1984
ONE
I
Vocabulary
decisive – final, conclusive
faltered – stumbled, hesitated
interminable – neverending, ceaseless
meagerness – thinness
nebulous – vague, unclear
orthodoxy – those who follow the traditional or usual way of doing something
sanguine – ruddy, reddish
simultaneously – at the same time
tableaux – a series of staged scenes
1. What atmosphere or mood is established in the descriptions given in the first two
paragraphs?
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2. In the second paragraph, what important items of information do we learn about the society
in which Winston Smith lives? What do we learn of Winston’s physical discomfort?
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3. Once Winston is inside his flat, what item is identified, and what is its significance?
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4. Large posters of Big Brother are all over the city, and we see for the first time the term
“INGSOC.” Turn to the Appendix on page 246 and in the first couple of sentences, find
out to what INGSOC refers. What do the two words mean to you?
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5. On page 6, what disturbing feature do we learn the telescreen possesses?
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6. What do we learn of the two types of police?
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7. What is the stark contrast between the Ministry of Truth building and its surrounding?
What does it point out about this society?
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8. The three Party slogans on the side of the building are paradoxes. Explain why.
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9. Oceania has four ministries that run the government. Identify what each is responsible
for.
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10. There is an irony in all these names and what they do. Point out the irony in the names.
Do you find any of this irony humorous?
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11. Winston secretly begins to write in the diary he is starting. Why is this action not “illegal”?
What consequences could it have, however?
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12. Why do you suppose this government would frown on the writing of a diary?
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13. As Winston sits before the blank diary page, we are told his ulcerous sore “had begun
itching unbearably.” For what could this ulcerous sore be an objective correlative?
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14. Winston begins to write about the films he had seen the night before. He relates the horrific
incidents that took place on the screen and the audience’s amused responses, apparently
without them being aware of the horror of the incidents or the inappropriateness of their
responses.
A. Why do you suppose that he and the audience are not sickened by the horror of what
they see?
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B. The only victim remotely identified in the film is the middle-aged woman sitting with
the boy in the boat. How is she identified? Given the time period, 1949, why might
this identification be significant?
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C. One of the proles reacts negatively to the exposing of children to this kind of violence.
Why does Winston believe nothing will happen to her?
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15. Winston realizes that he felt the necessity to begin writing the diary because of the Hate
Week incident and two people who were there. What was it about O’Brien and the girl
that caused Smith to notice them?
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16. The arch enemy of Oceania is Emmanuel Goldstein, once a leading figure in the Party,
“almost on a level with Big Brother himself,” but now the Party’s much reviled enemy.
Goldstein is modeled after Leon Trotsky, a Jewish intellectual and leader of the Bolshevik
Revolution, whom Stalin demonized and finally had hunted down and killed. Why do
you suppose the rulers of Oceania make Goldstein the creator of every crime, conspiracy,
and act of sabotage that occurs in the country?
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17. Orwell writes:
“The horrible thing about the Two Minutes Hate was not that one was obliged to act a
part, but that it was impossible to avoid joining in. Within thirty seconds any pretense
was always unnecessary. A hideous ecstasy of fear and vindictiveness, a desire to kill,
to torture, to smash faces in with a sledge hammer, seemed to flow through the whole
group of people like an electric current, turning one even against one’s will into a
grimacing, screaming lunatic.”
Does this description remind you of anything you have seen on television, or in the
movies? What is significant about Winston’s reaction?
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18. The “hate session” images fade from that of the despised Goldstein, to the beloved
and fatherly image of Big Brother. As the Party’s slogans are superimposed, the viewers
rhythmically chant “B-B.”
A. What is Winston’s reaction?
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B. How do you suppose a Party member might explain the three paradoxical Party
slogans?
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19. What passes between O’Brien and Smith, and what does this suggest to Winston?
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20. Winston realizes that in writing “DOWN WITH BIG BROTHER” in his diary, he has
committed a thoughtcrime that will be severely punished when, not if, it is discovered.
