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Summary: A frightening tale of an enslaved, socialist future
Review: 1984 is frightening. 1984 is thought-provoking. 1984 is a literary masterpiece, warning society of a possible future that would more or less end meaning in life. There's little more I can say. Just read the book for yourself; it's what I call required reading.
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Summary: Now, more than ever, you should read this book!
Review: Pros: This book seemed to be a science-fiction book about the future, but in truth, it was a sci-fi symbolism of totalitarianism in Orwell's time. Yet, this book is so timely today! It reminded me of the way Bush and friends control our thoughts with smart words; GOOD Americans believe in the war and TRAITORS believe in other causes. We should always keep our own opinion and forget the always-swaying popular opinion. And that was just ONE of the many things I learned from this great book! I highly suggest this book.
Cons: It was a bit repetitive and it's a very heavy read.
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Summary: Greatest Novel of All Time?
Review: A case can certainly be made that 1984 is the greatest novel ever written. We know that the Modern Library infamously dubbed Ulysses the greatest novel of the last century even though most people find it completely unreadable. Too many critics and members of the intelligentsia equate impenetrability with greatness, probably thinking that the greatest novels must be aimed only at the gifted few.1984 lacks snob appeal and it is shockingly readable. I guess this is why it gets dissed with the #13 ranking on that list. Of course, my own criteria are different. In my opinion, the greatest novels should at the very least be great reads. Nothing is more audacious or ambitious than setting out to write a page turner that happens to carry a thought-provoking and devastating message. Or, put another way, what's the point of burying your message in a book that no one can read? I've never read Ulysses, but I think I can say that 1984 is simply a better novel because part of what a novel must do is thread its message through a plot that the reader actually can and wants to follow. 1984 is a thriller. It is part sci-fi and part fantasy. But of course its is meant to convey the feel of an actual political system that dominated half the globe at the time of its writing. Unlike Animal Farm, which is kind of a roman a clef of the Russian Revolution, the events and characters of 1984 are not meant to correspond directly to events and persons in the Soviet Union in the late 40's. Big Brother is, of course, Stalin. But that comparison is easier to make in retrospect since no Soviet leader was nearly as Big Brother-like as Stalin. But I imagine that Big Brother is meant to evoke any totalitarian leader rather than a particular one. The fact that 1984 does not simply follow history is a major strength since it allows Orwell's imagination to run wild. As you read 1984, you experience the oppression that a citizen in a totalitarian state must feel every day. Orwell conveys many of the brutal tactics of such a state: the neverending assault of propaganda, the isolation of individuals, the destruction of truth and memory. And all in service of a great plot. Perhaps the reason that a book like Ulysses outranks 1984 is that 1984 is ultimately not about a big enough subject. Ulysses after all is about "consciousness," or something like that. While 1984 is a perfect evocation of the central political story of the 20th Century, maybe that's just not ambitious enough. But I submit that 1984 is about something much larger. It is about the power of language and the power to control others through language. Central to the plot, of course, is the regime's creation of newspeak and the goal of constantly reducing the number of words available to the citizenry. Simply, the book equates words with freedom, which is a pretty big idea. Anyhow, when I first read 1984, I thought there were two flaws: First, I thought that the "reprinting" of Emmanuel Goldberg's manuscript was unecessary since it was really just a rehash of things Winston already knew and which were already confirmed to the reader. That part slows the pace of the novel. I still think that's a flaw. The other problem I had was that Orwell ultimately abandons the pitch-black humor that he injects throughout the first two thirds of the book. I no longer have a problem with that. Simply you can't have your cake and eat it. The ending is what it is and it works. Another interesting thought about the ending is this. In retrospect we know the actual fate of the Soviet Union. We know that if a totalitarian system develops a few cracks it must ultimately collapse. But in 1949, the Soviet Union probably looked as impregnable and invincible as Oceania. Which would make this book that much more chilling if read when it first came out. Finally, I'm not sure if 1984 is the greatest novel of all time. It may not even be my favorite. But certainly a case can be made for putting it at the top of the all-time list.
