?"Under the spreading chestnut tree"?

[Taberif]

In 1984 [Part 1, Chapter 7], Over the telescreen, the tune and music being played changed and the voice on the telescreen sang:

"Under the spreading chestnut tree
I sold you and you sold me
There lie they, and here lie we
Under the spreading chestnut tree"

Is there a significance to this occuring during the book? If so, what is its significance? I stared at this in the book for a while and read it many times and concluded that maybe it is representing how everyone is living in a small area (Under the spreading chestnut tree) and people over heard other people saying things and reported them to the thought police (I sold you and you sold me). Then the were killed (There lie they, and here lie we) and were left dead (Under the spreading chestnut tree). And by "spreading chestnut tree" is Orwell simply saying that the population is growing slowly, just as a tree does?

I don't no, I was really confused and figured I would give a shot at what it ment. Please help me!:sick: Thanks:p

[Yanksrock227]

My personal feelings are not the same as yours.

At that point in the book, Winston is recalling seeing three fugitives. When the telescreen sang this, some of the fugitives had tears in their eyes. The quote means that this is Big Brothers way of saying that he knows that they are there. The part of lying underneath the tree foreshadows their deaths. The chestnut tree could symbolize justice, and its ever expanding reach.

So to answer you, it represents the fact that even if you try to, you cannot outrun justice (just as a tree grows, it cannot be resisted). They sold each other out to Big Brother in order to save themselves, but in the end it is just their deaths and cold, hard justice.

[KurtDunn]

http://www.online-literature.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1452

Two possibilities, a song and a poem that start exactly the same way the song in 1984 does. I think the song is a dead ringer tho.

[digitalwitch]

well it was the chestnut tree cafe they were in so it may be that transparent. on the other hand in England another word for the chestnut tree is "old man's love" which could refer to the power of the past trying to protect and failing. great questions!! (haven't a clue what he intended but it is fun to guess eh?) :)

[2and2make4]

i think Orwell meant all of these things. he really knew what he was doing, so i think not only does it mention what's already mention, but it's kinda like julia and winston's story, foreshadowing, and the allusion of the nursery rhyme which i've read was similar, but basically the party replaced the word loved with sold (i loved him and he loved me is how i think it went) that rhyme was around when Orwell was growing up, and i think it represents that no one remembered the times before the present and they didn't acknowledge that anything had changed whatsoever. it's a really good allusion and line of poetry, including the switched lines. i've been planning on gathering a group of friends to help me write songs based off of different parts of 1984 and little sections and clips, i've got a couple people but i know only so few people who've read it and even fewer who'd be willing to write songs on it. if anyone's interested contact me at [email protected] or ask me for my screenname or something, i'll get back to you if you'd like to help ^_^. this is probably going to be one of my first songs, or at least will have something to do with it.

[shadman]

Wow, Orwell has a ton of hidden messages in this book.