What is his conclusion, though, as he goes to answer the knock on his door?
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II
Vocabulary
entail – include
obscure – difficult to understand
uniformity – sameness; a state in which everything is exactly the same
1. The narrator explains that the neighbor’s flat is dingy, but in a different way than Winston’s.
Inside, there was the usual boiled-cabbage smell, common to the whole building. What is
the point of the numerous mentions of the prevalence of the boiled-cabbage smell?
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2. What is the point of view of the narration?
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3. What makes the neighbor’s children and all children in his society so frightening to
Winston?
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4. Having caught O’Brien’s eye, Winston reflects that he was not even sure “…whether
O’Brien was a friend or enemy. Nor did it even seem to matter greatly. There was a link
of understanding between them that was more important than affection or partisanship.”
What does this thinking reveal about Winston’s emotional needs?
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5. While watching the telescreen, how does Winston know that bad news is coming?
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6. After mentioning the constant surveillance under which the people live, Winston says
that there is nothing of your own except for what one small thing? What is ironic about
the phrase, “the mutability of the past”?
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7. Can people like Winston’s neighbor, who has completely accepted the Party thinking, be
free in those cubic centimeters?
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8. Overwhelmed by the size of the Ministry of Truth building and by the size and strength
of the Party, Winston sees opposition as futile, yet, what is his conclusion about “human
heritage” and dying? Find two quotes.
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III
Vocabulary
annihilate – destroy completely
furtive – sneaky, sly
genially – kindly
inscrutable – mysterious
reproach – disapproval
repudiate – refuse to acknowledge or accept
statuesque – tall and shapely
tube – subway
1. What do we learn of Winston’s memory of his mother?
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2. Toward the end of this chapter, Winston describes “doublethink.” How does the Party use
doublethink?
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3. What chilling occurrence happens during the morning exercises?
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IV
Vocabulary
gesticulating – gesturing with one’s hands and arms, as when talking
multitude – many; a great number
proletarian – a member of the working class; an industrial worker
rectify – correct, fix
superseded – replaced
1. Winston’s job is to change past statements made by the Party so that the old facts conform
to the new realities. Does it seem to you that this could actually be done by a government?
Give some examples.
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2. Find a quotation on page 41 that explains the callousness with which people are treated
and why the Party acts as it does.
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3. Why do you suppose Orwell mentions the names of people with whom Winston works
and gives details of their jobs?
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V
Vocabulary
pedant – a person who boasts of his level of knowledge
saboteurs – people who sabotage; those who deliberately destroy things belonging to
their enemies, or otherwise hinder their enemies’ progress
strident – grating, nerve-wracking
vapid – dull, lacking in zest
1. What was Winston’s relationship with Syme? Why does he believe Syme will be
vaporized?
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2. Syme says, “Don’t you see that the whole aim of Newspeak is to narrow the range of
thought?”
Explain why Syme believes the narrowing of the range of thought is necessary.
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3. Why does Winston feel that the man sitting next to him in the cafeteria is “not a real
human being but some kind of dummy”?
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4. Why does Winston say that he must have some “ancestral memory that things had once
been different?”
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5. Parsons agrees that the Ministry of Plenty did a “good job this year.” Why is the question
that he asks Winston at that point ironic?
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6. Why does Winston start to sweat when he discovers that the dark-haired girl sitting next
to him has been looking at him? Is his reaction normal?
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VI
Vocabulary
impregnable – not capable of being conquered
tacitly – implicitly; not physically expressed, but implied
1. For what reason would the Party not approve a marriage between two people?
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VII
Vocabulary
axiom – a true statement
clamored – shouted loudly and continuously
defection – to leave one cause or belief to take up another
dinginess – dullness, shabbiness
falsification – misrepresentation; lie
heresy – the act of going against popular or dominant opinion
ideology – a group of ideas and beliefs that are held by a political or social group
indoctrinate – to teach the beliefs of a specific group
relics – souvenirs; items used to remember the past
1. Why does Winston believe that the only hope of a government overthrow lies in the
hands of the proles? What do the proles have that the upper classes do not?
