Theme Of Betrayal In 1984

Betrayal as defined by dictionary.com is “to be unfaithful in guarding, maintaining, or fulfilling” or “to disappoint the hopes or expectations of; be disloyal to” one person, or a group of people. In history this word has had a number of meanings, all remaining under the worst kind of stereotype a person can have. A traitor, for example, is someone who betrays his original group and tends to have the worst image set upon him. They are portrayed as the scum of the Earth, unless they betrayed their original party for the better good of the world, which does happen in some rare cases. With a whopping total of over 1,000 books that rely on the very idea of betrayal, it’s safe to say that it’s a word used far too often (Tag: Betrayal). In 1984,
For example, this includes O’Brien’s betrayal of Winston and Julia, Winston and Julia’s betrayal of Big Brother and the party, and Big Brother’s betrayal of the people. For a large majority of the book, O’Brien is a trusted friend of Winston and Julia, only to find out in the end he was apart of the party and with the opposing side the entire time. (Betrayal in George Orwell’s 1984) He betrayed them in such a way that he could easily become what’s known as a traitor. Whether it be to Winston and Julia, himself, or the people around him. O’Brien’s presence in the end of the book is a key feature as to what happens to the couple. Without his involvement in the torture and destruction of Winston and Julia and their relationship, the end of the book would’ve been almost entirely different. O’Brien’s torture of Winston is a key feature into leading Winston to betray Julia in the close of the story as well. Winston goes as far as saying, “Do it to Julia! Do it to Julia! Not me! Julia! I don 't care what you do to her. Tear her face off, strip her to the bones. Not me! Julia! Not me” (Orwell 313)! This quote in itself is one of the many best examples of Betrayal one can find in 1984. Orwell does an exquisite job in portraying emotion in such a way that we feel pity for Winston, knowing that what he’s going through truly is agonizing. Especially if
His actions prove that despite what he thought before, even in believing that he’d be tortured and almost murdered in the end, he betrayed his own tongue after uttering the quote that was placed above. He, after fighting and fighting, eventually gave into the fact that he was going to die in such a horrendous way. The thought that it’d be from one of his greatest fears made it even worse. After surviving the torture from O’Brien, the rejection from Julia, and the mind battles brought upon himself after all of it, Winston couldn’t take it anymore, despite his past confessions never to give into the wrath of Big Brother. He betrayed Julia, which in turn caused him to betray himself. He performs the greatest betrayal of all, he stops loving her, and in turn, stops loving himself as well (Katherine K). He knows he’s been defeated by the end of the book. That blank face he has, thinking about how great the Party is even though it’s not, just goes on to prove that very point. Winston is defeated, after betrayal had taken over his life and altered his mind. In the end, the book is almost entirely surrounded by the idea of traitorous people and betrayal of governments. Whether it be from O’Brien, Big Brother, the Party, Julia, and even Winston. The story is based upon the theme and ideas proved within the text. Although it was never intended to be