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Summary: Hauntingly relevant
Review: This was an important book when it was written, and amazingly it is still very relevant today. When it was written, the world was facing the threat of global communism. Wells does an excellent job of attacking the flaws of communism while also focusing on the ways it would be expanded in the future. When you look at the technology we have now, you realize that this book was somewhat prophetic. This book was certainly not a call to action against communism however. It was more the product of frustration and hopelessness, and a warning to the reader. As such, the book is pretty depressing. The characters are trapped in their world and completely unable to change anything about it. Even when it looks like there may be hope, it is soon crushed by Big Brother. I don't want to ruin the book for anyone who is thinking of buying it, so I'll say no more. This is a great read for anyone who needs a reminder of how important and delicate our freedoms are.
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Summary: BIG BROTHER IS WATCHING YOU
Review: i suggest that everyone read this book, if you really want to see what life is going to be like in the near future....this book is a great fortune teller. its ideas of dictatorship and totaltarianism were well ahead of his (george orwell) time. he deserves to have a statue of himself erected in every city in the world. if you dont read this fine work of literature you are seriously depriving yourself of an understanding of the world in a way you could otherwise not see..
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Summary: Not a prophecy, but a social study
Review: Surely one among the few best social allegories ever written, together with Brave New World, Fahrenheit 451 and Catch 22, and the harshest and least humorous among them. Though inspired by the Soviet regime, the mechanisms described in the text are suitable for most democratic and non-democratic contemporary societies. More than a prophecy, the novel represents a study of current social dynamics.
Pressure for acceptance, mandate for substantial submission in spite of retention of a viewable independence, stratification of people by means of limited privileges are the pillars over which any sufficiently complex group relies upon. The thread develops from the particular situation of the chief character, Winston Smith, depicted against the environment created by the Party to his final struggle and breakdown, when he is forced to turn personal feelings from another person towards the Party, because "there is no love, except love of Big Brother, there is no loyalty, except loyalty towards the Party". Even if the description of interrogatories and tortures is quite detailed and has been sternly represented in some film scenes, I have found two other issues as the most shocking in the novel: the speech of O'Brien (Smith's inquirer), in which he lines out the three stages, "learning, understanding and acceptance", that Winston is going to pass in order to cure his "mental derange and defective memory", and the picture of the fade remembrances of Winston's childhood, writing out the merciless way of how selfish a child could be, attached to Winston as an eternal sense of guilt, and which builds a parallel layer, more intimate and personal, about the subject of retaining memory of past events. Maybe Orwell has been too optimistic, because nowadays, as a consequence of media development, learning and understanding are no longer required: it is possible to obtain a direct acceptance.
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Summary: Perfect Masterpiece
Review: It's hard to describe what I personally consider the best book ever written. This masterpiece novel works on so many levels, that I guess every reader would find something else in it. For me it deals with the basic and most important issues in life, society, government, wars, religion, education, brain-wash, the place of the individual, the hardship of being alone (physically and mentally), the concept of holding two contradictious thoughts at the same time, the position of the individual in history, the nothingness of being human, love, family, loyalty and betrayal, the instinct of any animal in nature to survive, and so much, much more. I read the book at least 5 times already, and find myself doing it every year or two. I'd also recommend everyone to watch the excellent movie adaption made in the year in question, starring John Hurt and Richard Burton, which I think is one of the best book adaptions made for cinema. While it can't contain all the levels and issues presented in the original book, it adds images and voices and makes the reading of the book extremely realistic.
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Summary: doubleplusgood
Review: a wonderful novel, makes you feel more secure and also more independent in this world. one of my favorite novels. definitely in my top ten of books I have read, I never get sick of it. a must have for any library. -winston
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Summary: A suggestion...
Review: I think that every good aware American citizen should
read this book every five years or so. Our freedom is what
makes this country so great. The freedom to be different.
The freedom to dream and love according to your own
desires. Go into Orwell's world of supression and
live out the danger with those who dare to rebel. I
read this book to remind myself that the freedom we all
love and flourish in, can be restrained in the name of
the "state's interest." Reread this book. Encourage your
kids to read it. Orwell is an excellent writer.
Rating:
Summary: necessary read
Review: 1984 is a scary, dark, and depressing book. What makes it scarier is that it could happen... Anyone who likes novels, politics, and/or government must read this book. It is, of course, about the totalitarian society of Big Brother and the Thought Police. What makes the novel scary are the parallels that can be drawn between the novel and the U.S. government (and those of other Western countries). For instance, how war is used in the media by the government. This is why it is a required read, read it for yourself and draw the parallels where realistic- they are there. Besides that, the story is excellent; fast paced, well written, and entertaining. The characters are believable and vividly drawn. Overall, an absolutely essential book.
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