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38 of 39 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
True, and becoming truer, 26 Jun 2006
`1984' is Orwell's post-modern classic, concerning what the world may look like in 1984, 40 years after the book was written. In Orwell's dystopia, the UK, as part of Oceania, is ruled by the despotic Big Brother. Big Brother has total control of all the media, and therefore controls all the information reaching the populace. The people, divided into the ruling Inner Party, the middle class Outer Party and the under-educated Proles, have total loyalty to Big Brother, in both thought and deed, and the righteousness of his actions, and the cause of Oceania, is unquestioned. Hints of rebellion, even in people's thoughts, are viciously crushed, and executions are commonplace. Against this background, Winston Smith begins to have doubts. He wants to engage in a love affair (as opposed to the passionless, state-sanctioned marriage) and have the ability to question Big Brother. Smith's attempts at subversion bring him face to face with the workings of the party, and a brutal introduction to the realities of life in Oceania.
Orwell's book chronicles a scary trajectory in which the twentieth century was headed in the 1940s, and at times it is no less relevant today. Although Orwell was writing partially about the totalitarian regimes of Hitler and Stalin, the observation of governments controlling the masses by controlling the flow of information through the media is possibly more pertinent today than ever before. Sometimes our society looks very different from Oceania, but some aspects are scarily similar, and Orwell's book is a timeless reminder about the dangers of giving anyone too much power. Few writers (perhaps only Shakespeare) have introduced so many new phrases to the English language. Two current TV programmes (`Big Brother' and `Room 101') take both their names and concepts from the pages of `1984'. This is perhaps an indication of both the richness of ideas and their ongoing relevance of `1984', and also an indication that everyone should read this book, to see how much of the world around them they can see in its pages.
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25 of 26 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Life Affirming, 23 Sep 2006
1984 is one of those rare books that genuinely changes your outlook on life and the way in which you perceive society as a whole.
There's so much that could be said about Orwell's masterpiece, but I don't think I could word it quite as well as he did. His radical take on "neo-feudalism" and the class system is something that is becoming ever more relevant today, particularly in England - where 1984 is set, and based on.
Can you believe that this book was written scarcely three years after the war?
I think everyone should read 1984 at least once. It puts things into perspective.
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16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Brilliant, Amazing, Genius, Masterpiece I could go on and on, 6 Sep 2006
Belonging to a Book Club ensures that you read books you wouldn't otherwise read. Sometimes you get a real turkey other times you get a masterpiece and, wow! this book is a masterpiece.
Set in 1984 in Oceania, this book tells the story of one man's journey to find the truth and ultimately freedom in a very brutal totalitarian regime under the ever watchful eye of Big Brother and the thoughtpolice.
If you are looking for a book which has a good story, brilliantly, beautifully written, suspense, and is thought provoking, this is the book to read. Some people say that to write one master piece in your life time is luck, but to write two (Animal Farm) is pure genius.
George Orwell didn't just write a book he wrote a legacy for future generations. Anyone who is concerned about the erosion of free speech and the freedom to be heard should read this book.
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