"War is peace.
Freedom is slavery.
Ignorance is strength.”

& remember the next time that somebody tells you, “The government wouldn’t do that” Oh yes they would

“He loved big brother”

n  Quotes- n

عند النظـرة الأولى لغلاف رواية 1984, ورؤية وجه "جوزيف ستالين" الصارم ستعتقد أنها رواية تقليدية تتحدث عن أحد طواغيت العصـر الحديث، ولكن بعد الفحص والتدقيق ستجد أن الرواية أعمق وأهم من ذلك.
الرواية هى الأهم والأشهـر وسط الروايات المتحدثة عن الدول الشمولية والمجتمعات المغلقة، وهى دولٌ تختلف فى نظـام حكمها كثيـرًا عن الدول التى يمكننا تسميتها "الدول المستبدة"

قبل الاستمرار، يجب أن نفرق بين مصطلحين :
الدولة الاستبدادية : هى دولة الحكم الواحد أو الدولة التى تحكمها فئة واحدة ( قد تكون هذه الفئة رئيسًا ديكاتوريًا أو مجلسًا عسكريًا أو حزبًا وحيدًا ) وتحتكر هذه الفئة الحياة السياسية تمامًا، وتضطهد معارضيها فى الغالب..

الدولة الشمولية : هى دولة يحكمها نظام يسيطر على كل مظاهر الحياة وجوانبها ؛ سياسية واجتماعية واقتصادية، وتسعى هذه الدولة إلى فرض سيطرتها وأفكارها على مواطنيها، وفى سبيل ذلك تزيّف الماضى وتسيطر على وسائل الإعلام وتُخفى الحقائق وترهب المواطنين وتغيّر التاريخ.
وهذا النوع هو ما تتحدث عنه الرواية..

يمثّل ( جورج أورويل ) فى رواياته أركان الدولة الشمولية فى بناء هرمى يترتب من الأهم للأقل أهمية كالآتى :
- "الأخ الكبير" : وهذا هو رأس الحزب الحاكم، الذى تقترب منزلته من منزلة الإله عند أعضاء الحزب والمواطنين العاديين، وهو الشخص العالم بكل شئ، المنزّه عن الخطأ والكذب، وفى الغالب هو شخصٌ خيالى يستعمله أعضاء الحزب لترهيب المواطنين..
- "أعضاء الحزب الداخلى" : وهؤلاء يمثلون أركان النظام وحاشية "الأخ الكبير" ومعاونيه، وهم أيضًا يمثلون جبهة التخطيط والتفكير فى الحزب.
- "أعضاء الحزب الخارجى" وهؤلاء يمثلون الجبهة التنفيذية للحزب، وهم أقل شأنًا من أعضاء الحزب الداخلى.
- "طبقة البروليتاريا" : وهى الطبقة العاملة الكادحة، أو عامة الشعب، وهى الطبقة الأقل أهمية، وينتشر بين أهلها الجهل والفقـر ( الذى يساعد أعضاء الحزب على ترسيخه ونشره )

عند تطبيق هذه المصطلحات على عالم الواقع سنجد أن العالم يمتلئ، وامتلأ يومًا، بأنظمة الحكم الشمولى، ولكن أوضح مثال، وهو المثال الذى استخدمه ( أورويل) فى روايته، هو الاتحاد السوفيتى فى عصر ستالين..
ف "ستالين" هنا يمثّل الأخ الكبير، يليه وزراؤه ورؤساء حزبه كممثلين "للأعضاء الحزب الداخلى" ويلي هؤلاء الأعضاء الأقل شأنًا فى الحزب ممثلين ل "أعضاء الحزب الخارجى" بينما يمثّل باقى الشعب "طبقة البروليتاريا".

وعالمنا العربى لم يخلُ من أنظمة شمولية، فمثلا ( حزب البعث العربى الاشتراكى ) الذى حكم العراق بزعامة ( صدام حسين ) وانتهى حكمه سنة 2003، ومازال يحكم سوريا إلى الآن، كان أحد أقوى الأنظمة الشمولية فى العالم..

فى الرواية، يقوم الحكم الشمولى على ركيزتين أساسيتين هما :
1- عزل المواطنين عن العالم الخارجى، وهدف هذا العزل هو ألا يستطيع المواطنين المقارنة بين أحوالهم وأحوال مواطني البلدان الأخـرى، وعدم معرفتهم لمستوى المعيشة فى هذه البلدان.. وفى نفس الوقت تقوم وسائل الإعلام ( المملوكة للحزب ) بإقناع المواطنين أن حياتهم هى الأكثـر رخاءًا وراحةً وسط كل بلدان العالم، حتى يصل الأمر بالمواطنين إلى تصديق أنهم يعيشون فى فردوس الدنيا.

