Overall impressions of the novel

Orwell's novel has been one of the most scrutinized in all of literature.

It is also one of the prominent works of literature featured on banned book lists in the United States.

The novel is also regarded as one of the most important pieces and should be studied by students thoughout the world.

Additionally, 1984 is a novel which should be read more than once. Young readers should visit it again in a decade or so. You will find your perspective and interpretations may have changed.

It is always interesting to hear what 1st-time readers think of the novel.

Please share your overall, specific impressions of the novel. :ihih:

1984 was a bit or a sencorey overload for me because so much was goimg on at the sametime. This novle never grabed me at any sipcific point in the book. To me this book laked adventure and suspence. maybe if I read 1984 in a couple years I would understand all this book has to offer. I didn't really enjoy this novle because the word font was hard to focous. I understand this is an upper level book to read but the only reason I didn't like this book was because how slow the book moved.

I am still not one hundred percent sure what my over all impression of the books is.

I believe that the begining (until part 2) is exstreamly slow and hard to stay focused on. But I do like the amount of detail Orwell puts into his writing. Once the story became enjoyable it was easy to imagine your slef right next to Wiston and experiencing what he experienced, from the torture to the love he thought he had for Juila.

I wish Orwell was more optomistic. Although I do understand that if this book had a "Happy" ending then it would be unrealistic and would not keep you thinking, "What happened to Winston after that?"

Orwell got me intrested, and I agree with you that we as students should reread this book as adults. I am exicted to see what my perpsective will be on the novel in the future. I am also intersted in seeing what will happen to our government/socity of today. Will Orwell get more things right? Will our life become a television show for those with more power than us? I guess we will have to wait and find out.

I'm going to be the "Negative Nelly" of the thread and say that I did not enjoy 1984.. I think it was a combination of the genre of the novel and the pace of the novel. I found 1984 to be very slow and very tedious to read, usually if I find myself interested in the book I read and finish it at a fairly speedy rate, but with this book I had to force myself to even pick it up thinking "You'll never pass the test if you don't read." I found myself relying on my conscience rather my own happiness to read. I also didn’t like the characters. I didn’t like Winston, his character I found to be irritating in a way? The way he knew what the truth was, but still questioned whether Big Brother was good or evil I found to be frustrating. As for Julia, her lack of intelligence just rubbed me the wrong way, and frankly, I’m not even sure what the value of her character was. The telecreens, pornosec, and Newspeak just seem so far-fetched that I didn’t/don’t see them being a plausible prediction into the future. That being said I think Orwell is and was a fantastic author, as I did really like Animal Farm, but 1984 just doesn’t seem like my cup of tea.. I will keep in mind to read this book again as an adult, as my views are subject to change, but overall, I think it’s safe to say, that I did not enjoy 1984.

Although the book took some explaining at times, the novel introduced a lot of new ideas in our society that we usually don’t think twice about. My impression of the novel changed from beginning to end, but overall it was worth the read. Being a first time reader I didn’t always understand what Orwell was trying to "ring the bell" on, but with some discussion, the messages became more significant.
With the novel being written in 1948, it's amazing to see how accurate some of Orwell's predictions are even today, 68 years later. Some of the topics, such as distractions represented by the "pots and pans" incident have become so common in our society that we hardly recognize such diversions. The telescreens which monitored the people in Oceania can be relatable to all the surveillance citizens are today.
The novel brought up many points that are still relevant to our society. The novel should be reread years from now because not only will our perspective change, but society will have also changed and maybe there will be more scenarios where he's trying to draw our attention.

