along with his hopes and dreams.
5.) “Under the spreading chestnut tree, I sold you and you sold me. There lie they, and here lie we under the spreading chestnut tree” (66)
This is Orwell’s rendition of a poem called The Village Blacksmith by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. It is sung at the conviction of three men accused of heretical crimes. The Original poem depicts the satisfying life of a hardworking man who answers to only himself. Orwell rewriting a few lines from The Village Blacksmith, changing them from being about happiness to betrayal, represents the change in society brought about by Big Brother and the Party.
"The Village Blacksmith". Wikipedia. 8/21/10 <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Village_Blacksmith >.
6.) “There would be mention of bishops in their lawn sleeves, the judges in their ermine robes, the pillory, the stocks, the treadmill, the cat-o-nine tails, the Lord Mayor’s Banquet, and the practice of kissing the Pope’s toe. There was also something called Jus Primae Noctis, which would probably not be mentioned in a textbook for children. It was the law by which every capitalist had the right to sleep with any woman working in one of his factories. How could you tell how much of it was lies?” (63)
In the 15th century, Jus Primae Noctis was a belief that the Lord of a manor had the right to “share the wedding bed with his peasants’ brides.” This was in the 15th century. In 1984, Big Brother and the Party release an official document depicting life before the Revolution. This document compares our society today with the Middle Ages, stating that we enjoyed many of the same devices for execution, punishment, and torture that were around then. This is ironic, because due to the hierarchy of Oceania, with the proles, workers, outer circle, inner circle, and Big Brother it seems as if current - meaning Oceanic - It seems as if Orwell’s society is as close to the middle ages in order as is possible.
Wettlaufer, Jörg . "The jus primae noctis as a male power display: A review of historic sources with evolutionary interpretation.". Evolution and Human Behavior. Web. 8/21/10 <http://www.fibri.de/jus/arthbes.htm>.
7.) ‘If there is hope, it lies in the proles… Because only there, in those swarming disregarded masses, eighty-five per cent of the population of Oceania, could the force to destroy the party ever be generated.” (60)
There is an old Aesop fable called The Bundle of Sticks. In said fable, a man gives his sons a number of sticks. The sticks were initially tied in a large bundle, and each son was instructed to try and break them. Each son tried and failed. Then the father removed sticks from the bundle and had his sons snap them. At this point, the sons realized their father’s message. “Union gives strength.” Winston realizes this as well. He knows that in order to mass enough strength to defeat the party, the Proles must organize and retaliate. By referencing the same notion that the father gave to his sons, Orwell warns the reader that whatever government is used, it must appease the masses, whoever they may be.
"The Bundle of Sticks an Aesop's Fable". Aesop's Fables. Web. 8/22/10 <http://www.aesops-fables.org.uk/aesop-fable-the-bundle-of-sticks.htm>.
8.) “Heavy physical work, the care of home and children, petty quarrels with neighbors, films, football, beer, and above all, gambling filled up the horizon of the mind. To keep them in control was not difficult.” (63)
It sounds like Orwell is describing large aspects of life as we know it today. This illustrates why it wasn’t difficult to keep the Proles in order. Thy should they change what doesn’t need to be changed? They had a better quality of life, and felt that they were living for what they had, despite the shorter life expectancy, which, when the novel was written, was the average life expectancy in modern (real life) society. This represents the Party’s mistake of controlling too many aspects of its members’ lives. While the Proles have never rebelled, because they live lives with entertainment and feelings, the Party members are full of heretical thoughts and actions because they have been oppressed and sheltered since the Revolution. Although the Party made this mistake in creating such a society for its members, this quote also quite possibly foreshadows the lack of movement from the Proles against Big Brother upon which Winston so heavily relies.
9.) “For a moment he was tempted to take it into one of the water closets and read it at once. But that would be a shocking folly, as he well knew. There was no place where you could be more certain that the telescreens were watched continuously.” (89)
Bathrooms are one of those places one simply does not expect to be watched. By labeling the private safe-haven of our world, Orwell again makes it clear the extent to which the Party keeps tabs on its members. Orwell creates the Party, which in turn gives the members instincts - acknowledging the cameras, for instance - that keep them in existence. The party, they must remember, has the power to watch at all times, as well as the power to wipe any event or any person from the history of the world.
10.) “’I bet that picture’s got bugs behind it,’ said Julia. ‘I’ll take it down and give it a good cleaning someday.’” (122)
If only she had taken it down and cleaned it someday, they might have managed to evade the Thought Police. For though Julia meant earwigs or ants or spiders, there was a type of bug much worse behind the picture. This was Orwell’s ironic way of foreshadowing the demise of the rebelling couple, for even though they were seemingly safe, their own lack of securing the location ended their long and fruitful run.