2- عدم المساواة بين طبقات المجتمع، لأنه لو تساوت الطبقات فى مستوى المعيشة لبدأت الطبقات الدنيا بالتفكيـر لنفسهـا أيضًا، ولحاولت أن تنافس الطبقات العليا على الحكم، ولهذا كان أحد أهم أهداف المجتمع الشمولى هو شغل الطبقات الدنيا بمستلزمات الحياة من أكلٍ وشربٍ وجنس..

استوقفتنى بعض الجمل المذكورة بالرواية كـ "الأخ الكبيـر يراقبك" .. وهى جملة توضّح النظام الرقابى اللصيق المفروض على أعضاء الحزب وعامة الشعب.

"الحرب هى السلام
الحرية هى العبودية
الجهل هو القوة"
ثلاث جمل متناقضات تدلّ على التفكير الازدواجى المترسخ فى أفراد المجتمع الشمولى.
هناك فيلمان يجب أن تراهما بعد أن تنتهى من هذه الرواية : الأول هو v for Vendetta والذى يبين كيفية مواجهة الأنظمة الشمولية بالفوضى المنظمة، والثانى هو Equilibrium الذى يوضح طريقة الأنظمة الشمولية فى تزييف الحقائق وإتلاف العقول وهدم الثقافات.

الرواية أقرب منهـا لكتاب بسبب كل الحقائق والنظريات التى تحدث عنها الكاتب باستفاضة، بالإضافة إلى نقص الأحداث وبطء سيرها..
الحبكة الدرامية غير مكتملة فى رأيى، وهى أقل جودة من رواية ( أورويل ) الشهيرة الأخـرى ( مزرعة الحيوان )

تُرجمت الرواية إلى كل اللغات الحية فى العالم تقريبًا، وظلت إلى الآن من الروايات الأكثـر مبيعًا فى كل العصـور، كما تحولت إلى فيلم سينمائى فى غاية الكآبة..

★★★★ /5
This was a very interesting and fascinating read.

I read this for the second time (this time for university) and I enjoyed reading this much more than the first time around. Then I read it for the first time I missed a lot of important and clever parts which makes this book great. From word choices to the world itself, this was great in many ways. What I particularly enjoyed about this book is that everything comes full circle and you can see who even the smallest chose effected things in the future.

From my point of view, characters felt realistic for this specific time and society. But sometimes they felt too simplistic and one dimensional.

It was a truly fascinating book and I had to spend a long time to fully appreciate.

First rated 2021
Updated 2024

I rated this soon after joining Goodreads and, since that time, have honed and improved my review and rating skills.
Therefore, this one now gets an extra star from 3 to 4.

One of the goals I set for myself this year was to revisit some of the classics of the 20th century. And where better to start than an audiobook of 1984? I was probably in high school when I read this. I wanted to see how well it has held up. Yes, parts of it are dated and it’s obvious that the book is based on Stalin and Russian Communism. But other parts just ring way too true, especially the constant lies of those in power and how our every move can be tracked. I mean, in a world where Rudy Giuliani says “truth isn’t truth”, 1984 seems almost prescient. The humor is scary. I found myself shuddering. A lot. When Winston explains how he found himself drawn in by the hate exercises, it reminded me of the yelling that occurs at a Trump rally.

I also appreciated the comments about Julia and how she only cared about things that impacted directly on her life. Changes to history are brushed aside. As Winston says, “you’re only a radical from the waist down.”

This book is truly a classic. There were so many phrases that just grabbed me. “The heresy of heresies is common sense.” “Freedom is the freedom to say that 2+2 is 4.” The whole idea of Doublethink. That willingness of politicians to say that black is white. The willingness to hold two contradictory beliefs in your mind at the same time and accepting both of them. Something the White House officials have obviously gotten very good at doing.

It’s not perfect. It’s didactic. It drags in parts. But it’s still so important that everyone should read this as an adult.

The narrator, Simon Prebble was phenomenal.

CW/TW: physical violence, physical torture, mental torture

"Freedom is the freedom to say two plus two equals four. If that is granted, all else follows."