I enjoyed this book tremendously. I think Orwell did indeed "Ring the bell" on many occasions. Although the book was a bit hard to get through at some points and quite pessimistic, I agree that it is an important book for all people to read. Not all things in the world are happy, and not all people are Americans, born and raised in the land of freedom of thought and expression. I don't think we can completely understand Winston's mind set, because of the way we were raised - but we can empathize with him.
Orwell pointed out many flaws in modern day society with this novel. He really made me think about the 'pots and pans' of our culture, and re-assess what is truly important to me. Reading about a world where there is no loyalty, no love, no family, and not even a shred of hope left in the end, makes you really want to take Orwell's message to heart.
One part of the novel that really struck me was when Winston was laying in bed with Julia, looking out the window, and wondering if anyone had ever just laid there and enjoyed solitude, which he quickly dismissed as a crazy thought.
This novel shows how man may be inherently good or evil, it is unknown. But the one thing that is certain is that mankind is weak. The last true 'man' alive was beaten down until he broke. It also makes you wonder, what would make a human being be so cruel to another one, just to change the way he views something.
This book brings up many interesting concepts and has made me think about the world in which I live.

I think the novel 1984 truly is a piece of art and I think that reading it has had an effect on my life. I think it's amazing that someone could single-handedly imagine a world such as Oceanina and all of its principles,and then record it with such amazing detail. Most people, upon developing their own philosophy, merely blurt it all out in a sort of speech or pamphlet such as The Communist Manifesto by Karl Marx. Not only did Orwell challenge Marx's ideas, he gave his philosophies life by allowing them speak for themselves through the actions and thoughts of Winston Smith; a method that not only allows readers to create their own interpretations of his philosophy, but also makes Marx's ideas look utterly plain and dull by comparison.

I don't think the fact that 1984 is a long read should decide whether or not the book is good or "bad." The book is not "bad." You can't just decide that something isn't worth your time because you think it's boring. Contrary to popular belief, the novel 1984 was not written for your entertainment! I think people should appreciate the fact that someone like Orwell took the time to write a novel such as 1984; because it's not just a story about a middle-aged man with a miserable life. Orwell was making a point. He was trying to save people from letting their government take advantage of their own ignorance. He's using his own observations to give people a wake up call; "Stop being distracted and pay attention to what really matters!" "Those who control the past control the future!" etc, etc. His book is banned in many places for a reason. It encourages free thought and highlights the value of freedom. If the book had been published before the end of World War II, it would easily be on the top of Hitler's list of books to burn. I feel fortunate that he took the time to write the novel. In the end, he was doing everyone a favor by filling the book with warnings. It really is a significant source of food for thought. Though the novel doesn't apply to modern-day America, I still see this book as a gift.

And as for the statement that the book has effected my life, I truly believe that it has. Now that I'm done with the novel, I don't really look at the government the way I once did. I don't really believe that anyone does anything for the common good of the people anymore. It all traces back to the hunger for power. I also think that it's helped me to appreciate all of the freedoms that I do have as an American citizen. I enjoy my ability to think for myself, and I am thankful that my life is not effected by things such as chocolate rations. But I really think I've learned from listening to the principles of doublethink. The concept that something happening inside the mind is as good as something happening in reality is fascinating. (Or the idea that reality only exists within the human mind itself!) Because if you tell yourself that the event happened, and you still feel the emotions that you would get from reacting to the action, what does it matter if someone tells you that it didn't happen? I think it's an excellent way to get anger out ;) Finally, I've also started to notice references to the book everywhere. Maybe I'm just over-analyzing things to a point that I can make anything relate. The term "Big brother figure" has taken a whole new meaning to me. But maybe that's why Orwell decided to center the government around Big Brother.

In the end, I can say that I definitely do not regret taking the time to read this novel. Not only were the setting and storyline really cool, but the messages were really deep, and I think that, if twisted enough, they could be applied to anyone's situation. :smilewinkgrin:

