Examples Of Heroism In George Orwell's '1984'

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1984, by George Orwell, tells a story of a man who fights an oppressive government with his pure thoughts and actions. The government of Oceania, where the story takes place, manipulates its citizens into worshipping a figure known as “Big Brother.” Privacy is a foreign concept, as the government constantly spies on their people, not even allowing them to think about disagreeing with the people in power. The main character, Winston Smith, begins to disobey this tyranny. He does this by writing in a journal, committing “thoughtcrime”, and having an affair with a woman named Julia. However, Winston is eventually caught by the Party and tortured into submission, and ends the novel by stating that he loves Big Brother. Winston, despite his flaws, …show more content…

Upon Winston illegally writing in a journal, the book states, “Whether he wrote DOWN WITH BIG BROTHER, or whether he did not go on with it, made no difference. The Thought Police would get him just the same”. (Orwell 19) This proves that Winston is not simply acting recklessly, but he is conscious of the consequences of his actions and that they are an act of rebellion against Big Brother. “Whether Winston Smith is truly a humanist, in the classical sense of the term, is of no matter; in comparison to the totalitarian regime which destroys him, Winston is, in fact, the last embodiment of the human” . (Fitzpatrick) Winston knows that the party will destroy him, but it can be interpreted that he is symbolically the last human left, as he is the only one brave enough to oppose Big Brother and the …show more content…

“‘We believe that there is some kind of conspiracy, some kind of secret organization working against the Party...We want to join it and work for it. We are enemies of the party”, (Orwell 170) says Winston, as he tells O’Brien that he and Julia want to join the resistance group. Winston does not just dislike the oppressive government; he wants to take action and try to overthrow it. “When O'Brien reveals that he does have revolutionary thoughts, Winston is excited to go with him to a secret underground meeting led by Emmanuel Goldstein. The group aims to overthrow the Party”. (“1984”) After reading the works of Emmanuel Goldstein, the infamous enemy of Big Brother, Winston is inspired to take action and make an actual change, and is seemingly a good guy fighting against the evil

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