Thoughts on 1984
Recently, I finished reading 1984 for my book club. It was my second time reading the book and it still held up. I think I first read this because it was on the Time Top 100 Novels list and I wanted to appear well-read. Unlike Joyce's Ulysses which went over my head, 1984 struck me hard. Finishing the book then led me to the other 2 members of the Dystopian Trio: Huxley's Brave New World and Zamyatin's We. What a hope-sucking yet gripping trilogy!
In my book club discussion, we spent a long time discussing the love between Winston and Julia. While it was easy to judge the relationship as a superficial one, I realised that I was judging it from the perspective of someone outside of Oceania. In the context of the novel, love has been more or less extirpated – children turn in their parents and couples treat procreation as a necessary evil. And in such a society, for there to be even the smallest bit of love not directed towards Big Brother, is an act of rebellion. It reminds me of how only love has the power to fight against overwhelming power, even if in Orwell's worldview , love can be broken by force.