At first this book just seemed to be a description of the bleak life of Winston Smith, citizen of Oceania. Nothing very interesting happened, and I found my eyes glazing over as I flipped through page after page. I thought to myself, this is complete and utter fiction, a fantasy, and did not find myself relating it to real life. But, the further in depth I read, I found glimpses of things that could relate to current life, and that were entirely possible.
Personally, I do not think that such a complete and utter totalitarian government could ever take hold, at least in the United States. That might just be a biased statement coming from a United States citizen, but I don't think that the citizens of the US would ever relinquish that kind of power to someone, or to a group of people. I believe that had the power been taken by force, we as citizens already recognize our strength in numbers, and would go to extremes in order to restore the democracy we have now.
So in that sense, I do not look at 1984 as entirely possible, at least in the country I live in now. But, the ideas of emotionless citizens blindly following a eternal figure of which no one has ever seen, I believe to be realistic. Although hard to take hold over today's world (at least in my lifetime), I think if it ever got to the point where a small group did have complete control over an area, I think the methods described by Orwell would be very effective and entirely realistic.
While at some this points I think this book is pretty far fetched, in others I think perhaps it's not. Although I'm pretty certain I will never live to see this kind of horror and control, I can't help but wonder if other generations will?

At first the book out very slow, it was hard for me to read it. I actually fell asleep reading it three different times. Not much happemned in the begining it basically described Winstons life.When part two came around the novel became much more interesting. I started to really enjoy the book. Orwell makes so many hints and gives so many warnings. For instance, he warns us about a society under surveilance. Almost all of us are under constant surveliance, in school and on the bus, even in the streets. I dont believe that the united States will become like Oceania because the people of America would be aware of what was going on, Unlike the proles. Although the proles seemed more concerned with pots and pans along with the lottery than what was important, which seems to be the case today. People freak out over sports and the lottery, now more than ever a lot of people are more focused on trivial things like that.
I did really like this book, it became very interesting to say the least. I will probably end up reading thisbook when i am older, maybe i'll notice things that i didn't before who knows.
So my overall impression of 1984 by George Orwell is that this is an amazing novel and everyone should read this book when they're young and again when they're much older.

I'm not a hundred percent sure on how I feel about this novel. I did not like it at all at the beginning of the novel. I felt like it was repetitive because Orwell described Winston and his daily life. I understand that it is an important part of the novel but I feel like Orwell made every day of Winston's life the same. It showed how much Big Brother controlled them. Big Brother can change history and combine two words of the opposite meaning together to create a word that makes complete and total sense (doublethink). It was very hard for me to get into it, until his days changed and he started seeing Julia, talking to O'Brien, and was sent to the ministry of love. I didn't mind reading it once it picked up. I was actually eager to read Winston's room 101 and see what would happen to him afterwards.
Like Clutchspawn says, Orwell puts hints and warnings throughout the novel. This novel is extremely important, it explains how life could be and has been. By reading this novel it allows the United States and other countries from becoming like Oceania, a controlling country. In a way the US is similar to Oceania in the fact that we care about little things rather than the important things that matter. Winston stood strong against Big Brother until he was beaten down. By doing that Big Brother proved that they can control anybody and everybody. Overall, I didn't mind this novel but it was by far not my favorite either. I don't know that I will ever read this book again but now I can say that I read it and picked up all of Orwell's hints.

I think this novel is very accurate, or relevant, in almost every aspect. I did, however, think the bit when Winston recognizes the singing prole women as beautiful was strange, considering the culture he lives in. The end of the book seemed to be rushed, and unusually vague for Orwell. That's not to say it was a bad ending, because I did like it.
Pots and pans are evidently a popular subject. I believe that there are far to many of them today, and people just don't seem to care as much as I think they should about the flaws of our society, and the future. They are too busy reading about some celebrity's love life to pay attention to their own government. I think that's a very scary thing.
Telescreens have also been mentioned, which prompts me to say there's too much surveillance. I understand it's beneficial when something happens, and you want to know who did it, but why not stop it from happening in the first place? Besides, I doubt the benefit of security cameras is worth the loss of privacy.
Opinions in 1984 are eliminated, and even if someone like Winston does have views that are against the Party, he can't say it. To me, this is just being politically correct, taken to the extreme. Too many of our rights are becoming restricted. I honestly am amazed by what has happened to the Bill of Rights.

The bill of rights is well, better than it has ever been in terms of support.

