Winston Smith: He is the main-character in this book. Winston is 39 years old and works at the records department of the Ministry of Truth. His job was to alter newspaper articles and literature. The goal of this was to make it seem that Big Brother was always right and that history always supported the opinions of the Inner Party and Big Brother.

Winston is a quiet type and though he participates in all the Party activities, he loathes Big Brother and the Party. He must participate because he would be arrested if they would ever find out what he truly believed. (Page 17: Of course he chanted with the rest: it was impossible to do otherwise. To dissemble your feelings, to control your face, to do what everyone else was doing, was an instinctive reaction) But he really hoped that one day something woul

- And the biggest change: His hatred for Big Brother has turned into love. (Page 236: O cruel needless misunderstanding! O stubborn, self-willed exile from the loving breast! Two gin-scented tears trickled down the side of his nose. But it was all right, everything was all right, the struggle was finished. He had won the victory over himself. He loved Big Brother.)

Phew, this wasn't the easiest book to read. You really had to pay attention while reading. What do 'orthodox', 'doublethink' and other terms used in Newspeak mean? It is quite a job figuring out what it really means, but I managed to pull it off. So you can say that this isn't a book which you just read lying down relaxing. Not just because of the terms used in the book, but also because the book makes you think. And I must say, this image of the future terrifies me. I compared it with my own life and thought how my life would be if I lived in such a state. No more leisure (unless planned by the Party), no more summer evenings playing soccer or just hanging around. No, you just had to work, to obey and have no own opinion. But the worst of all, there was no affection. No mother who loved her son, no two people who are falling in love. I refuse to believe that a society can live like that. But what also terrified me is that according to the book it is possible to mould people into a certain shape. It is possible to take away someone's personality and make that person into someone who you want him to be. This terrifies me even more than the fact that you are watched 24 hours a day.

Of course recently this book got a lot of attention because of the television shows 'Big Brother' and 'De Bus'. They both work with the principle of the all seeing camera. But I would like to connect this book to a movie. In 'The Matrix' just like in the book, their rulers keep the people of the planet quiet by giving the people a false image of reality. In 1984 people are brainwashed and news and literature is altered, so people won't find out the truth about their rulers. In 'The Matrix' a giant

Some common words found in the essay are:
O'Brien Don't, Party Winston, Julia Winston, Winston Smith, Ministry Truth, Thoughtpolice Page, Books Pages, book read, page 17, , 'i betrayed you', describe development, character winston, piece paper, 'the matrix', own opinion, julia betrayed, hide-out julia, julia winston,
Approximate Word count = 1383
Approximate Pages = 6 (250 words per page double spaced)