1984 Winston Smith Character Analysis

The protagonist Winston Smith is a thirty-nine year old male. He is rebellious, curious, and pessimistic. He is tall, white, and has varicose veins. His function in the novel is to allow the reader to experience the world of totalitarianism through the eyes of an average man. Winston is in a constant rebellion against The Party, believing that everything they do is wrong and that he needs to act against them in any way that he can, saying to O’Brien “"But how can you stop people remembering things?" cried Winston again momentarily forgetting the dial. "It is involuntary. It is outside oneself. How can you control memory? You have not controlled mine!"” (248). This shows how Winston is resistant to The Party and their control over everything, including his own mind.

He had not merely said it, he had wished it. He had wished that she and not he should be delivered over to the-” (293). His betrayal of Julia and her betrayal of him shows how Winston has changed from rebellious to conforming to The Party. Julia is twenty-six years old, and has brown hair and eyes she is youthful, also rebellious and cunning. She serves as Winston’s motivation for open rebellion, when she tells him "Confession is not betrayal. What you say or do doesn’t matter, only feelings matter. If they could make me stop loving you – that would be the real betrayal." She thought is over. "They can’t do that," she said finally. "It’s the one thing they can’t do. They can make you say anything – anything – but they can’t make you believe it. They can’t get inside you." (166). This shows how Julia is loyal to Winston and their love for each other over The Party.