NationStates Jolt Archive

I was wondering if you can give me a crystal vision of 1984 and the plot, or what you thought of it, cause i heard it's touched people profoundly.

spark notes online? or read it for yourself? you're sitting at an online forum, you must have some time to read.

Basically it's about this guy who lives in a totalitarian regime. The plot is really more of device for the books 'message'. It's more than anything about totalitarianism.

It's quite a good read, although personally I found the end unsatisfying (although none-the-less effective).

Sorry your a year off it was 1983!

And, if you like it, Orwell's Animal Farm is a nice companion piece.

And, if you like it, Orwell's Animal Farm is a nice companion piece.
What do you mean Companion thats the better of the two!

I was wondering if you can give me a crystal vision of 1984 and the plot, or what you thought of it, cause i heard it's touched people profoundly.

Basically it is a retelling of the Garden of Eden myth: a chap lives in ignorance and servility until the machinations of the powers-that-be cause him to meet a woman, and they (ahem) 'eat of the tree of knowledge' and for this are punished.


...or did you want the hoary old 'it isn't about the future or communism, instead its about the social mores and conditions that actually existed in post-war London' explanation?

It's belief in a 'perfect' system.

Orwell is pure genius. I hate his writing style in Animal Farm, but he's great anyway.

The ending was unsatisfactory for me as well, but it works, doesn't it?

The ending was unsatisfactory for me as well, but it works, doesn't it?
Aha, in fact it probably works better than any other conceivable ending, which is probably the most annoying aspect of all.....the best possible ending is 'unsatisfying'. At least if there were an adequate alternative way to end the book I could complain about my dissatisfaction, but as you say, it certainly works, and I personally think that in terms of 'post-reading' (i.e the impression left a month, a year, or a decade after having read the book) that no other ending would have had the same impact.

Best Book I ever read? 1984.
Second-Best Book I ever read? Animal Farm.

I think that speaks for itself.

I agree with leon, though I dont rate animal farm as second(high though).

Of course the ending is sad, but I loved it. Its an incredible book.

I loved 1984. Its an awesome book.

Hmm I have read 1984 a couple of times and it is a thought provoking book, I personally felt that it was a unsatisfying read. I have read many books and this one just left a bitter taste in my mouth. I agree with what people are saying about the ending being the only possible ending. What else could the 'hero' have done? Changed the world for the better? But when I read a book I want to enjoy it and enjoy the time I spend reading it. With this book I didn't. Just my opinion of course!

If you want to read another book that in my opinion is far superior to Orwells 1984 is Aldous Huxleys (possible bad spelling) Brave New World.

Hmm I have read 1984 a couple of times and it is a thought provoking book, I personally felt that it was a unsatisfying read. I have read many books and this one just left a bitter taste in my mouth. I agree with what people are saying about the ending being the only possible ending. What else could the 'hero' have done? Changed the world for the better? But when I read a book I want to enjoy it and enjoy the time I spend reading it. With this book I didn't. Just my opinion of course!

If you want to read another book that in my opinion is far superior to Orwells 1984 is Aldous Huxleys (possible bad spelling) Brave New World.

Hmm I have read 1984 a couple of times and it is a thought provoking book, I personally felt that it was a unsatisfying read. I have read many books and this one just left a bitter taste in my mouth. I agree with what people are saying about the ending being the only possible ending. What else could the 'hero' have done? Changed the world for the better? But when I read a book I want to enjoy it and enjoy the time I spend reading it. With this book I didn't. Just my opinion of course!

If you want to read another book that in my opinion is far superior to Orwells 1984 is Aldous Huxleys (possible bad spelling) Brave New World.

Hmm I have read 1984 a couple of times and it is a thought provoking book, I personally felt that it was a unsatisfying read. I have read many books and this one just left a bitter taste in my mouth. I agree with what people are saying about the ending being the only possible ending. What else could the 'hero' have done? Changed the world for the better? But when I read a book I want to enjoy it and enjoy the time I spend reading it. With this book I didn't. Just my opinion of course!

If you want to read another book that in my opinion is far superior to Orwells 1984 is Aldous Huxleys (possible bad spelling) Brave New World.

-snip-
That is not only a double post!
That's a quadruple post!

I know the point of the ending was do be like that, but I hate what that does eventually to the role of the book in society. The way its looking, its basically like the book is there to remind people that they can't win against the massive machine that exists today. While it does give people a vision of something they'd like to fight against, it simultaneously says they can't win, kinda a double think of its own actually.....

Online version here:

http://www.online-literature.com/orwell/1984/

It's ok, but when one of the main characters makes no sense given the premise exist?] you can't really say perfect.

Online version here:

http://www.online-literature.com/orwell/1984/

It's ok, but when one of the main characters makes no sense given the premise exist?] you can't really say perfect.

I read somewhere that Julia was just a pawn of O'Brien's and that O'Brien set up the whole affair between her and Winston. Anyone familier with this interpretation?

I loved 1984 and Animal Farm, if anyone's interested Animal Farm is being played on Radio 4 everynight in installments, if you don't live in Britain I think you can get it from the BBC website.

It's quite a good read, although personally I found the end unsatisfying (although none-the-less effective).I see where you're coming from, but I was pleased with the ending from the point of view it was realistic - for that type of environment anyway - rather than the usual endings novelists give, ie. surviving quite happily, having defeated whatever it was you were fighting against.

Anyway, I completely recommend the book. It took me a while to get into it, but when I did, I couldn't put it down. It's very well written and examines a whole range of social phenomena. How far would you go for the person you love? Or will you put yourself first in the end? How strong is the will of the people when put against the power of those in charge? Very thought provoking stuff. My boyfriend described it as "a timely warning to humanity" and while I think that's taking things a bit far (!), it is certainly a polemic from which we can learn.

If you like 1984, I'd recommend A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess as well. It doesn't have the same overtly political stance, but it does investigate, more subtly, what levels the state will go to in order to control people. A lot of it is written in 1970s teenage slang (as it's written in the first person of the main character, who, funnily enough, was a 1970s teenager), but I for one got used to this quickly.

Happy reading!

Is that the whole book on the Interweb thingy?

It looks to be, yes.

Is that the whole book on the Interweb thingy?Seems to be - links to each chapter are listed down the left hand side. They appear to be in full.

Cool

I-m certain '1984' changed World History to the better. Totalitary beliefs was met with harder resistance after it was published.

I-m certain '1984' changed World History to the better. Totalitary beliefs was met with harder resistance after it was published.

Hmm, but aren't we really still heading for Orwell's vision but in a more subtle way? I know there are serious concerns here in Britain at the moment because of the ID card issue. Plus all those cameras everywhere.

I think it would be foolish to think that since Orwell pointed out the potential danger of a totalitarian regime that we are safe from slipping into one over time.

Personally I prefered Animal Farm, but I read both books a long time ago, when I was a teenager. I might change my mind when I get around to reading them both again.

I loved the book "the animal farm", but i didn't liked the way he represented communists as pigs... In fact i think this is only a book to denounce Stalinism in USSR (if you read it correctly you can find who is Marx, who is Stalin, and who is Trotski...); but i prefer Orwell's style to Huxley's (oh, I loved too the "brave New world") :)