Airstrip One, Oceania (1984) — In the year 1984, human civilization has suffered damages brought by war, civil conflict, and revolution. In a postrevolutionary era caught in the midst of political unrest, the world is ruled by and is divided into three totalitarian super-states: Eastasia, Eurasia, and Oceania. Following the ideology of Ingsoc (their own term for English Socialism), Oceania is ruled by the Party headed by their omniscient leader known as Big Brother. Under this totalitarian regime, the citizens are constantly watched through telescreens which exist everywhere, flashing Big Brother's face. To prevent political rebellion, the Party aims to enforce their invented language called Newspeak which eliminates all the words which may incite an uprising.

Winston Smith works as a member of the Outer Party, under the Ministry of Truth where he is tasked to rewrite historical records to support the perpetual revisionism done by the state to its history. As he becomes more aware of the Party's oppressive and rigid control over its citizens, Winston's frustrations grow deeper due to his struggles on the prohibition of free thought, sex, and expression of individuality by the Party. But he can only secretly oppose the Party's rule because in 1984 Oceania, having rebellious thoughts is illegal and thoughtcrime is considered the worst of all crimes.

With his profoundly harrowing dystopian satire Nineteen Eighty-Four, George Orwell distorts our comfortable realities as he exposes the novel's distressing parallels on real-life mishaps concerning propaganda, surveillance, totalitarianism, historical revisionism, and censorship which still are pressing problems 71 years after the novel's first publication.

The intricacies of Orwell's concept of a dystopian society siphon the reader into an interestingly tormenting foreign world of amplified oppression, espionage, and torture, which as one turns the pages does not seem unfamiliar after all. This is due to the inspiration of the novel which is rooted in Orwell's fear of the totalitarian dangers that plagued democracy even after the defeat of the Nazi. As a warning to the British and US societies, Orwell wrote in his letters before and after the novel's publication that constant criticism is the key to ensure that the pitfalls of a totalitarian government are mitigated because "[t]otalitarianism, if not fought against, could triumph anywhere." This reminder may have been said decades ago but its weight still holds today, and readers around the world think the same as the book shot to the top of Amazon's best-seller list in January 2017.

The genius of Orwell in crafting a vividly horrifying setting alongside critiquing surveillance and oppression eventually led to the ascription of the concept of a perverted and destructive societal condition to his name, which is commonly used in its adjective form "Orwellian." These atrocious details established in Orwell's dystopian world are manifested throughout the novel, with the profundity of these issues depicted in as early as the first chapter:

n  On each landing, opposite the lift-shaft, the poster with the enormous face gazed from the wall. It was one of those pictures which are so contrived that the eyes follow you about when you move. BIG BROTHER IS WATCHING YOU, the caption beneath it ran.

[...]

How often, or on what system, the Thought Police plugged in on any individual wire was guesswork. It was even conceivable that they watched everybody all the time. But at any rate they could plug in your wire whenever they wanted to. You had to live—did live, from habit that became instinct—in the assumption that every sound you made was overheard, and, except in darkness, every movement scrutinized.n

If these aren't alarming enough, Orwell goes steadfast in his portrayal of a decaying society as he ingrains the extremes of oppression into one of the reflections of human society and culture: the nation's language. Orwell devises a euphemistic, circumlocutory, and propagandistic language called Newspeak, going so far as to create a simple grammatical sketch of it appended in the book:

n  There was, for example, no such word as CUT, its meaning being sufficiently covered by the noun-verb KNIFE. Adjectives were formed by adding the suffix -FUL to the noun-verb, and adverbs by adding -WISE.

[...]

In addition, any word—this again applied in principle to every word in the language—could be negatived by adding the affix UN-, or could be strengthened by the affix PLUS-, or, for still greater emphasis, DOUBLEPLUS-. . . . It was also possible, as in present-day English, to modify the meaning of almost any word by prepositional affixes such as ANTE-, POST-, UP-, DOWN-, etc. By such methods it was found possible to bring about an enormous diminution of vocabulary. Given, for instance, the word GOOD, there was no need for such a word as BAD, since the required meaning was equally well—indeed, better—expressed by UNGOOD.n

Amidst these significant strengths, the narrative has tendencies to teeter especially during the second part of the novel where Winston spends time with his new-found girl Julia. In the sense of his desire to highlight the importance of satisfying one's primary needs and the toll it makes when such are left suppressed, Orwell overcompensates with his lengthy addition of the intimate scenes between the couple that may still have worked even if trimmed down.