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2. Find the poetic allusion on page 66.
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3. What is he speaking of when Winston says, “I understand the HOW: I do not understand
Why”?
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VIII
Vocabulary
altercation – a fight or argument
amulets – charms worn to protect the wearer from evil
benevolent – kind
conspicuous – noticeable
cumbersome – awkward and hard to handle
groveling – cowering
incongruous – inconsistent with the surroundings
innumerable – incapable of being counted; limitless
intricate – complex
lackey – servant
nostalgia – a warm emotional feeling for a time that has passed
palpable – able to be touched; tangible
pugnaciously – in a combative manner
reconnoitering – spying on
relevant – appropriate; dealing with the subject at hand
shirking – avoiding work
tentatively – hesitantly; without much confidence
1. Why is the old man Winston talks to in the bar unable to tell him whether the old days
had been better than times are now?
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2. Why does Winston think of renting Mr. Charrington’s room?
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3. What is Winston’s first reaction when he sees the dark-haired girl on the street? What
action does he consider?
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4. This chapter marks the end of Part I. What do you think will develop in Part Two?
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TWO
I
Vocabulary
contrived – planned
folly – a foolish mistake
incriminating – proving involvement in a crime
queue – a line of people
vainly – unsuccessfully; to no avail
1. When Winston helps the girl with dark hair up, we are told there is a frightened look in
her eyes. What do we later find is the reason for that frightened look?
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2. Other than a fear for his physical safety, what is Winston’s biggest fear in meeting with the
girl?
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3. What is strange about the conversation between the girl and Winston?
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4. What is revealed in the arranged meeting?
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5. Find the juxtaposition in the end of the chapter.
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II
Vocabulary
abreast – side-by-side
alighted – perched
dappled – marked with a variety of colored spots
daunted – intimidated
denounce – to publicly accuse someone of wrongdoing
incredulity – disbelief
obeisance – respect
virtuosity – extraordinary skill
1. What imagery is depicted in the beginning of the chapter?
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2. What does the girl say about her many activities in the Anti-Sex League?
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3. What made Winston, a man ten or fifteen years older than the girl is, and not particularly
handsome, attractive to her, and what does it say about her?
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4. Orwell creates an element of suspense when the smell of chocolate causes Winston to
recall a memory moving vaguely around the edge of his consciousness, “a memory of some
action which he would have liked to undo but could not.” This will become significant in
one way or another. What possible connection might it have with anything in the past or
the future?
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5. Instead of being jealous of the other men that the girl has been with, Winston is pleased.
Why is that?
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6. What is the meaning of the last three sentences in this chapter?
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7. Define “motif” and explain why one motif in the novel is the scarcity of consumer goods
such as butter, razor blades, and real chocolate. Why does this scarcity exist?
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8. Why is this world constantly at war?
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III
Vocabulary
cunning – skill or slyness
enunciating – speaking very clearly and concisely
infallible – incapable of making a mistake
proximity – closeness
1. Although she hates the Party, why can Julia be called “apolitical”?
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2. From Julia’s perspective, why does the Party want to extinguish sexual activity?
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3. What is the difference in the way Winston and Julia appear to view the future?
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IV
Vocabulary
inquisitive – curious
interval – a short span of time
melancholy – sadness
preceding – coming before
1. Some critics see a significance in the words of the song that the woman outside is singing.
What do you think?
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2. Why, although they know it is dangerous, do they rent the room above Mr. Charrington’s
shop?
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3. If the first stanza of the woman’s song has a significance, what is the significance of the
second stanza?
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4. Since Orwell puts a great deal of emphasis into the discussion on rats, what can we
assume?
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V
Vocabulary
apathetic – indifferent, uninterested
effigy – a representation of a person who is hated
embellishing – adding details to
impudent – rude
inviolate – pure
sanctuary – a place of peace
susceptible – prone to
1. What happens to Syme? Why is this important?
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2. In the course of this chapter, why and how does Winston change?
