13 Chilling Quotes from 1984 by George Orwell
Originally published in 1949, George Orwell was the pen name for Eric Blair. A British writer who wrote 9 books throughout his lifetime, Eric was born in India in 1903, before moving to Henley-on-Thames in England the following year.
Orwell was known for being opposed to all forms of totalitarianism, both on the left and the right of the political spectrum, and his work frequently reflected this.
1984 and Animal Farm were two of his most popular books, and 1984 in particular encouraged readers to imagine a world where independent thought was highly punishable. Animal Farm, on the hand, is reportedly a commentary piece on the Soviet Union and Josef Stalin’s betrayal of the Russian Revolution.
Sadly, Eric died aged just 46 after suffering from complications of Tuberculosis, shortly after 1984 was published. His books remain popular today, and 1984 provides a chilling warning as to what happens when the state takes complete control of life and society.
Here are 13 of the most chilling quotes from 1984.
Synopsis:
“The year is 1984 and war and revolution have left the world unrecognisable. Great Britain, now known as Airstrip One, is ruled by the Party, led by Big Brother. Mass surveillance is everything and The Thought Police are employed to ensure that no individual thinking is allowed. Winston Smith works at The Ministry of Truth, carefully rewriting history, but he dreams of freedom and of rebellion.
It is here that he meets and falls in love with Julia. They start a secret, forbidden affair - but nothing can be kept secret, and they are forced to face consequences more terrifying than either of them could have ever imagined.”
Here are 13 of the most dystopian quotes from George Orwell’s 1984.
“WAR IS PEACE
FREEDOM IS SLAVERY
IGNORANCE IS STRENGTH”
“The Ministry of Peace concerns itself with war, the Ministry of Truth with lies, the Ministry of Love with torture and the Ministry of Plenty with starvation. These contradictions are not accidental, nor do they result from from ordinary hypocrisy: they are deliberate exercises in doublethink.”
“In general, the greater the understanding, the greater the delusion; the more intelligent, the less sane.”
“Who controls the past controls the future. Who controls the present controls the past.”
“Perhaps one did not want to be loved so much as to be understood.”
“In a time of deceit telling the truth is a revolutionary act.”
“Power is in tearing human minds to pieces and putting them together again in new shapes of your own choosing.”
“If you want to keep a secret, you must also hide it from yourself.”
“Doublethink means the power of holding two contradictory beliefs in one’s mind simultaneously, and accepting both of them.”
“The best books... are those that tell you what you know already.”
“But if thought corrupts language, language can also corrupt thought.”
“There was truth and there was untruth, and if you clung to the truth even against the whole world, you were not mad.”
“We know that no one ever seizes power with the intention of relinquishing it.”
Do you have a favourite quote from 1984? Leave a comment and let me know!
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