In addition, the prose suffers from technical disintegration when Orwell decides to include chapters from Emmanuel Goldstein's book The Theory and Practice of Oligarchal Collectivism, which read like uninspired writing and if not, just plain didactic. This may be argued as a part which holds immense importance in the plot, although it could have brought more impact when a more creative technique is used to integrate the said manifesto.

Visiting George Orwell's 1984 is a worthwhile journey to the future that is once told in the past, with its lessons standing as consequential warnings and reminders to help improve the world's present.

Personal Enjoyment: 5 stars
Quality of the Book: 4.4 stars
- Use of Language: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
- Plot and Narrative Arc: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
- Characters: ⭐⭐⭐+
- Integrity: ⭐⭐⭐⭐+
- Message: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

AVG: 4.7 stars

- - -
[Some comments in this review are for the pre-review I posted which contained highlighted reactions from my status updates. You may check the actual status updates through the links below to understand the context behind the comments.]

Status Updates:
START | Orwell got the present right | being a politics fanatic | EAT THE RICH | classics are classics for a reason | the activist in my soul is alive | MY BLOOD PRESSURE IS NOT OKAY | Newspeak is literally the nightmare of every linguist | END

أضفت مراجعة الرواية في مدونتي ضمن 50 كتاب غيرني
http://www.nawalsaad.com/?p=4108
وأضفت رابط لتقرير رحالة قام بزيارة كوريا الشمالية، وكان صادمًا تطابق استراتيجات الرواية مع ما يفعل في كوريا الشمالية.

المجد للكتب التي تحدث ضجة داخل عقلك.. المجد للكتب التي تحفز اليقطة الذهنية فيك .. المجد للكتاب الذي يصفعك ويجعلك تعيد النظر في أشياء كثيرة .. هذا الكتاب من الكتب النادرة التي توازي شهرتها وضجتها قيمتها الفكرية والروائية ..

قرأت الكتاب في الطائرة رحلة عودة من امستردام إلى الرياض .. استغرق معي الكتاب 6 ساعات ونصف لم أشعر بالاقلاع ولم أشعر بأي مطبات هوائية حينها وأنا التي تربكني تحركات الطائرة واهتزازاتها ..
تعرف تماما الكتاب النخبوي حين يحرض حاسة البحث لديك ويجعلك تبحث عن كتب أخرى تتحدث عن ذات الموضوع .. تعرف جودة الكتاب حين تظل تبحث عن كاتبه وخلفيته ونشأته ساعات طويلة ..
هذا ما كنت أفعله عندما أنهيته وحتى يومي هذا .. ابتعت كتب تتحدث عن صناعة العدو ، والقدرة على الثورات وعلم النفس السياسي .. ولربما لو لم أقرأ هذا الكتاب ( وقبله كتب أخرى ) لن يحرضني غيرها للاهتمام بهذه الكتب ..

على الرغم من قراءاتي السابقة في فلسفة الاستبداد ، و حكومات القمع والاستبداد وما يمكن أن تفعله حتى تضمن بقاؤها واستمراها ، إلا أن هذا الكتاب صدمة لي .. لكنها صدمة تحثك على زيادة الوعي لديك وتقسم خمسين ألف مرة أنك لن تدع وعيك يموت ولن يدمره شيء !

يقدم جورج سياسات القمع والديكتاتورية بقالب درامي رمزي رفيع جدا ، حتى وإن قلت لوهلة هذا مبالغ به جدا ! دقيقتين من التفكير وستجد أن الاستراتيجية حدثت من قبل أو تحدث الآن لكن يختلف تلقينا لها واهتمامنا لها ..
إنه لعمل عظيم أن تدرس الحاضر والماضي وتعير أدنى التفاصيل انتباهك، ثم بعد ذلك تستشرف المستقبل .. مرعب والله مرعب كمية الوقائع حاليا التي تشبه تنبؤات جورج ، تغير القوى ، تغيير العدو في يوم وليلة الخ ..