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3. Between what two contrasting points of view do Winston and Julia swing?
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4. Why does Julia find it quite plausible that Winston trusts O’Brien on the basis of a look in
the Party member’s eye?
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5. Winston feels that Julia, in some ways, is far more acute than he is in regard to the Party
propaganda. What points does she raise that Winston has never considered?
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6. What is your opinion of Julia? Is she a realist or a cynic?
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VI
Vocabulary
obsolete – no longer useful
prelude – introduction
1. For what reason does Winston believe that O’Brien has talked with him? What are his
feelings about this as the chapter ends?
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VII
Vocabulary
avert – to turn away
despise – to hate with a passion
feeble – weak, frail
inert – sluggish, not active
pathos – something that evokes pity or compassion
pilfering – stealing
remonstrance – protest
superfluous – extra
1. What realization does Winston make regarding the proles? How does he reach that
conclusion?
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2. What does Winston say is the one thing Julia and he must never do?
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3. When Julia says everyone confesses, Winston says confessing is not important; a confession
is just words. The important thing is if the Party can make them stop loving one another.
That would constitute a betrayal. Julia says that the State can make her say anything but
cannot make her change how she feels about Winston. Winston agrees with her. Is this
belief bravery, foolishness, or something else?
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VIII
Vocabulary
allusion – an indirect reference
assent – agree
composite – made up of a variety of distinct parts
demoralization – weakness in discipline or spirit
demur – to object
disseminate – to spread around
equivocal – uncertain, ambiguous
formidable – creating fear or dread
perceptible – apparent
1. When they visit O’Brien, what does he tell them about the Brotherhood?
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2. What is the one thing Winston and Julia will not do for the cause?
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3. What is confusing about the encounter with O’Brien?
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IX
Vocabulary
adulation – excessive admiration
apex – peak
arbitrary – decided according simply to the will of one person
austere – stern
avaricious – greedy
barbarous – violent, harsh, or cruel
bliss – happiness
bureaucrats – government officials
confer – consult
debauch – corrupt
deviation – the act of varying from the normal way of doing things
dilapidated – fallen into decay
drudgery – physically difficult, menial, or monotonous work
eccentricity – oddness
fluctuate – to move back and forth or up and down
haranguing – ranting
hierarchical – arranged in ranks
indefatigably – without tiring
industrious – diligent, productive
irrevocable – incapable of being revoked or taken back
meritorious – deserving honor
neurotically – in the manner of someone who is psychologically disturbed; nervously
oligarchical – of a government in which power is in the hands of just a few people
omnipotent – having unlimited authority
overt – clear; not secret
paraphernalia – equipment
prevailing – dominant; successful
propaganda – material used to spread ideas, usually to further one cause and damage
another
respite – rest
socialism – a theory of government in which all members of society share equally in
the production and distribution of goods
stagnate – to become motionless or dull
stratified – layered
tenets – the principles of a group
tepid – half-hearted
totalitarian – a system of government in which all aspects of people’s lives are strictly
controlled by their leaders
treachery – the act of going against an allegiance or violating trust
utopianism – the belief that a perfect society can be crea
1. What change in the war situation takes place in Oceania, and how does the government
treat this change?
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2. What is in the briefcase that the man gives Winston, and why is this item of special
importance to Winston?
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3. According to Goldstein, for what reason do the three superpowers prefer continuous
warfare to peace?
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4. Why does Goldstein say that, although the superpowers talk about total victory, no power
believes it is possible or even desirable?
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5. For what reason does Goldstein say that it is important for an artificial scarcity of goods
to exist?
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6. Goldstein says that the war being waged against another superpower is not the real war.
What is the real war?
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7. What is Goldstein’s theory about the new aristocracy? Who are they, and whom are they
replacing?
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8. Who does Goldstein say Big Brother is?
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9. What is it that Goldstein says holds the ruling members of the Party together and ensures
the survival of the Party?
