The Shabby Little Room

"Winston looked around the shabby little room above Mr. Charrington's shop. Bedside the window the enormous bed was made up, with ragged blankets and a coverless bolster. The old-fashioned clock with the twelve-hour face was ticking away on the mantelpiece. In the corner, on the gate leg table, the glass paper with which he had bought on his last visit gleamed softly out of the half-darkness." 1984: Page 113-114


"The shabby little room above Mr. Charringon's shop" is disturbing but also beautiful at the same time. It is beautiful in the sense that it is a place of freedom in the midst of terror and inequality. This small room is a place that you can freely think and read without going to jail. It is a place to gleam softly out of the darkness.On the other hand, this room depresses me because it show me how pitiful 1984's dystopian world is. The only way to freely think or read is be in places like this dirty room.

This setting encourages me to hope even in places or situations like 1984's dystopian world. It encourages me to shine in the darkness because there are always others who are also shining.
The room also encourages not to let the world to be turned into a dark place. It makes me want to make good decisions so that the world would not be a horrible place to live in.

1984 and Africa

Africa and 1984's dystopian world have many things in common. Today, Africa is suffering because of the bad decision's of its former inhabitants (white colonists). White colonists ruled Africa ignoring its diverse cultures. This brought and still brings numerous problems to Africa.
Africa does not seem able to come out of its suffering. It is stuck in its state of poverty, war, and disaster. There always seems to be a place in Africa plauged by a disaster of some sort (whether disease, natural disaster, or wars) these days. The modern Africa is stuck in its cycle of problems just like 1984's dystopian world.
1984 does not really talk about how people can solve modern-day problems. Instead it gives the reader the feeling that if we make a bad decision right now then it will put the world (or at least a part of the world) in a cycle of misery that the world can never be freed from. 1984 does not talk about how to resolve Africa's current problems but it does inform the readers of how to prevent future problems (by making wise decisions).

1984's THEME

1984 has a major theme of regret. Winston and the other people of 1984's dystopian world go through a lot pain and sorrow. They suffer and can never come out of their miserable state of being. This cycle of suffering was created by people of the past. The actions of the people of the early twentieth century submerged the world in pain, forever.
The regret in 1984 can encourage a teenager living in 2007 to be careful in all the actions he makes. 1984 shows how bad decisions have very bad consequences. This novel discourages hasty decisions and encourages people to always make careful decisions.

The Main Characters of 1984

The main characters of 1984 are Winston, Julia, and O'Brien. They are quite special because they are from a dystopian world. Winston strongly opposes the way in which people are ruling the world and wants to somehow rebel against it. Julia (who is a lot younger than Winston) does not like the way in which the world is ruled, but is not motivated to rebel against it. O'Brien loves and supports Big Brother.
The different views of Winston and Julia on Big Brother relate to the real world. Their views show that if one generation do not fix a problem (of the world), then the next generation will have less motivation to fix that problem. Winston and Julia's different views motivate us, people, to not let problems go unfixed because if we don't fix them they might be unfixed for a long time.

1984's Climax

I think 1984's climax is when Winston yells (to O'Brien) to let Julia suffer instead of him. After Winston yells that, Winston's feelings change. He stops resisting because he truly wanted Julia to get tortured by the rats in Room 101 instead of himself. He begins to love Big Brother. He stops loving Julia.
I thought that Winston would not be subdued by O'Brien even after going through Room 101. Naturally, I was surprised at the end of the book. 1984 made me ponder that if everyone in the world opposed my beliefs and I knew my beliefs were right would I be able to stand firm in my beliefs...

1984's Mood

George Orwell's book 1984 has a depressing mood. The book leads the reader to hope that Winston (the main character) will succeed in overthrowing the dictatorship-like world (or at least die opposing Big Brother). However at the end of 1984, Winston dies loving Big Brother, the symbol of the world of 1984. George Orwell dashes the hopes of the reader and shocks them with such a depressing ending. The book ends with a world without any freedom at all, not even freedom to think. More depressing is the fact that the world of 1984 will stay in this dystopian state forever.
1984 confused me. I wondered why George Orwell made the ending so depressing. Even the world of 1984 itself saddened me because its inhabitants were in constant fear and doubt every single second of their lives.