Individuality In Nineteen Eighty-Four

The Loss of Individuality in Nineteen Eighty-Four In the world of Nineteen Eighty-Four, individuality is an offence punishable by death, and the people live under constant supervision. The main character, Winston, lives in the totalitarian state of Oceania, where a figurehead known only as Big Brother is revered by the majority of the populace. In this state, those in positions of power are members of the Inner Party, while the rest of the people are either members of the Outer Party or part of the proletariat. Those who choose to rebel against the principles of the Party are not only killed, however, and instead are tortured until not even a trace of individuality remains within them. W.H. New stated that “Nineteen Eighty-Four is very
When he was first taken captive, the glass paperweight he had purchased smashed against the ground, representing the destruction of the last piece of the past Winston possessed. Once inside the Ministry of Love, Winston attempts to stay strong in his beliefs during his fight against O’Brien. At first, he is successful, but eventually he can no longer stand the torture he is put through. O’Brien continuously asks Winston how many fingers he is holding up, while putting him through a great deal of pain, in order to try to convey to him the importance of Doublethink, and eventually Winston says “‘You will kill me if you do that again. Four, five, six – in all honesty I don’t know.’” (Orwell, 264) This occurrence is the beginning of Winston’s surrender to the Party, due to the immense amount of pain and stress he is being put through. The final issue that O’Brien intended on fixing was Winston’s love for Julia, and Winston shows that his love still exists when he yells out her name after dreaming one day. Shortly thereafter, he is taken to Room 101, in which all prisoners are eventually put in. While in the room, he betrays his love Julia due to his phobia of rats, when he yells out “Do it to Julia…I don’t care what you do to her. Tear her face off, strip her to the bones. Not me! Julia!” (Orwell, 300) A clear example of the loss of Winston’s individuality, however, comes shortly after this event in the novel. When Winston is in the Chestnut Tree Café, and he hears about the trouble Oceania is having in the war, “successive layers of feeling, in which one could not say which layer was undermost – struggled inside him.” (Orwell, 303) This brief outburst of emotion within Winston passes quickly, as he forces himself to Doublethink,