Common Mod - 1984

Question 1

Paragraph 1 Topic Sentence:

Answer 1

Orwell’s 1984 (ignites new ideas about human experiences - link to question) by demonstrating how corrupt political regimes use political oppression to restrict individual freedom in order to maintain power..

Question 2

Paragraph 2 Topic Sentence:

Answer 2

Orwell then argues that this oppression results in a brutalised society lacking compassion, empathy and intimate relations leading to the (eradication of meaningful human experiences - link to question).

Question 3

Paragraph 3 Topic Sentence:

Answer 3

Finally, George Orwell shows how social injustice creates an inherent desire for people to rebel (in order to restore the human experience - link to question) but warns that totalitarian regimes will exploit human vulnerabilities to eliminate all possibility of sedition.

Question 4

Paragraph 1 Context:

Answer 4

This reflected Soviet Russia’s Great Purges where pervasive surveillance tactics such as Stalin’s NKVD sparked fear and compliance to state control.

Question 5

Paragraph 2 Context:

Answer 5

Orwell reflects on the widespread chaos of Joseph Goebbels’ destructive anti-Semitic propaganda in Nazi Germany in his representation of Oceania’s dehumanised masses.

Question 6

Paragraph 3 Context:

Answer 6

During WWII, the White Rose was a resistance organisation led by Hans and Sophie Scholl in Nazi Germany whose members were executed by the Gestapo within a year of its establishment, demonstrating the fundamental desire for human rebellion in the face of social injustice despite the inevitable consequences.

Question 7

Paragraph 1, 1st Quote:

Answer 7

“It was even conceivable that they watched everybody all the time,”

Question 8

Paragraph 1, 2nd Quote:

Answer 8

“we shall make thoughtcrime literally impossible, because there will be no words in which to express it.”

Question 9

Paragraph 1, 3rd Quote:

Answer 9

“Comrade Ogilvy, who had never existed…would exist just as authentically, and upon the same evidence, as Charlemagne or Julius Caesar,”

Question 10

Paragraph 1, 4th Quote:

Answer 10

“In the end the Party would announce that two and two made five…The heresy of heresies was common sense…they would kill you for thinking otherwise”

Question 11

Paragraph 1, 5th Quote:

Answer 11

“Power entirely for its own sake … only power, pure power”

Question 12

Paragraph 2, 1st Quote:

Answer 12

“War is Peace, Freedom is Slavery, Ignorance is Strength,”

Question 13

Paragraph 2, 2nd Quote:

Answer 13

“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.”

Question 14

Paragraph 2, 4th Quote:

Answer 14

“If they could make me stop loving you—that would be the real betrayal. They can’t do that…They can make you say anything … but they can’t make you believe it,”

Question 15

Paragraph 2, 5th Quote:

Answer 15

“Do it to Julia! Not me! Julia! I don’t care what you do to her. Tear her face off, strip her to the bones,”

Question 16

Paragraph 3, 1st Quote:

Answer 16

“they’ll shoot me I don’t care they’ll shoot me… down with big brother”

Question 17

Paragraph 3, 2nd Quote:

Answer 17

“their embrace had been a battle, the climax a victory. It was a blow struck against the Party,”

Question 18

Paragraph 3, 3rd Quote:

Answer 18

“Until they become conscious they will never rebel, and until after they have rebelled they cannot be conscious,”

Question 19

Paragraph 3, 4th Quote:

Answer 19

“He had won the victory over himself. He loved big brother,”

Question 20

“It was even conceivable that they watched everybody all the time,”

Answer 20

This oppression is paralleled in the telescreens in 1984 where Winston’s resigned tone: “It was even conceivable that they watched everybody all the time,” symbolises the omnipresent surveillance within Oceania that destroys privacy and freedom.

Question 21

“we shall make thoughtcrime literally impossible, because there will be no words in which to express it.”

Answer 21

Furthermore, Orwell’s satirical representation of Newspeak ignites the idea that an oppressive government restricts self-expression as illuminated in Symes’ revelation to Winston: “we shall make thoughtcrime literally impossible, because there will be no words in which to express it.”