I'm going to be honest, i thought this novel was kind of boring at parts.. it just seemed to be a very slow read and a really hard concept. Most of the time i had no idea of what i read about until we discussed the novel in class. I felt myself falling asleep at some points. Towards the end of the book though i found myself really trying to understand the concept. When you read it, you think it's gibberish but when you think outside of the box, it's truly a very amazing concept. To know that some of these things that Orwell predicted have or will eventually come true. Could you have predicted the future? I also agree with Marvin_the_cat, i don't believe the United States will ever have a full totalitarian government, maybe other countries will, but not the US. The citizens of the US are proud of their freedoms and would be very very unhappy if anyone, such as some totalitarian leader, tried to change that. No matter what, i think any US citizen would fight against such a leader as that, but as i said before i think the overall meaning of the book is quite extraordinary, but the book itself is really boring. I'm sorry to any of you who really enjoy this novel, just expressing my opinion.

1984 in my opinion was a very advanced book to read. Content wise, it was hard to follow and I found my self blankly "reading" and not "understanding" the text. The theme however, was very creative to me. I believe that in an extreme case, the theme could surely come true. Reading the book twice really helped me understand it more thoroughly. When Orwell points out that Proles buy Lottery tickets in high hopes of striking it rich, it really hit me how corrupt our government is. Not because of how they are, but what they do to people. It never really struck me until reading this book that hope IS the one thing keeping the government in control of the people. This occurs in the book and in our society. Handing your money away to buy Lotto Tickets is just another way this book reminds us just how sneaky those in power can become. This book actually messed with my head because I started questioning if our history was even real! All jokes aside, the book was a slow, slow read for me. It took me a very long time to catch up in the plots, but certain parts of the book were very interesting and flew by. All in all I did not "enjoy" the book, in fact, I had to force my self to push through it but I do think it is a necessity to read. Especially more than once.

I personaly thought that at the beginning of the novel was very dry and boring but as I continued to read the book my perspective on the book changed. The novel started to become more interesting and I started to compare Orwell's predictions to historical events and current events today. Through the eyes of adults and in some cases young adults, people really begin to understand the true meaning and lesson of 1984. I also believe that you should give the book another chance if you didn't like it. You should also be open minded and relate to Orwell's prophecy like opinions. I think that George Orwell was definitely odd for his time but the best people are.

1984 was written with the intention of making a point rather than to entertain its readers. It gives the message of looking past the polished face of the government, and questioning what really lies behind. This makes it easy to understand why the book is banned in many places. It was Orwell's way of warning his readers of radical forms of government, and what could possibly happen if those forms of government (in this case, totalitarianism) become a reality. It is shocking (especially to Americans, who live so freely compared to the people in this book) how cunning the government is, how little the people are allowed to do and have, and how strictly the party members live, most of which are brain washed. His warnings occur anywhere from bold actions, such as the telescreen and Winston's arrest/torture, to subtle ones such as the Prole Women fighting over pots and pans.

Most of the "warnings" included in this book have come alive on small scales today. Telescreens, spies,and mics are constantly watching the party members of Oceania. In our own country, the number of security cameras is on the rise, including in our own school. The Prole women fight over silly things such pots and pans. Americans today also fight over petty things such as "a good sale" (especially on Black Friday) on the latest and greatest electronics, even though a "bigger and better" version will come out the following year 99% of the time. Yet they are the strongest group in Oceania, the Proles fail to realize their potential and strength because the government creates diversions in order to distract them. They are especially distracted by the lottery, and bombs (which are secretly launched by their own government). Ironically, most of America was recently distracted by the big power ball, which was worth a little over half a billion dollars. Millions bought tickets, despite their slimmer than slim chances of winning. We are also distracted by things such as tv, social networks, and celebrity gossip. The government in the story is rather mysterious, and no one is quite sure how it works or what exactly goes on. The government hides information from its citizens and lies more than it tells the truth. Although on a much smaller scale, I imagine that our government does not tell us everything, and lies about what really goes on in office (just look at most politicians).