11.) “How easy it was, thought Winston, if you did not look about you, to believe that the physical type set up by the party as an ideal - tall, muscular youths and deep bosomed maidens, blonde-haired, vital, sunburnt, carefree - existed and even predominated.” (53)
For years, the media has been leading people on, showing them what it means to truly be a man or a woman. According to the media, men are strong, determined, and attractive, and though women are likewise attractive, they are more easily influenced by love, are less controlling, and they are overall the dominated sex. Common poses for clothes advertising often portray a young, pretty woman looking upwards, as if gazing at a tall, muscular youth. Orwell utilizes the media as a method of population control because it gives an extra sense of believability to the story. The media is alive and well in our world, as well as Oceania.
"Media and Girls". Media Awareness Network. Web. 8/22/10 http://www.media-awareness.ca/english/issues/stereotyping/women_and_girls/women_girls.cfm.
"How the Media Define Masculinity". Media Awareness Network. 8/22/10 http://www.media-awareness.ca/english/issues/stereotyping/men_and_masculinity/masculinity_defining.cfm.
12.) “Freedom is the freedom to say that two plus two make four. If that is granted, all else follows.” (69)
Winston wants more than anything to be able to use his mind and to satisfy his craving of knowledge. He wants to be free. This statement make the claim that as long as you can do simple addition, you will be able to live in a world of sanity and reason. However, O’Brien crushes this premise and removes any hope Winston may have had. By continuing the theory that two plus two equal four throughout the novel, Orwell establishes it as Winston’s sanity, and when the theory is crushed, his sanity is crushed as well.
13.) “What was worst of all was that by means of such organization as the Spies they were systematically turned into ungovernable little savages, and yet this produces in them no tendency whatever to rebel against the discipline of the Party. On the contrary, they adored the Party and everything connected with it. The songs, the processions, the banners, the hiking, the drilling with dummy rifles, the yelling of slogans, the worship of Big brother - it was all a sort of glorious game to them.” (24)
Before and during World War II, Hitler created a group called Hitler Youth (HJ). Boys ages 10 to 18 were recruited and places in two different age groups, and then received military and weapons training, and underwent basic assault tactics. By 1940, nearly every boy over the age of 10 was recruited to the HJ. The Party uses tactics similar to those of Adolf Hitler, one of the world’s harshest rulers, to control their population. By robbing their innocence and converting children into tools for Party, Orwell again shows the full extent of control that Big Brother has gained over Oceania.
"Hitler Youth". Wikipedia. Web. 8/24/10. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hitler_Youth.
"Hitler Youth". Historical Boys' Uniforms. 8/24/10 http://histclo.com/youth/youth/org/nat/hitler/hitler.htm.
14.) “Winston’s entrails seemed to have turned to ice…The room was full of solid men in black uniforms, with iron-shod boots and truncheons in their hands…It occurred to Winston that for the first time in his life he was looking at a member of the thought police.” (183)
The Nazi SS were organized by Hitler as his secret guard. They were honored with the duty of carrying out millions of arrests, tortures, and killings of thousands of people deemed “inferior” to themselves. While Orwell’s Thought Police did not torture and kill their captives right away, they did strike unthinkable amounts of fear into the hearts of their victims. Again, Orwell applies methods of control used in Nazi Germany to demonstrate the lengths to which the party was willing to go to reach total domination.
"Schutzstaffel". Wikipedia. Web. 8/24/10. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schutzstaffel>.
15.) “A thrush had alighted on a bough not five meters away, almost at the level of their faces… It spread out its wings, fitted them carefully into place again, ducked its head for a moment, as though making a sort of obeisance to the sun, then began to pour forth a torrent of a song.” (103)
In the poem “The Darkling Thrush” by Thomas Hardy, a thrush bursts out in a wondrous song despite the dark, desolate land in which it lives. The narrator, who is glum from the dreary season, questions how on earth the thrush could summon the joy to sing so blissfully. Perhaps the thrush’s reason is unknown as of yet, but will soon be revealed. Orwell writes a thrush’s song into the story to slightly foreshadow that there is reason for happiness even in the darkest of times. In Winston’s case, this happiness comes in the form of love, forbidden in society by the Party.
Hardy, Thomas. "The Darkling Thrush". Poetry Foundation. Web. 8/24/10. <http://www.poetryfoundation.org/archive/poem.html?id=173590>.
16.) “He pushed the picture out of his mind. It was a false memory. He was troubled by false memories occasionally. They did not matter so long as one knew them for what they were. Some things happened, others did not happen.” (243)
The party eventually turn Winston into a member, though at this point he does not yet fully understand. By labeling some memories as false and others as real, his own history can be written and re-written; all he needs to do is apply the label. Winston struggling to keep control of his mind is Orwell’s final foreshadow to the ultimate ending of Winston Smith. He will no longer be himself, but a member of the Party, a true believer.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)