Question 22

Comrade Ogilvy, who had never existed…would exist just as authentically, and upon the same evidence, as Charlemagne or Julius Caesar,”

Answer 22

This fear and government control of language allows for distortion of the truth by the Party as highlighted by Winston’s metatextual construction of the fabricated ‘Comrade Ogilvy’ in the Ministry of Truth where: “Comrade Ogilvy, who had never existed…would exist just as authentically, and upon the same evidence, as Charlemagne or Julius Caesar,” symbolising the masses of false and misleading information produced by totalitarian governments to ensure compliance to the state.

Question 23

“In the end the Party would announce that two and two made five…The heresy of heresies was common sense…they would kill you for thinking otherwise”,

Answer 23

The degrading effects of this insidious surveillance and totalitarian regime on the Oceanic population and their identity are illustrated through Winston’s paradoxical statement “In the end the Party would announce that two and two made five…The heresy of heresies was common sense…they would kill you for thinking otherwise”, suggesting that the Party has manipulated individuals to the extent that they will accept even the most absurd political dogma.

Question 24

“Power entirely for its own sake … only power, pure power”

Answer 24

Ultimately, O’Brien’s description of the Party as: “Power entirely for its own sake … only power, pure power” enforces through repetition how the Party’s oppressive tactics which destroy individual experiences were undertaken to ensure dominance over Oceania.

Question 25

“War is Peace, Freedom is Slavery, Ignorance is Strength,”

Answer 25

In 1984, the oppressive control of the party over society is symbolised by the paradoxical party slogans “War is Peace, Freedom is Slavery, Ignorance is Strength,” depicting the Party’s ability to ensure people accept even the most unlikely political dogma.

Question 26

“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”

Answer 26

The psychological effect of this is revealed in Winston’s confession “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”, portraying how the Party’s propaganda is used to normalise collective expressions of hatred against a common enemy to encourage support for the state as well as destroy empathy and compassion.

Question 27

“If they could make me stop loving you—that would be the real betrayal. They can’t do that…They can make you say anything … but they can’t make you believe it,”

Answer 27

Despite this, when Julia reassures Winston through the anaphora: “If they could make me stop loving you—that would be the real betrayal. They can’t do that…They can make you say anything … but they can’t make you believe it,” she questions the party’s ability to destroy meaningful human experiences and relationships.

Question 28

“Do it to Julia! Not me! Julia! I don’t care what you do to her. Tear her face off, strip her to the bones,”

Answer 28

However, in Room 101, Winston’s emphatic plea: “Do it to Julia! Not me! Julia! I don’t care what you do to her. Tear her face off, strip her to the bones,” symbolises the party’s ability to destroy even the most genuine relationships and experiences.

Question 29

“they’ll shoot me I don’t care they’ll shoot me… down with big brother”

Answer 29

This inherent desire to rebel is initially shown in 1984 through Winston in his diarising “they’ll shoot me I don’t care they’ll shoot me… down with big brother” where repetition elucidates his urge to redress social injustice despite his knowledge of the dire consequences of doing so.

Question 30

“their embrace had been a battle, the climax a victory. It was a blow struck against the Party,”

Answer 30

Furthermore, during Winston and Julia’s first sexual encounter the metaphor “their embrace had been a battle, the climax a victory. It was a blow struck against the Party,” depicts how Winston’s and Julia’s rebellion against the totalitarian rule of the Party by forming meaningful human connections has resulted in a heightening of the human experience.

Question 31

“Until they become conscious they will never rebel, and until after they have rebelled they cannot be conscious,”

Answer 31

However, Winston’s paradoxical portrayal of the proles, “Until they become conscious they will never rebel, and until after they have rebelled they cannot be conscious,” illustrates the success of the Party in exploiting human vulnerabilities where political oppression and social injustice have become so widespread that individuals are oblivious about the violation of their freedoms and thus are unable to rebel.

Question 32

“He had won the victory over himself. He loved big brother,”

Answer 32

Ultimately, Winston’s ironic surrender after being tortured in room 101: “He had won the victory over himself. He loved big brother,” highlights the eventual success of the party in precluding rebellion and Winston’s obliviousness to the infringement of his experiences and freedoms.

Question 33

“To embrace her was like embracing a jointed wooden image”

Answer 33

Furthermore, this lack of compassion is conveyed to destroy marital relationships as evident in Winston’s description of Katherine: “To embrace her was like embracing a jointed wooden image” with the simile revealing the ironic repulsion and lack of intimacy between Winston and his wife.

Question 34

Paragraph 2, 3rd Quote:

Answer 34

“To embrace her was like embracing a jointed wooden image”