1984 - George Orwell (Chandler Tanner)

Title of Book: 1984
Author: George Orwell
# of Pages: 298
Star Rating: ☆☆☆☆☆
Why This Book has Value:







"Who controls the past controls the future: Who controls the present controls the past."

The book 1984 invents a dystopia and world in which George Orwell warns us all to be weary of devices such as political correctness, and to stand guard against attempts to "reinterpret" or otherwise change history. He shows that totalitarianism comes in all shapes and forms, primarily the progressive omission of personal freedom.

In our society, even removing the use of the word "terrorism," or increasing regulation, justified by the "protection of the environment" perpetuates the real-world relevancy of the warnings contained in the book 1984.

George Orwell propels his warning forward with the his brilliant conception of a dystopia far more advanced and powerful than even the USSR or Nazi Germany ever got- where not only are your actions monitored and controlled, but your thoughts too. Throughout the story, you follow an "Outer Party" member by the name of Winston through his internal struggle against the Party. You're enveloped into a world controlled by "Big Brother," and you witness Winston's almost instinctual resistance to the removal of freedom that has been imposed on his society for a very long time. On the contrary, it is Winston's believe that not even an all-powerful government can completely control you, and he exclaimed that “They could lay bare in the utmost detail everything that you had done or said or thought; but the inner heart, whose workings were mysterious even to yourself, remained impregnable.” This leaves us, as the readers, with a goal for Winston. Will he be able to stay human, and become free, despite all odds? Orwell will even define what it means to be human, a definition we all have taken for granted.

Orwell's novel will excite you, fill you with enthusiasm and hope, and crush your dreams and could leave you furious and frustrated. I personally have never read a novel with such emotional value to it. Orwell will most definitely leave you internally chanting "down with Big Brother! Down with Big Brother!"

Orwell, though a genius and complex series of plots, will leave you with a universal understanding of the human need for freedom. Through such a universal idea, you as the reader will effortlessly be able to interpret the warning within his book. This novel is simply a must read for all Americans.