I feel if I were to reread this book 10 years from now, a lot more of the details would stick out to me, and I would realize a lot more of them to be uncannily true. There are many topics in this book that I, as a student, probably do not fully understand. Rereading it in the future would in a sense, open ones eyes, enabling them to see what they were not able to see once before.

Though this book was clearly written to warn, and inform people at first I found 1984 to be very boring and dry, as well as hard to follow though the quite obvious deep meanings seen even from the first chapter, but as the book went on I found that the pace picked up, and the plot became much more interesting, though at the very end i felt it was rushed and did not enjoy it. Although i can appreciate George Orwell's impressive writing, and his incredible ability of really adding in small details to make things seem very realistic, I found Animal Farm to be a much more easier read when comparing the two novels. When trying to read 1984 I found that I had to force myself to pay attention, and quite often fell asleep trying to read.I understand how complex this novel is, and I will try to read it again when I'm older to see if my opinions have changed,as I'm sure they will, but some of the time i didnt realize metaphors or didn't clearly understand what was happening in the book until my english class disscussed it, though this may be because of my younger age. I felt like some parts of the book were easy to read, but that these parts were very few for me, and that most of the book dragged on. Overall I myself did not "like" this book, but I can appreciate the complexity of the meaning of this book, and I think it was an important piece of literature to have read.

In the beginning, I really didn’t enjoy 1984 at all. I dreaded reading it because it seemed repetitive. It talked about whom the critical characters and groups of people were and their overall role in the novel. I felt like this dragged on and on and I found it uninteresting, but important to understanding the rest of the book.
I began to enjoy the book after Winston was caught. The irony of O’Brian being behind his entire capture and torture was something I didn’t see coming. I liked the things he saw while in the Ministry of Love and some of the concepts that were used. Room 101 was by far my favorite part of the entire book. I was intrigued by how much control our fears can have over us and how specific it is for everyone.
I liked seeing how dead on Orwell was about topics we are coping with today throughout the novel. Things like the unification hate can have on society. President Obama used this strategy when running for election in 2008. His slogan was “Yes we can!” and he was seen as hope for our nation. The telescreens are “ringing the bell” on our society being under surveillance. Nowadays, we see cameras everywhere. In school there are now at least two in every hallway. They are all over in public places and seem almost normal.
Overall i i didn't particuarly like this book, but I enjoyed many of the forcasts Orwell made. I would definately read this book in another 10 or so years to see how my views change. :biggrinjester:

I believe the beginning of the novel was slow, but for a purpose. Winston probably was bored out his mind living day to day life in 1984, and Orwell expressed that at the start. The middle was okay, and the end was fun to read. The hooks are the prophecies Orwell gives us. The subtle warnings about life here and there are what kept me interested in the book. His ques about distraction, government controlling too much, and hopelessness got to me. I think the middle was alright, except it only had one central theme to it. Disobeying the Party. The book got my interest when the picture fell over. After that, I stayed into the novel until the end.

I think the novel was interesting, and Orwell had incredibly accurate predictions. It is more than relevant. It is the future that we could live to see if we do not heed his warnings. The novel often portrayed many aspects of our modern culture. Overall, I believe that we will find ourselves slaves to a totalitarian government. The novel itself made me feel as if he travelled to the not so distant future and wrote a story based on the sights he witnessed.

In my opinion, the book was very dull and flat at points, but there were the times when the book brought up important points. One of the points was how easy people were manipulated. Citizens in the book believed everything they heard or read. When the government told them that 2+2=5, they believed them. This point brings out today's society. People believe everything that they see on TV, or on the internet, is true, and obviously everything is not true.
I also liked how much detail Orwell had put into the book. It made the theme more clear to me as the book progressed. At first, I really disliked the book, but as time went on, I enjoyed it a little bit more.
I think the book is important to read at some time in your lifetime. It brings out good points, and what we should pay attention to in life. Overall, I enjoyed the book at some points, and believe that it is a great book to read.

