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Examples Of Thoughtcrime In 1984

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In 1984 by George Orwell, all members of society will ‘willingly’ conform to the Party mindset. Some people, like Winston, are allowed to run wild for part of their lives, committing Thoughtcrime, but eventually, they will be caught and corrected. The Party ensures these enemies will see the error of their ways in order for the Party to keep power. There are no laws, but there is no free will. Though lacking written rules, Big Brother rules with an iron fist through unspoken rules that must never be broken, else even the most devoted follower risks getting taken by the Thought Police. This is evidenced by Parson’s arrest, “‘What are you in for?’... ‘Thoughtcrime!’ said Parsons, almost blubbering. The tone of his voice implied at once a complete …show more content…

Winston was never a devoted follower, constantly questioning the world around him. Even when in custody, Winston continued questioning motives and denouncing the Party and Big Brother, despite the futility. He knew no societal changes would result from his actions, but desperately wanted to share his ideas with someone, and since he was already being tortured, he was capable of speaking freely in the jail area. The purpose was to rid him of his rebellious mindset, and to do so, O’Brien needed to know everything Winston honestly thought in order to ‘correct’ it fully. For example, O’Brien forced Winston to recognize that whatever the Party said was true by holding up four fingers and saying there were five, “But there had been a moment- of luminous certainty, where each new suggestion of O’Brien’s had filled up a patch of emptiness and had become absolute truth, and when two and two could have been three as easily five, if that were what was needed (Orwell 258). After breaking Winston down through mental and physical torture, Winston started agreeing and believing with certain lies, thus giving in to ‘willing

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