لدى حكومات القمع طرق سحرية حتى تقنعك بما يرفضه عقلك ابتداء، عليك أن تقتنع ب:

الحرب هي السلام
الحرية هي العبودية
الجهل هو القوة
2+2=5

وفي بعض المرات ممكن يساوي ثلاثة أو أربعة .. 2+2 يساوي العدد الذي تخبرك به حكومة القمع ..
التاريخ يتغير حسب ما تريده الحكومات ، حسب ما تريدك أن تصدقه .. إنها حكومات تعمل على تسطيح عقولنا والهاءنا في ما لاينفع حتى تستمر هذه الحكومات بالتلاعب بالعالم ..
وبنظرة سريعة للعالم وما يجري الآن تدرك أن معظم الحكومات هي حكومات قمع داخليا وخارجيا ، هناك فقط مستويات مختلفة ، وطرق مختلفة لتحقيق هذا القمع ..

فقدت الثقة بمعظم ما كُتب في التاريخ، فكلّا يكتب مايريده .. كلّا يكذب بما يتلائم مع مصلحته .. من الممكن جدا أن تقنع شعبك أن أسلافهم كانوا يعبدون القدور والأصنام، لكن تم انقاذك من هذا الوحل .. بينما الواقع يكون شيئا آخر !!
اقرأ التاريخ من ألف مصدر ان استطعت .. وفوق كل هذا فالتحريف والسهو وارد جدا ..

الاستبداد يفقدك متع الحياة كلها ، لن تعيش كما ينبغي أن تعيش .. ستكون كما الآلة تتزوج وتنجب من أجل الواجب والحزب .. تأكل من أجل الحزب .. شاشة الرصد تحيطك يمنة ويسرة .. لا تكتب ولا تقرأ كما تريد ..
لوحات بصورة الأخ الكبير تواجهك في كل مكان حتى تنغرس في عقلك بأنه لامحالة من أن تعيش .. الأسهل أن تخضع ، أن تتأقلم وتعيش بالكفاف ..
الأخ الكبير يراقبك .. التبجيل في أعظم صوره .. نشر صور القادة بطريقة مبالغ بها وكبيرة ، وعبارات مدح وتبجيل لا يمكنها إلا أن تفسد كل ما في عقلك للأسف إن لم ننتبه لهذا .. كل هذه الاستراتيجيات لعبة سياسية قذرة .. لعبة نفسية مدروسة ..

ثلاث قوى ا��تبدادية تتصارع حول بقية العالم ، من يظفر بمن ؟ وكيف بإمكانك إخضاع شعب لأي فكرة تأتي بها ؟ كيف يمكنك تطوير أسلحة ذهنية لدمار شامل للعقل .. كيف يمكنك تدليس الحقيقة، وجعل كل شيء صحيحا أو خاطئا كيفما تريد ومتى تريد .. كيف يمكنك زرع الكره تجاه ماضي أو حاضر أو مستقبل .. كيف يكون بإمكان القوى القوية أن تتنازع حول أراضي وقوة ليست من حقها ، إنه استبداد الانسان على الإنسان ، استبداد الإنسان على نفسه ..



- أوبراين : "كيف يؤكد الانسان سلطته على انسان آخر يا ونستون؟"

- ونستون: - "بجعله يقاسي الألم".

اوبراين: - " "أصبت فيما تقول. بتعريضه للألم، فالطاعة وحدها ليست كافية، وما لم يعاني الانسان من الألم كيف يمكنك أن تتحقق من أنه ينصاع لإرادتك لا لإرادته هو؟ إن السلطة هي إذلاله وإنزال الألم به، وهي أيضاً تمزيق العقول البشرية إلى أشلاء ثم جمعها وصياغتها في قوالب جديدة من اختيارنا.
هل تفهم أي نوع من العالم نقوم بخلقه الآن؟ إنه النقيض التام ليوتوبيا المدينة الفاضلة التي تصورها المصلحون الأقدمون، إنه عالم الخوف والغدر والتعذيب، عالم يدوس الناس فيه بعضهم بعضاً، عالم يزداد قسوة كلما ازداد نقاء، إذ التقدم في عالمنا هو التقدم باتجاه مزيد من الألم. لقد زعمت الحضارات الغابرة بأنها قامت على الحب والعدالة أما حضارتنا فهي قائمة على الكراهية، ففي عالمنا لا مكان لعواطف غير الخوف والغضب والانتشاء بالنصر وإذلال الذات، وأي شيء خلاف ذلك سندمره تدميراً. إننا بالفعل نعمل على تفكيك العادات الفكرية التي ورثناها من العهد السابق للثورة، لقد فصمنا عرى العلاقة بين الطفل ووالديه، وبين الصديق وصديقه، وبين الزوج وزوجته، ولم يعد أحد قادراً على الثقة بزوجته أو بطفله أو بصديقه، وفي المستقبل لن يكون هناك زوجات أو أصدقاء. كما سينعدم كل ولاء ليس للحزب ، وسيباد كل حب ليس للأخ الكبير. ولن يكون هناك ضحك غير الضحك الذي يصاحب نشوة الانتصار على العدو المقهور، ولن يكون هنالك أدب أو فن أو علم، فحينما تجتمع في أيدينا كل أسباب القوة لن تكون بنا حاجة إلى العلم. كما ستزول الفروق بين الجمال والقبح، ولن يكون هناك حب للاستطلاع أو التمتع بالحياة ولن يكون هناك ميل نحو مباهج الحياة التي ستدمر تدميراً......"

