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chain's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Torture, and Gaslighting
Moderate: Child death, Death, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Sexual content, Slavery, Antisemitism, Death of parent, Alcohol, War, Classism, and Deportation
Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Infertility, Rape, and Suicide
meglic's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Graphic: Body horror, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Forced institutionalization, and Xenophobia
Moderate: Homophobia, Mental illness, Police brutality, Antisemitism, Kidnapping, Medical trauma, Gaslighting, Colonisation, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
Minor: Child death, Infertility, Toxic relationship, Death of parent, War, and Deportation
vnfhcxksiw's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexism, Sexual violence, Torture, Gaslighting, and War
Moderate: Body shaming, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Infertility, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Police brutality, Kidnapping, Grief, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, Colonisation, War, Injury/Injury detail, Classism, and Deportation
riverofhorton's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
The book itself is a somewhat dramatised (hopefully) version of Stalin's Russia/Nazi Germany. It has so many layers to it, and I', still not convinces I've worked out just how deep the 'Party' goes in their propaganda, gaslighting, and plotting against its own citizens.
This is an incredibly well planned out (or perhaps the word is researched) and realised world, where even the bits that are fiction could very easily be real. That, I think, is the true terror of this book: How easily society could go from even today's status, to that found in this book. Thus, Orwell's intention to have this book serve as a warning was fully realised.
Graphic: Ableism, Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Chronic illness, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Genocide, Gore, Gun violence, Hate crime, Homophobia, Infertility, Infidelity, Mental illness, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Xenophobia, Blood, Excrement, Vomit, Police brutality, Antisemitism, Medical content, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Grief, Mass/school shootings, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, Stalking, Death of parent, Acephobia/Arophobia, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Outing, Cultural appropriation, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, Colonisation, War, Injury/Injury detail, Classism, and Deportation
hannahcstocks's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Graphic: Ableism, Addiction, Alcoholism, Body horror, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Mental illness, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual content, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Xenophobia, Blood, Vomit, Police brutality, Kidnapping, Stalking, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, Dysphoria, War, Injury/Injury detail, Classism, and Deportation
nikolas_kolinski's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
- 1984 - review
1984 may not be the best book ever written in terms of style and narrative, yet its powerful and ever-present themes certainly make it a masterpiece.
Orwell's style is capable of appearing analytical and rigorous, but also colourful and full of emotions at the same time, depending on what's necessary.
Moreover, the language in part I and many parts of part II is strictly logical and linear, while the parts where Winston and Julia fall in love
The feeling is overall that of a slow and decadent decay, from freedom and happiness to sadness, humiliation, melancholy, suffering and, finally, blind obedience.
The author thus proves himself a master of writing, versatile and capable of telling different moments with different nuances. Furthermore, although act I and act II may seem boring at first, as soon as the reader finishes the book by travelling through
Orwell's psychological characterisation of his characters is superb, with Winston being the protagonist and the main point around which the plot revolves, while giving also importance to the role of other characters, but always through Winston's eyes.
It is no surprise then, that many of the characters appear and behave differently than they really are:
- O'Brien
- Mr. Charrington
- Julia herself
The most elaborate, important and essential part, still to this day, is however the precise and accurate way in which Orwell explores the ways through which a government can overpower and overwhelm his own citizens to become a dictatorship, or even worse.
The fact that each and every man, apart from the proles, is constantly monitored by tele-screens, hidden cameras and hidden microphones highlights the first step the government takes to gain power: the constant control of his citizens, followed immediately by punishment when someone doesn't do what the Party wants (something really relevant even in our age, where we are already increasingly surrounded more and more by technology)
Then, all the lies and propaganda through which the party indoctrinates its citizens, not only by constant lying but by making sure they are happy to lie to themselves (freedom of thought and freedom of the press are not only important, they are necessary, otherwise everything could get always worse and worse)
And in the end...
(Power can be gained in many different ways, not only through a politics of the image ("image-politics") - which we see also really often today as well, though with different and certainly less evil goals - but also through widespread control of the state and the individual, by manipulating the popular masses and by means and terrible tortures that are always hidden)
It could be argued that most of Orwell's ideas might be too influenced by the historical era in which he lived and by his strong opposition to communism, however, even if we remove his personal views, the novel still maintains its clear and functional moral messages.
1984 is thus not only a book, but also a clear advice and a useful warning against how any of us might be manipulated and controlled, thus vindicating its role as a masterpiece for its highly cultural and historical importance.
Being in a minority, even in a minority of one, did not make you mad. There was truth and there was untruth, and if you clung to the truth even against the whole world, you were not mad.
Power is not a means; it is an end. One does not establish a dictatorship in order to safeguard a revolution; one makes the revolution in order to establish the dictatorship. The object of persecution is persecution. The object of torture is torture. The object of power is power. Now you begin to understand me .
Graphic: Confinement, Emotional abuse, Torture, Violence, Gaslighting, and Classism
Moderate: Body shaming, Death, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Panic attacks/disorders, Murder, War, and Deportation
friendly_neighborhood_grandma's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.0
-The ideas in this book are interesting but i really did not like the actual story or writing style.
-This does not need to be as graphic as it is.
Graphic: Bullying, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Infidelity, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexism, Sexual content, Slavery, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Police brutality, Stalking, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Alcohol, Colonisation, War, Injury/Injury detail, Classism, and Deportation
Moderate: Body horror, Gore, Suicidal thoughts, and Mass/school shootings
Minor: Vomit
vnfhcxksiw's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
Graphic: Body horror, Body shaming, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Forced institutionalization, Police brutality, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Gaslighting, Colonisation, Injury/Injury detail, and Deportation
lara_k's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Moderate: Body horror, Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Mental illness, Torture, Violence, Murder, War, and Deportation
sissiisreading's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Graphic: War
Moderate: Addiction, Police brutality, Alcohol, War, Classism, and Deportation