In a rare instance of mercifulness, Winston is finally let go, though he may be taken back anytime again. He may be tried or even shot at once he is taken back. But that, too, is a mystery. What the reader does know is that the Party is finally completely victorious over Winston. He spends his days soaked in gin, in a fog. He also spots renowned traitors, although these traitors, much like Winston, no longer seem like their former selves.

He also runs into Julia once. She is not herself either, and there is no warmth between the two anymore. In what should count as their final defeat, they acknowledge that they have betrayed each other. They part ways. While he is at the cafe, Winston tries to focus on a chess problem. He is briefly reminded of a game he’d once played with his mother. Soon, however, he finds himself occupied by the updates of the war coming from the telescreen.

He stares at a poster of Big Brother. He sees Big Brother as a symbol of all that is good in the world. This acceptance represents his successful reintegration into society. Readers can glean that Winston now loves Big Brother.