1984 (Signet Classics)

The 'big brother' world of 1984 as imagined by George Orwell has only become more frightening with the passage of time. The Patriot Act, Guantanamo Bay, and the erosion of privacy in the last 10 years have all smacked of totalitarianism of the ilk presented in this science fiction classic. It's not very hard to foresee the logical conclusions of sacrificing freedom for safety. Benjamin Franklin said it best:

"Any society that would give up a little liberty to gain a little security will deserve neither and lose both."

Politics aside, this is a book that has aged gracefully thanks to its excellent prose and themes that are as salient today as they were post WWII. This is a novel that still stands as one of the greatest science fiction novels ever written. Should be required reading in High Schools everywhere.

I really don't have to say much more. I bought this book for my husband because I simply loved when I read it. I saw that there were cheaper options in the website but I decided to go for a more expensive one, expecting a higher quality and I definitely got the opposite of that. And when I looked in the back cover I saw the real price for the book: US $5.00. Terrible. I'm returning it immediately.

While the 1984 has come and gone, George Orwell's masterpiece of the same title is still a classic.
In this dark alternate reality, oppressive super-governments control the world. Eurasia consists of mainland Europe and Russia. Eastasia is made up of china and southeastern Asian states. Finally, Oceania consists of the Americas, Australia, Southern Africa, and the British Isles. These governments are almost identical in their policies and philosophies, but are constantly shifting alliances and enemies with one another. Although it is available, there's never enough food or good housing for the average citizen. Socialist oligarchies control every aspect of life, and are coming closer to complete control of thought by the day.
What really makes this book shine is Orwell's brilliant language and description of this dark future. This society, its way of life, governments, and ideals, seem completely thought-out and (dis)functional. It is almost as if Orwell had visited and lived in this alternate-reality 1984 himself. In Oceania, a revised form of English called Newspeak is slowly being implemented. Newspeak is designed so that free thought and speech against the government is literally impossible, because the necessary words have either been removed or had their meaning revised. Orwell gives this fictional language as much function and form as the real English language, and introduces new words like "doubleplusungood", "thoughtcrime", and "doublethink". Governments are constantly revising what is said in the media, so there is no true record of the past. Citizens can only go by the past that has been told to them by the Party. Any conflicting knowledge would be a mere doubtful memory that for sure must have been just their imagination. Every word you say, anything you do, and possibly anything you think, the Party knows about. This constant surveillance and lack of anything that can be proven true keeps the people constantly under the government's thumb, and in the Orwellian language, does an excellent job of conveying to the reader the constant sense of fear and doubt that surrounds this world.
The book itself, set in London, Airstrip One (England), which is part of Oceania, follows the life of Winston Smith. Smith, a 39 year old, is the equivalent of an "average Joe." Oceania's government has 4 ministries: The Ministry of Peace (concerned with war), the Ministry of Plenty (which insures that there's neverenough to go around), the Ministry of Love (Which is in charge of punishment and torture), and the Ministry of Truth (focused on government propaganda and revising any media that could put the government in a bad light). Smith works at the Ministry of Truth. He had never held too much doubt of the Party. He lived his life and did his job without thinking too hard about anything, until he met a young woman named Julia. When he first sees her, Julia appears to Winston as a mindless party drone, spewing out slogans and loving all the rallies, parades, public executions, and other activities that the party holds. In truth, Julia had just found a smarter way to rebel. From her, and their findings, Winston discovers that the inner Party doesn't always practice what they preach, that there are those who haven't become the government's mental slaves yet, and finds out if Big Brother really is always watching you.

1984 / 0-679-41739-7

Painful, frightening, horrific. What do you do in a world where your every movement, every gesture is watched carefully by the government? How do you live in a world where even the slightest departure from complete conformity will result in torture, dismemberment, death? What hope can you have in a world where there is no escape - there is no free travel, and nowhere to flee to since all governments are the same? You cannot even take the step of ending your own life, as the government which cannot supply the country with enough food, shoes, or clothes also fails to supply its citizenry with razor blades.

1984 paints a picture bleak and terrifying, of a government that terrorizes its populace into quiescence, and of a populace that is too fearful, too hungry, and too uneducated to attempt the mass uprising that might save them. In a world where children are taught to spy on their parents and turn them into the police for the most minor (or imagined) of crimes, there can be no love, no one worth fighting for or protecting. How does it all end? Orwell doesn't believe that it can end - 1984 is a reminder for eternal vigilance against an impossible enemy: ourselves.

First off, this book is incredible. At 13 years old, I didn't understand every aspect of it, but in a whole, everything made perfect, clear sense.
I'm very interested in socialist governments(no, I don't like communist views; I'm a die-hard patriot at 13!), and I consider myself well-informed on up-to-date politics and such. And so, upon reading this book which was recommended to me by one of my teachers, I was horrified at the resemblances that Oceania and the direction our government is headed shared. The foresight of Orwell was shocking, and he kept the book very interesting.
But a good portion of the middle was....awkward. Like, mature-content awkward (most teachers gave me girl-are-you-crazy? looks when they saw I was reading it. Later, I realized why). I almost didn't finish the book, but knowing its importance to my knowledge, I finished it. I definitely do not recommend it to anyone my age....-shudders-
But its imperative that we as Americans read it. Remembering the mistakes of the past (and, in this case, the future) is imperative to keeping our nation a democracy. If we heed most of Orwell's warnings, we will be better equipped to save the future, and in doing so saving the past.