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Curiosity In George Orwell's '1984'

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The Path Curiosity Leads Nineteen eighty-four, by George Orwell, is a novel about living in a corrupt utopian society. The motto in London is “Big Brother is watching you.” There is never any privacy, individuality or personality. Due to the fact the inner party controls every aspect of life, one may not have a mind of their own. Winston, a man against the party, attempts to rebel as he breaks the rules and tries to join a secret society. His rebellion stemmed from his curious mindset. Although Winston is not a brave soul, curiosity drove him to step outside his comfort zone and rebel against the party. Having a curious mind, Winston ventures to find out if the “secret society” lead by Goldstein, a rebel against the party, is true. …show more content…

The feeling lead him down a path to an antique shop run by a man named Mr. Charrington. Winston’s mind takes control over his body as “…he had sworn never to come near the place again. And yet the instant that he allowed his thoughts to wander, his feet had brought him back here of their own accord” (Page 53). Winston did not necessarily have a desire to go to the antique shop, his curiosity did which then brought him there. In order to fulfill the needs of curiosity, he searches the shop for answers. The interest Winston has about the times before the revolution forces him to feel the need to find out more information. In order to figure out how corrupt society really is in London, Winston wants to know ‘Was life better before the Revolution than it is now?’ (Page 53). The answers to this question would then cause Winston’s hatred to grow stronger. Knowing the party is the reason for the peoples’ suffering, makes the thought of rebellion …show more content…

On an average day at work, Julia, the young brown-haired girl, “falls” and slips Winston a note reading “I love you.” When this happens, “A curious motion stirred in Winston’s heart” (Page 60). Once Winston reads and rereads this note several times, he cannot seem to get it off his mind. The curiosity eats away at Winston slowly and urges him to go find her. As Winston continuously finds ways to meet Julia he feels “At the sight of the words I love you the desire to stay alive had welled up in him, and the taking of minor risks suddenly seemed stupid” (page 62). Having a miserable life, Winston had to just deal with everything and live day to day. After Julia’s confession of love, he suddenly felt as if he had a purpose and he needed to find a way to live his life in his own way rather than the party’s. The form of rebellion, love, played a major role in Winston’s revolt against the inner party. If Winston did not have the trait of curiosity, he would have never rebelled. Curiosity was a major part of this book and without it, 1984 could not be the same. The authors portrayal of the power of curiosity has made me want to pursue my curious side more often. This would allow me to live an adventurous and unpredictable

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