كيف يمكنك أن تشغل العامة بالرذيلة باختلاف أشكالها ، بالفوضى الصغيرة حتى لا يعودو قادرين على معرفة الفوضى الكبيرة .. كيف تأكل أنت جيدا وشعبك لا يعرف طعم الأشياء الحقيقي .. عليه فقط أن يصدق كل ماتقول ..
حياتك كنفس غير مهمة لسلطات القمع، حياتك فكريا وانسانيا هي ما يقلقهم ، هي ما يجعلهم يصلون إليك ويخفونك من الوجود الواعي ، يتنزعون منك إنسانيتك .. يسخرون كل القوى والتقنيات والاستراتيجيات من أجل ذلك الهدف ، من أجل أن ينجحو في الأخير لتقول :
لا بأس فقد انتهى النضال، وها قد انتصرت على نفسي وصرت أحب الأخ الكبير.


لا يكفي حكومات القمع والاستبداد أن تكفر بما يكفرون به، بل يجب أن تؤمن بالأخ الكبير ، طاعة عمياء وتصديق لكل مايقوله عن ظهر قلب .. بدو شك .. بدون تفكير .. آمن من قلبك به وبكل مايقوله ..


مؤلمة الرواية لأن نهايتها مؤلمة ومؤسف أنها تحدث حاليا، ونرى ما يشبه أحداثها ، مؤلمة لكن الحرب ماتزال قائة الى يوم الدين مع كل مايعطل العقل البشري ويقيد حريته ، قائمة حتى يأتي جيل يرفض هذا العنت السياسي وتزدهر الانسانية .. فتلك الأيام نداولها بين الناس ..


شخصيا أرى أن الرواية لا تقتصر فقط على السياسة ، فهي بلا شك يمكن إسقاطها على أبسط الأمور مع تجاوز العديد من الدراما فيها ..

الناحية الأدبية كانت جميلة ومقبولة في الرواية على الرغم من قلة معرفتي بالنقد الأدبي ، لكن أرى أن الرواية مباشرة أكثر من اللازم .. ربما كان لجورج مغزى من ذلك فهو كان ينشر لبشر وعيهم يختلف عن وعينا، ومستوى تلقيهم يختلف ؟


أرجو أن لاتفهم من تقييمي بخمسة نجوم بأن الراوية لا يوجد بها ضعف أو ملاحظات ، ولكني في مثل هذه الكتب أقيم بشكل عام مع ذكر الملاحظات ، وعلى الرغم من أن الرواية كمفهوم ليست جديدة كليا إلا أنها كتب في وقت قديم جدا وهذا ما يضفي عليها الكثير من الجمال الفكري ، كمقدمة ابن خلدون .. فمن العدل في نظري أن تقيم حسب وقت نشرها ، فهي كانت من القواعد لكثير من أعمال نشرت وصورت بعدها ..

هل تستحق القراءة ؟ نعم تستحق من وجهة نظري .. حتى ولو سبقت لك القراءة في حكومات القمع وغيرها فمن الجيد معرفة أحد الأساسات لمثل هذه الكتابات .. أيضا أجد أنها تساعد كثيرا لفهم وتحليل الواقع والمستقبل ..
فمنذ أن قرأتها لم أتوقف عن الحديث عنها لزوجي ، وفي كل موقف أضرب له مثلا بما جاء في الرواية حتى رغب بشدة في قراءتها ..
رواية بامتياز تستحق أن تقتنيها و تكون في رفوف مكتبتك بشكل دائم ..

YOU. ARE. THE. DEAD. Oh my God. I got the chills so many times toward the end of this book. It completely blew my mind. It managed to surpass my high expectations AND be nothing at all like I expected. Or in Newspeak "Double Plus Good."

