Monday, March 14, 2011

Contradiction of Trust and Betrayal


In the tenth chapter, book 2 of the "1984" novel written by George Orwell, the most significant approach is the theme of trust and betrayal.
Winston and Julia were staying in the room above Mr Charrington's room to have some time for themselves. They just got up and put cloths on while looking at a woman singing outside the window. A telescreen started talking to them and both were shocked. They knew this was their end. The house was surrendered and shortly after the room was filled with solid men in black uniforms. Someone had smashed the paperweight into smaller pieces. Winston thought "How small, how small it always was!", showing that the paperweight was unsafe and tiny. It represented their own little world and Winston just realized that it was silly to think they would have a chance to survive for a long time. The word "small" shows that their world was so small compared to the Party and therefore didn't have any chance. The trust they had into their world was gone.
A few passages after that Mr Charrington is entering the room. His hair color had changed and his faces had undergone only tiny changes that had nevertheless made him completely different. The last sentence in Book 2 saying "It occurred to Winston that for the first time in his life he was looking, with knowledge, at a member of the Though police.", showing that his trust and believe in Mr. Charrington being a prole has swept away. It shows the betrayal that Mr Charrington just acted like he was a prole, but never has been. Winston's "perfect" plan of having a good time with his love Julia got destroyed.

2 comments:

  1. I would agree, in saying that Trust and Betrayal become a major theme in the last chapters of the book. No one knows who to trust anymore after Mr. Charrington and O'Brien claimed to be someone they were really not. I would also say that change is a theme because the way Mr. Charrington's identity changed after Julia and Winston were caught. And the way Winston's body changed after being starved in he Ministry of Love.

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  2. Agreed with Niki. All throughout the book, the people Winston believed he trust betrayed him. Kind of Ironic if you think about it.

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