Freedom In The Book 1984

In the book 1984, a dystopian world of fear and suspicion is painted in which totalitarian superpowers Oceania, Eastasia and Eurasia dominate the globe and control all walks of life. These three empires are in a constant war with each other, evenly matched and unable to conquer the other two. Oceania, the empire in which the story takes place, uses the principles of INGSOC, or English Socialism, as its main ideals, in which war is proclaimed as peace, ignorance depicted as strength, and freedom is seen as slavery. In this society, freedom is abolished in which mere thought against the ideology of INGSOC entails death, and the limitations of one’s actions are strict and heavily regulated in order to prevent rebellion and uprising. The ruling

The mutability of the past and the word ‘doublethink’ go hand in hand, a concept which the party utilizes in order to control the flow of information. For example, it is stated in the book that “Whoever controls the past controls the future. Whoever controls the present controls the past.” (250). This is a primary tenet of INGSOC, in which the Party permanently changes the past and its records in order to solidify its control. All versions and records of the past are deemed incorrect, and only the version set by the Party is truth. Doublethink is important to this idea in that it describes "The power of holding two contradictory beliefs in one's mind simultaneously, and accepting both of them... " (37). Applied to the concept of changing the past, it describes the fact that although the people of Oceania know a true version of events contrary to what the government states, they simultaneously also believe the Party’s alteration without conflict. This is due to the lack of information available, and neither record of the past can be proved or disproved. Through doublethink, the Party can create a past which is accepted by the people, a feat which otherwise would be impossible by other means. The Party readily uses this means of control in which it constantly rewrites past events and articles. It is stated that the main character Winston Smith’s daily job is to “rectify the

The Party keeps its authority through the elimination of other sources of authority, mainly love and commitment to others. This can be shown when Winston thoughtfully reflected the fact that “the sex instinct created a world of its own which was outside the Party's control and which therefore had to be destroyed if possible. ” (139). This quote reflects the fact that the sex instinct is an aspect of human nature out of control of the Party, in which it forms loyalties with individuals instead of loyalty to the Party. The Party knows this, and eliminates the sex instinct through early conditioning and teaching, with sexual intercourse taught to be “looked on as a slightly disgusting minor operation, like having an enema”. (69). With the sex instinct and love eliminated, the people form their loyalties solely with Big Brother and the Party, thus giving it complete authority. Another method the Party uses in order to control the image of authority is through the notion that the Party is infallible and all knowing. An example of this is shown when Julia, Winston’s lover, when thinking about the Brotherhood, states “Such a thing as an independent movement was outside her imagination… the Party was invincible. It would always exist, and it would always be the same.” (160). She believes resistance, in the end is futile, a belief which most of the people of Oceania hold. The enforcement of