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Nonconformism In 1984 Chapter 6

Decent Essays

In the excerpt from 1984 in Book 3, Chapter 6, Orwell describes the thoughts of Winston as he drinks gin in the Chestnut Tree Café. It begins with Winston reflecting on his last conversation with Julia and how he had meant it in the betrayal of their relationship. As he listens to the “cracked” and “jeering” notes from the telescreen, he tears up internally and starts to drink his glass of gin. The narrator mentions how Winston recognizes the impact of gin on his life: it sank him into sleep but rose him every morning. The narrator then reports how Winston considers himself to be part of the Chestnut Tree, leading to the recognition of his insignificance in Oceania’s society, and the tedious work in the Ministry of Truth. But in the very end of the excerpt, Winston would mention how in the end of work everyone would look at one another with a lack of emotion as if they were dead. Orwell in this excerpt presents how life under a totalitarian state becomes meaningless because everyone is the same as the nonconformists are denounced, reported, tortured, and killed in the end. Orwell depicts the scene of Winston’s encounter with Julia, including how Winston “could not distinguish her… Perhaps her thickened, stiffened body was no longer recognizable” (Orwell …show more content…

Orwell’s excerpt matters because it informs readers of the benefits of having freedom and the right to express your own thoughts. It is these benefits that make life meaningful as one can freely choose his/her own future, including the choice of profession, partner, family, etc. Orwell writes about the totalitarian state because he wants to inform his readers of its dangers. In the end, it is the person’s attitude, behavior, and thoughts that make his/her life meaningful; when all of those aspects are controlled by a separate body, what is then the meaning of

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