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10. For what reason, do you suppose, did Orwell think it necessary to include these chapters
from Goldstein’s book?
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X
Vocabulary
livid – enraged
truncheons – clubs used to beat or otherwise subdue criminals or prisoners
valiant – brave
1. What is there about the prole washerwoman that Winston admires?
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2. The washerwoman again leads Winston to believe that sooner or later the proles will
overthrow the government. Do you think they really will, or is this belief just Winston’s
optimism?
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3. Why is it appropriate that this chapter begins with the singing of the two verses?
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4. What might the shattering of the coral encased in the glass dome be symbolic of?
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5. Although the reader may or may not be surprised by Mr. Charrington’s identity, why does
it make perfect sense that he does turn out to be who he is?
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6. There are still many pages left in this novel. What would you guess will happen in Part
Three?
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THREE
I
Vocabulary
demeanor – conduct
din – a loud, confused mixture of noises
emaciation – the state of being extremely thin, almost to the point of starvation
forbearance – patience
insidious – sly
lethargy – the state of being lazy, slow, or drowsy
perturbed – upset
sanctimonious – hypocritically pious
1. Twice, Winston says that he feels no love for Julia. He says as he sits waiting for them to
come for him, that all he can feel is fear. Do you believe that what he says is true? Is it easy
under adverse circumstances to lose the love you feel for someone?
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2. Room 101, which is especially feared by the prisoners, appears to be an interrogation
room. What could they have in that room, do you suppose, that is so feared?
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3. When O’Brien arrives, he says to Winston, “You knew this, Winston...Don’t deceive
yourself. You did know it–you have always known it.” What is O’Brien saying that Winston
has always known?
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II
Vocabulary
abject – low in spirit; having no hope
delusion – a continual false belief
eradicate – eliminate
erroneous – incorrect
exaltation – raising up; glorifying
external – outside of
integrity – adherence to a set of moral values
luminous – glowing; emitting light
martyrs – people who make great sacrifices for their beliefs
objective – taken into account without any regard to personal feelings
perpetuating – making something continue forever
persecutions – acts of being harassed or made to suffer because of a belief
posterity – all future generations
quailed – cowered
recuperate – recover
resolve – decide
rotund – fat, chubby
seditious – causing resistance or revolution against the government
sniveling – whining
speculatively – in the manner of thinking or wondering
surly – rude or unfriendly
unrepentant – feeling no regret or need for forgiveness
vehemently – passionately
vindicate – to free from blame
wantonness – lewdness
1. After the initial physical beatings, what happens to Winston?
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2. What are Winston’s feelings toward his interrogator?
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3. O’Brien tells Winston that the object of the interrogation is not to get a confession,
although Winston does that easily; nor is the object to punish, although he receives a
great deal of punishment. What is the object of the interrogation?
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4. Since there is a strong likelihood they are going to execute him anyway, Winston asks why
they are going to the trouble of trying to change him. What answer does the interrogator
give him?
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5. Smith is then told that if he is allowed to live, “[n]ever again will [he] be capable of
ordinary human feelings. Everything will be dead inside [him]. Never again will [he] be
capable of love, or friendship, or the joy of living, or laughter, or curiosity, or courage, or
integrity. [He] will be hollow.” Do you think that Winston will accept life at that price?
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6. What is the frightening question Winston hesitates to ask? What is the literary term
implied in the answer?
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III
Vocabulary
contemptible – deserving to be despised
evade – avoid
fallacy – a false or mistaken idea
insurrection – an act of revolting against authority
malleable – capable of being shaped
relinquishing – giving over
1. What does O’Brien tell Winston about Goldstein’s book?
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2. When Winston is asked why he thinks the Party clings to power, what answer forms in
his head? What is Winston told is the real reason?
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3. What does O’Brien’s answer about the real reason the Party seeks total power, tell us about
Orwell’s view of why totalitarian governments exist?
