1984
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Well, if this book doesn't make you want to tape over your laptop camera, we don't know what will.
| Author | Orwell - George Orwell |
| British Literature | All British Literature Post-1945 British Literature |
| Form | Novel |
| Language | English Language |
| Literature | British Literature Dystopian Literature Post-1945 Literature |
| Themes | Language and Communication Loyalty Manipulation Memory and the Past Philosophical Viewpoints Power Rebellion Repression Technology and Modernization Violence War and Warfare |
Transcript
Or the giant posters that say, "Big Brother
is watching you." [Torn poster]
It's enough to give a guy a complex. Don’t believe me? You try peeing in front of a telescreen.…
I'm a member of the Party of Oceania, which sounds glamorous…
…but it's kind of a drag. I have to wear overalls, which are all wrong for my body
type… [Person in gray overalls]
…and my job is absolutely mind-numbing. The party likes to change history a lot, and
whenever it does, I'm the “White-out Guy.” [Holds white-out pen]
There aren't many perks to living in Oceania. [Writing in Diary]
You are the one bright spot in my life, Diary, and I'm pretty sure I'd be killed if anyone
found out that you existed.The Party isn’t exactly supportive of free thinking. [Person being judged]
It’s not like there’s any juicy bits in here, though, because I don't have much of
a love life to write about. There is one girl I’ve got the hots for, but she's sworn to
celibacy. Great. [Nun in front of church]
Plus, she acts like a real snob. I was pretty sure she hated me, too, but the other day
she slipped me a note saying that she loved me! Wowza! [I love you note.]
That kind of thing just doesn't happen in Oceania. We aren't really allowed to date,
much less fall in love. [Cops show up.]
Now that I know her, Julia and I get along pretty well, although she's not as into the
revolutionary stuff as I am. [Poster falls off wall]
She just wants me for my body. I guess I'll learn to live with it, somehow. [Couple in bed]
Julia and rented a secret room in a secondhand store without any recording devices.
Our gooses are totally cooked if we’re discovered, but torture and death won't be a big deal,
as long as Julia and I stay secretly true to each other.
I mean… how bad could a little torture be, anyway…right? …. Right?
By now you’ve probably gotten the impression that the Party is a sinister, mind-controlling
government. [Writing in diary]
You’d be correct. But there is one force that resists the party...the Brotherhood. [X-Men's Magneto appears]
No, they're not a group of mutants with superpowers, but how cool would that be?
Still, even without a telepathy-resistant helmet, anyone who fights Big Brother is okay
with me. [Police show up]
You know, this guy at work, O'Brien, gave me a weird look the other day, and it made
me wonder whether he's a member of the Brotherhood!
But it's not just something you can just come out and mention to a guy, like… telling
him he’s got spinach in his teeth. [Two people at a restaurant]
Breaking news, Diary…it’s true! O'Brien invited Julia and me over to his pad. It was
so cool. He even turned off his telescreen so nobody could eavesdrop on us!
O’Brien has tons of actual books which somehow escaped the Party’s clutches, and he loaned
me the manifesto of the Brotherhood! What a guy. [Hands over book]
I'm actually starting to think that life might not be an endless
slog fill of drudgery and despair! [Riding unicorns]
Okay, Diary. I'm writing this entry in my head, because you aren't here. Where am I?
Well, that's a funny story...
Let me sum it up for you... O'Brien is really in cahoots with the Thought Police, and he's
been watching me for 7 years. How did I not figure out that this guy was an evil genius? [Police show up]
He's also really good at torture, and his
goal is to brainwash me until I love Big Brother again. [Shows a picture]
Yeah right. I'll always secretly hate that mustachioed twerp, and keep on loving Julia.
Even if O'Brien says she ratted me out in interrogation.
Speaking of rats…I really hoped nobody would figure out that rats are my worst nightmare,
but what do you know… O'Brien guessed it!
He had rats… big, hungry rats! And he was going to put them on my face! [Cage of rats]
And you know what? I decided to opt out of that. Yes sir. I told O'Brien to put those
rats on Julia's face, not mine! And then it was over!
Shoot, if I'd known It was that easy, I would have sold Julia out a long time ago. I don't
need her anymore, anyway. I'm a happy man now. I just love Big Brother. Don't you? [Brainwashed]