Let me preface this with an apology. If I sound stunningly inarticulate at times in this review, I can't help it. My mind is completely fried.

This book is like the dystopian Lord of the Rings, with its richly developed culture and economics, not to mention a fully developed language called Newspeak, or rather more of the anti-language, whose purpose is to limit speech and understanding instead of to enhance and expand it. The world-building is so fully fleshed out and spine-tinglingly terrifying that it's almost as if George travelled to such a place, escaped from it, and then just wrote it all down.

I read Fahrenheit 451 over ten years ago in my early teens. At the time, I remember really wanting to read 1984, although I never managed to get my hands on it. I'm almost glad I didn't. Though I would not have admitted it at the time, it would have gone over my head. Or at the very least, I wouldn't have been able to appreciate it fully.

From the start, the author manages to articulate so many of the things I have thought about but have never been able to find a way to put into words. Even in the first few chapters I found myself having to stop just to quietly consider the words of Mr Orwell.

For instance, he talks about how the act of writing itself is a type of time travel. It is communicating with the future. I write these words now, but others may not discover them for hours, weeks, or even years. For me, it is one time. For you the reader, it is an entirely different one.

Just the thought that reading and writing could one day be outlawed just shivers my timbers. I related to Winston so much in that way. I would have found a way to read or write.

The politics and psychology of this novel run deep. The society in the book has no written laws, but many acts are punishable by death. The slogan of the Party (War is Peace...) is entirely convoluted. Individuality is frowned upon and could lead to being labeled a traitor to the Party.

I also remember always wondering why the title was 1984. I was familiar with the concept of Big Brother and wondered why that wasn't the name of the book. In the story, they don't actually know what year it is because so much of the past has been erased by the Ministry of Truth. It could very easily have been 1981. I think that makes the title more powerful. Something as simple as the year or date is unknown to these people. They have to believe it is whatever day that they are told it is. They don't have the right to keep track. Knowledge is powerful. Knowledge is necessary. But according to Big Brother. Ignorance is strength.

1984 is written in past tense and has long paragraphs of exposition, recounting events, and explaining the society. These are usually things that distance me from a book and from the characters, but Orwell managed to keep me fully enthralled. He frequently talks in circles and ideas are often repeated but it is still intriguing, none the less. I must admit that I zoned out a bit while Winston was reading from The Book, but I was very fascinated by the culture.

Sometimes it seems as though the only way to really experience a characters emotions is through first person. This is not the case with this book, as it is written in third person; yet, I never failed to be encompassed in Winston's feelings. George manages to ensure that the reader never feels disconnected from the events that are unfolding around them, with the exception of the beginning when Winston is just starting to become awakened. I developed a strong attachment to Winston and thrived on living inside his mind. I became a member of the Thought Police, hearing everything, feeling everything and last but not least, (what the Thought Police are not allowed to do) questioning everything.

I wasn't expecting a love story in this book, but the relationship between Julia and Winston was truly profound. I enjoyed it even more than I would have expected and thought the moments between them were beautiful. I wasn't sure whether he was going to eventually betray Julia to the Party or not, but I certainly teared up often when it came to their relationship.

George has an uncanny ability to get to the base of the human psyche, at times suggesting that we need to be at war for many different reasons, whether it's at war with ourselves or with others. That is one thing I have never understood: why humans feel the need to destroy and control each other.

It seems that the main and recurring message in this book is about censorship and brainwashing. One, censorship, is limited and little exposure to ideas of the world; the other, brainwashing, is forced and too much exposure to a certain ideas. Both can be extremely dangerous.

Inside the ministry of Truth, he demonstrates the dangers of censorship by showing how the Party has completely rewritten the past by forging and abolishing documents and physical evidence. We also spend quite a bit of time with Winston in the Ministry of Love, where the brainwashing takes place. Those who commit thoughtcrime are tortured until they grow to love and obey Big Brother and serve only the interests of the Party.

A common theme occurred to me throughout the book, although it wasn't necessarily referenced consistently. The good of the many is more important than the good of the one. There are so many variables when it comes to this statement and for the most part it seems natural to say, "Of course, the many is more important than the one", but when inside Winston's head, all that I began to care about was his well-being and not if he was able to help disband or conquer the Party and Big Brother. I just wanted him to be at peace.