I personally didn't like the book. I found this book to be very hard to read because it was very long and hard to grasp on to the concept. Also there was way to many sexual parts which I found to be very awkward. It was also very difficult to tell which days where which. I also think that it should be read again in the future it might be easier to read. I also didn't like the whole minestry thing with the minestry of truth and love. One poitive thing I did like about the book was the fact that the Government was so controlling. Another thing I didn't like was the fact that in the minestry of love it was really a lie it was a minestry of hate where they tortured you with your own fears.

My immediate impression of this novel was that it was a bit slow and didn’t quite grab my attention. However, as the book continued on I became much more intrigued by the obvious connections between Winston’s world and my own. I was Orwell had in my ways “predicted “the future in this book expressing the flaws of ourselves as well as the world in which we live. As much as I would have liked a pleasant ending I think it’s significant that we are exposed to the people we could become. 1984 still holds true even today and I believe much can be learned from the constant ringing of Orwell’s “bell’ throughout this entire novel.
As for my views on the characters I found most to be a bit dry, but I suspect this is due to the pressures from Big Brother. I truly found Julia to be a very interesting character. Partly I believe that without her Winston would not have been caught quiet as quickly. Winston was relatively careful prior to meeting Julia and afterwards to they managed to break quite a few rules. I hoped for the classic love triumphs and for the fall of Big Brother but as this is a book of reality I realize this would not be a realistic ending. I rather enjoyed reading Orwell and I do believe I will pick this book up sometime in the future and revise my perspective on 1984, but until then I will remember Orwell’s warnings and keep an open mind. Thanks for introducing me to this book and the forum, they were pretty awesome to be honest.

1984 is one of the best books i've ever read in my life. Orwell opinions on governtment and social class is what makes the novel great. Though it was a bit slow from the start, once i read through that it became something incredible. The way Oceania is described, how the party members work, and the proles it quiet interesting to me. I do agree with almost everything Orwell wrties, espeically when it comes to how we are distracted from the important things in life such as taxes cuts and warfare in our society. The novel made me look at the world in a completely different way from different scences in the book, like the "pots and pans" part, where Winson is disapointed in the prole women for fighting over little things. It displays how we are ditracted as i said before. Orwell, thorughout the novel showed how much hope there really is. He isn't optomistic but, that's what makes it setting feel more real. Winson is a great example of a person who pleases in hope in a world where there isn't any but, thats what makes us human. Which brings me to the ministry of love. Actually this part of the novel scares me because of the possiblely that our govenment can really get that point. The poin where we have no emotions except for love of BB and pride for our nation. That the inner party of the government can take hope away and tear you completely down with different forms of torture and end with your own room 101, so they can build you up to kill you while you're "pure". I did like how detailed it was because i could visualize it. But the one thing i hate is the ending of the novel. Orwell went from the ministry of love to Winson in the Chestnut Cafe. It felt very rushed and i didn't like the fact it didn't describled what happend to Julia or Winson. Winson ends up loving BB. Man, i seriously hated that because it was a disapointment. Other than that, 1984 was amazing and i really did enjoy the book!

For one there is no doubt in my mind this book should be read by all. Maybe at an older age, but I still understood it at a younger age. It was a little slow at the beginning of the novel, but most books are. It's what gives a book it's backbone and gets you connected to the characters. However, the ending was ridiculous to me!! Orwell shoved hope down our throats the entire story to rip it from us in one sentence! He didn't even leave us with the possibility for an uprising or revolution! The concept of the story was interesting, and while its hard to comprehend what it was really like for the people of Oceania, I think Orwell did a good job of setting up the picture. 1984 is a story we should all have learned from, regardless of whether or not you liked it. It's like the saying if we ignore history it's likely to repeat itself. If we ignore the possibilities that our world could change as drastically as the people in Oceania's did, it will be more likely to happen. But the story definitely showed us what Orwell's views on hope were. All around a good book with an interesting, and original plot.