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4. On page 209, O’Brien’s face is described as “filled with a sort of exaltation, a lunatic
intensity.” Do O’Brien’s remarks in his explanation of reality, laws of nature, and power
seem irrational to you? Does he seem insane?
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5. Another motif repeated in this book is that if people were given the choice to be happy,
but not free or free, but not happy, would they choose the former? What is your opinion
on what most people would choose?
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6. O’Brien says, “This drama that I have played out with you during these seven years will
be played out over and over again, generation after generation.” What two points may we
infer from this comment?
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7. Winston says that the Party will ultimately fail. What does he say will eventually destroy
the Party?
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8. For an answer, what does O’Brien show Winston? Why does O’Brien use this strategy?
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9. Find a quote from O’Brien on page 225 that shows he knew Winston’s mind all along.
What is Winston’s only redemptive quality? What does it hint at? Why?
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IV
Vocabulary
capitulated – stopped resisting
frivolity – a trivial act that lacks seriousness
infer – guess or suggest
torpid – sluggish or lacking vigor
1. Winston has now “capitulated” nearly completely. How and why can you tell?
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2. Winston tells us that he has surrendered his mind. In the past, he has pretended to believe,
but never actually did. Now, he will truly believe what the Party wants him to believe, but
he always hoped to keep his inner heart inviolate. How does he reveal what is in his inner
heart?
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3. At this point, O’Brien arrives and questions Winston, who reveals that he hates Big Brother.
What is O’Brien expecting to accomplish by sending Winston to Room 101?
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V
Vocabulary
concave – curved or rounded inward, like a bowl
didactically – intending to teach a moral lesson
1. What is in Room 101, as O’Brien describes it?
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2. What would be the worst thing in the world for Winston? What would it be for you?
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3. Describe Winston’s hallucinations.
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4. In order to save himself what does Winston cry out, and why is it that in crying this out,
he will be saved?
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VI
Vocabulary
admonished – reprimanded
cauterized – burned to prevent infection
disquieting – unsettling, disturbing
sporadically – occasionally
vile – foul; physically repulsive
1. As we see Winston sipping his drink in the Chestnut Tree Cafe, what is this scene meant to
remind us of?
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2. As he watches the telescreen, Winston hears that Oceania is in grave danger from Eurasia.
“A violent emotion, not fear exactly but a sort of undifferentiated excitement, flared up in
him, then faded again.” Later as he thinks about the situation, he muses that if the enemy got
control of Africa, “it would cut Oceania in two. It might mean anything: defeat, breakdown,
the redivision of the world, the destruction of the Party!…An extraordinary medley of
feelings—but it was not a medley, exactly; rather it was successive layers of feelings, in
which one could not say which layer was undermost–struggled inside him.” What do these
quotes suggest of the nature of the struggle going on inside Winston?
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3. In addition to having changed physically, how else has Winston changed since his arrest?
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4. He meets Julia and they talk, but neither seems to have any fear of the police. Why not?
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5. How do they feel about each other? Why?
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6. What is the significance of the repeated poem on page 241?
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7. At one point, while waiting for the news bulletin, “Winston looked up at the portrait of
Big Brother. White always [check]mates, he thought with a sort of cloudy mysticism....The
huge face gazed back at him, full of calm power. White always mates.” Then several pages
later: “As though for assurance he [Winston] looked up at the imperturbable face in the
portrait. Was it conceivable that the second arrow [a relief column that would smash into
Eurasia’s flank] did not even exist?” What is conveyed about Winston’s thoughts in these
paragraphs?
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8. What happens to Winston in the last section on page 244?
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9. What is implied in the next-to-the-last paragraph?
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10. Does a reading of the last paragraph in the novel suggest that O’Brien or Winston won?
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11. Would you say that the novel’s ending represents for Orwell an optimistic or pessimistic
view for the future of our society?
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12. Question #11, however, assumes that the society that Orwell sees for 1984 is going to come
to pass. Do you think Orwell believed that the coming of such a society was inevitable?
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