Whether or not the good of all is more important than that of the one, I can't answer. I think most people feel their own happiness is more important than the rest of the world's, and maybe that's part of the problem but it's also human nature. I only wish we could all accept one other regardless of belief and culture and not try to force ways of life onto other people. Maybe I'm naive for thinking that way, but so be it.

I almost don't know what to think about this book. I'm not even sure my brain still works, or if it ever worked right at all. This book has a way of making you think you know exactly what you believe about everything and then turning you completely upside down and making you question whether or not you believe anything at all about anything. It's the strangest thing. Hmmm. Doublethink? Perhaps. Perhaps not.

Everything about this book is captivating. It's groundbreaking yet at the same time, purely classic. Ahead of its time, yet timeless. From Big Brother to the Thought Police, I was hooked and wanted to know more about it all.

Basically, I think everyone should read 1984 at some point. You really have to be in the mood to work at reading it, though. But it's all worth it in the end. It's absolutely incredible and I loved it. I don't re-read many books but this will definitely be one of them. It is a hard read, but more importantly, it is a MUST read.

Read as part of The Infinite Variety Reading Challenge, based on the BBC's Big Read Poll of 2003.

n  "For, if leisure and security were enjoyed by all alike, the great mass of human beings who are normally stupefied by poverty would become literate and would learn to think for themselves; and when once they had done this, they would sooner or later realise that the privileged minority had no function, and they would sweep it away."n

Nineteen Eighty-Four is an insanely relevant novel in this day and age, but it's also a rather soothing novel that contains some of the horrors that could never come to pass, though there are some horrific parallels between the England in the book and some countries around the world in the 21st Century.

Winston is a very complex, sane person in a world full of insanity and utter destitution. Julia is on par with Winston, but other than the charming and mysterious O'Brien, no other character is developed enough to be anything but a filler, someone to push the plot along. In any other novel this would be a bad thing, but in this world it is perfect, and it's exactly what those people are in any case.

It is so superbly written I cannot fault it at all concerning that. At the beginning I was drawn in so far that I was almost in love. It was a five-star book up until Julia turned up: whilst I completely understand her character and her paradoxical nature (being so openly physically against Big Brother and yet intelligence-wise and mentally not), I did not like her even remotely, but I understood her character fully. The other thing that put me off was the huge info-dump. Whilst I completely understood that this was an intentional info-drop and it really could not have been conveyed to either the reader or the character in any other way, it really made the whole thing very disjointed. Again, it felt hugely intentional but I still did not enjoy it.

Overall, there's really nothing I can fault except my own opinions. Good writing is Fact: punctuation in the correct places, the right use of words, syntax and all that; building up worlds and characters to a certain degree of solidness. Enjoyment of writing is Opinion: characters being likeable, understandable; worlds being full or non-descript. This was a perfect book that I simply had a few too many low opinions of to be delighted by it completely.



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2020 view: Winston Smith lives in Airstrip One (formerly G.B.) in Oceania, and spends his days being monitored and watched as he completes his task of changing the past on command, by re-editing public data and media! On his way home, he is also watched and monitored, and the surveillance continues in his home, everywhere in his home? When Winston joins in the mandatory Two Minutes of Hate he catches himself hating their omnipotent leader, Big Brother, and is scared that the Thought Police may catch-on... yeah I said it, the Thought Police.

In this wide ranging and detailed dystopian read Orwell goes to town on what a world would be like with total government over-reach, deep state mass surveillance, and the extreme regimented repression of all the privileged people's (non-Proles) minds, bodies and souls! Like Animal Farm this is another ode to the betrayal of Socialism and Revolution caused by the ascension of Stalin in the Soviet Union. On top of the multiple themes, there's is also a readable and compelling story. And as I write this I am looking at the Donald Trump led Government's response and behaviour in regards to the protest against police brutality to Blacks, and this story still resonates. 9 out of 12.

2005 view: Alongside Animal Farm there's nowhere to go with these must-read books. They are not brilliant, but they are part of modern culture, especially for readers. For me titling the book with a year, makes it that much harder for a modern reader to appreciate this 1949 published book, as one can't help but start comparing Orwell's 'predictions' to the reality. Still, he did deal with some key issues, and very importantly he tried to deal with how this world would impact on the individual. One of the most important and essential dystopia books ever written? 7 out of 12.

I am surprised that I liked this as much as I did but also not at all

Great read. Read it the first time when I was 18 and it blew me away but it didn't have the same effect second time around.