I enjoyed the book, although I did not find it relevant to our time period. As the title states, the book was a prediction of the year 1984. Now we sit here in 2012 with very few of the same concepts. Orwell predicted quite a few different predictions for what our world would turn out to be. He "rang the bell" numerously throughout the book but, you had to read in between the lines to actually understand the concepts Orwell was trying to get across. I had quite a bit of trouble myself being able to become interested in the book. I feel 1984 rose to something exciting then fell quickly and dragged on. Although I did not completely enjoy the book Orwell did a fantastic job making his theme clear throughout the book.

I did not like this book at all. I did not find it interesting or enjoyable. I think it was confusing and slow so I would not read it again or even recommend that so much so that I dreaded even picking up the book. I also felt the characters boring. I think another thing I didn't like about it was how unbelievable it could be so I don't think he "rung the bell" as much as others may believe. Maybe this book could've been more interesting to me if I read it later in life when I knew more about the past. I do believe however he left some ideas that can be used today and in the future.

The beginning was a bit slow and the ending was a bit disappointing but overall I did enjoy the book. I found the idea of this totalitarian society to be very interesting especially the methods employed by Oceania to keep the populace loyal. Although I don't think Orwell was "ringing the bell" with his ideas, I found his predictions to be thought provoking.

I believe that this book accurately forecasts modern day society. One concept that the book opened up with is the line "Ignorance is Strength." So far this idea has really hit home with me because I see it happen before my very eyes almost every day! Many people are extremely accepting of complacency and the belief of what I don't know can't hurt me.
So far I enjoy the book and find it remarkable how accurate Orwell was.

I believe the book starts off slow and gets more and more interesting as you read. It opens with little facts about the government and Winstons life that you really dont understand until later in the book. Once you start to understand his life and how to government works, the book gets more interesting. It was kinda repetative about going throught his normal routine during the day with little changes here and there. You also must have an open mind to understand and enjoy this book(one of the problems i am having). As i am only half way through, the book is starting to get more interesting and starting to show why it is such a famous book.

I cannot yet compile a large scale opinion, because I have not finished the novel. As of right now, my judgment is clouded by misunderstanding. Are the thought police real, or are they a rumor started to scare people into submission? What is the purpose of morning exercises? Is big brother one person, or rather multiple government officials? While my many questions may seem to make me out as one who cannot grasp the underlying meanings of the novel, I am only trying to understand the facts behind the these messages from Orwell.

Thankyou

The thought police are real. There is no real point of the morning exercises, except to point out that the screens are two-way, and that the citizens can be monitored in their homes. It also shows that the citizens are required to follow orders even in their free time. Taking part in early morning exercises should be discretionary, you would think. It is not certain whether Big Brother is a person, or an idea controlled by a group of inner party officials. He may once have been a real person who has since died. He may have been the supreme leader of the revolution, or just it's most charismatic leader.

I am struggling with becoming interested in this novel because there are not many exciting parts so far. With that being said, I see 1984 as a really good way to view the world differently. In 1984 George Orwell gives us a chance to think about our government and the way it is run from a completely different perspective. We as the citizens see how we are sometimes "brainwashed" by the government like the citizens in 1984 are. Propoganda goes on every day in our government and we are under surveillance much like the examples in 1984. Therefore, I can not say I enjoy reading 1984, but I do believe that the ideas portrayed by the novel will have a lasting impact on my way of thinking.

My impression of the book, only being part way through, is wavering. I am personally not sure what parts of the book are of importance due to the overwhelming amount of information thrown at you in the first 100 pages. It is hard to understand where Orwell is going with the novel during the first part of the book. To me just the concept of Orwell predicting life in 1984 from a 1948 veiwpoint and being semi- accurate is astonishing. I do have to say, Winston's constant battle of man vs. himself has been the only part that has grabbed me during the first portion of the novel. All in all, I am not sure as to where I stand on the book. At times I am enjoying the book and other times it just sems to drag on with confusing details. Hopefully I will begin to understand the novel as I read on, or hey, I may understand it 5-10 years down the road.

Interesting comments, and I agree that you should read it again in the future. I have long said that high-schoolers are too politically naive to understand what the book is about.

Even so, the basic story is easy to understand; you just need to read it to the end.

(then read the threads around here!)