The Brotherhood

This was an exciting section for me to read, and many mysteries were uncovered. First, I am happy to see that my instincts were right about the Brotherhood and O’Brien. The Brotherhood exists! And O’Brien was the key to entering the door!

It was great to get a quick peak into an Inner Party’s life. Julia and Winston showed up to O’Brien’s house. After a moment of awkwardness, O’Brien shuts off the telescreen (!!!) and absolute honesty is spoken. Winton’s blunt delivery completely caught me off guard, as did the questions O’Brien asked in learning about their dedication. It is clear that by joining the Brotherhood, Winston and Julia are giving up their identity (in some cases, literally), integrity (willingness to through acid in a child’s face!), and lives (this is unavoidable). But the Brotherhood does exist and there are people out there - although we have NO idea how many - sacrificing their lives for what they believe in.

I would say that without a doubt that this book is written for entertainment purposes because it is a novel. Even though the main plot is quite serious and exaggerated, the writing makes it existential. I really enjoyed Winston’s reaction to trying (red) wine for the first time. He was expecting the over-exaggeration of a sweet and potent flavor, but was completely disappointed with the taste. I think this is the case for most of us the first time we tried wine. In the beginning, the idea and prominent presentation that wine represents is far more appealing than it actually tastes. (However, this does acquire over time, as I am a wine lover.) Little remarks like this turns a fictional story into short invitation into a plausible world.

The first word that comes to mind when I think about the tone of the book is tension. The story creates a situation where insignificant actions have detrimental consequences. Even thinking the wrong thought can result in a torturous death! Nothing is taken lightly here and one cannot take too many precautions. I definitely feel tension coming from the author while reading this book.

So, Hate Week happened and while I’m happy you didn’t go into excruciating details about it, I am confused why you keep mentioning the change in who Oceania is at war with. The switch up has happened again and now Oceania is at war with Eastasia, not Eurasia. Maybe you were trying to make a point that he ever so casually made the switch in midsentence and nobody seemed to notice, but what is it really adding to the story? And it’s not really just something you talk about in passing? You create some pretty elaborate details around it and I just don’t understand why nor find it all that interesting to read about.