*NEW ClASSROOM RULES*

1. *NEW ClASSROOM RULES* You will be written up immediately for breaking a RULE!!!! 1.) Do not speak after entering the room. 2.) You must be in your seat before the tardy bell rings. 3.) You may not leave your seat until the dismissal bell rings. 4.) You must face the front of the room at all times. Do not look at others around you. 5.) Do not ask questions!!!!

2. Bell Work • Starting today, keep a diary for a week. Record everyday happenings, thoughts, feelings, and dreams.

3. 1984 George Orwell

4. George Orwell • Born in 1903 in Bengal, India. • His father was a British imperial officer. • His childhood was unhappy. • He was a brilliant and recognized student. • He was awarded a scholarship to Eton, a prestigious prep school in England.

5. George Orwell • Unable to afford college, Orwell returned to Burma in 1922. There he served for 5 years with the Indian Imperial Police. • Orwell’s experience with the police helped shape some of his ideas about authority figures-and authority in general. • On the basis of his firsthand experiences, Orwell developed his belief that power not only corrupts but also breeds an ever-increasing desire for more.

6. George Orwell • George Orwell was an idealist and supporter of causes to free the oppressed. • Orwell’s strong political convictions and social criticism's became the basis for much of his fiction. • He believed that revolution, despite the fact that it united people against a common enemy, provided only temporary change. • Orwell died in 1950.

7. 1984 • 1984 was written in 1948. • Although it is set in the future, 1984 is not science fiction. • It is a political parable narrated in third person. The story is told from the viewpoint of a single character. • A parable is a narrative, or story, from which a moral can be drawn. • The moral here is that the abuse of power by a totalitarian regime destroys the individual.

8. The novel is satirical. Satire is a kind of writing that uses wit to ridicule or criticize the folly of individuals society. • 1984 is a fierce attack on what Orwell sees as a terrifying loss of freedom and individuality. • He satirizes the Party’s determination to create a society of sheep by restricting their means of expression. • Orwell is chiefly concerned not with characters but with ideas.

9. Central Conflict • The central conflict in 1984 is between individual consciousness and collective consciousness, or to put it another way, between freedom and totalitarianism.

10. 1984 Themes • Alienation and Isolation • Appearance vs. Reality • Destruction of Human Values • Individuality vs. Tyranny • Danger of Permanent Totalitarianism

11. Setting • 1984 is set in the near future in a world of new alliances. • The countries we now know are three huge super states: • Oceania • Eurasia • Eastasia

12. Oceania • Oceania comprises the Americans, the Atlantic islands including the British Isles and Australasia, and southern Africa.

13. Eurasia • Eurasia includes northern Europe and Asia from Portugal to the Bering Strait.

14. Eastasia • Eastasia comprises China and the countries south of it, Japan, and large but fluctuating portions of Manchuria, Mongolia, and Tibet.

15. Immediate Action • The immediate action takes place in the part of Oceania called Airstrip One- once known as England- in a city still called London. • The three superstates are constantly in unwinnable wars with each other in shifting alliances.

16. Oceania’s government consists of four main agencies: • The Ministry of Truth • The Ministry of Peace • The Ministry of Love • The Ministry of Plenty

17. Division of the Party in Oceania • Inner Party • Outer Party • Proles

18. Characters

19. Winston Smith • Has the same first name as Winston Churchill, England’s Prime Minister during World War II. • Has England’s most common last name. • He is 39 years old. • Has a varicose ulcer on his ankle ans is physically frail. • Is a member of the Outer Party who works at the Ministry of Truth falsifying history.

20. Winston Smith • He lives most fully in his intellect. • He longs to resist government tyranny. • He is isolated from human contact except during a brief love affair with Julia.

21. Julia • She is never identified by her last name. • She is 26 years old. • She is an Outer Party member who works in the Fiction Department at the novel-writing machines. • Conforms outwardly to Party doctrine by belonging to the Junior Anti-Sex League and spending much time on Party matters.

22. O’Brian • He has a sophisticated manner. • Is about 45, with a powerful build like a prize fighter. • Lives in comparative luxury because he holds an important position in the Inner Party. • Is fanatically loyal to the Party’s teachings.

23. Big Brother • Is an omnipresent image, appearing on the telescreen and everywhere else in daily life. • Has the face of a man of about 45, with a heavy black mustache and ruggedly handsome features. • Is never seen in person. • Is probably not a person but a political fiction that furthers Party propaganda and powers.

24. Emmanuel Goldstein • He is the Party’s scapegoat and arch enemy. • Serves as the target of the public hatred generated by the Party against its enemies. • May be fictional creation of the Party, like Big Brother.

25. Mr. Charrington • Is apparently the proprietor of a second-hand store. • Appears to be frail, pleasant, 63 year old widower who has lived above the junk shop for 30 years. • Is a powerful member of the Thought Police, age 35, who is shrewd, cold, and alert.

26. Tom Parsons • Is Winston’s neighbor in Victory Gardens. • Is outgoing and jovial and stinks of sweat. • He enthusiastically supports all Party activities. • Works at the Ministry of Truth.

27. Mrs. Parsons • Lives with Tom and their children. • Is about 30 years old but looks older, beaten down and terrified. • Has dust in the creases on her face. • Is tyrannized by her children.

28. Winston’s Mother • Appears only in Winston’s dreams and memories. • Represents unselfish love and self sacrifice. • Inspires Winston to believe that human compassion has value even when people are powerless.

29. Syme • Is a friend of Winston’s who also works in the Ministry of Truth. • Is a philologist, a specialist in Newspeak. • Is tiny with dark hair and large protuberant eyes that are at once sad and mocking.

30. The Proles • Make up 85% of the population of Oceania. • Are contemptuously dismissed by the Party as subhuman. • Are seen by Winston as the only hope for the future. • Are politically oblivious.