Winston Smith, the protagonist for George Orwell’s 1984, is a heroic character. At least according to George Orwell’s definition: “ordinary people doing whatever they can to change social systems that do not respect human decency, even with the knowledge that they can’t possibly succeed”, Winston is a hero. He is an everyday man, doing what little he can to improve the world, and others. Even if he is powerless, he tries anyways. In that way, Winston also serves a relatable character to the reader. His struggles can be sympathized with, as too can his demeaner and values. Set in a bleak future, Winston struggles to help himself, let alone others in improving the world. Regardless of the results, the fact that Winston tries is admirable.
Winston …show more content…
Despite this, this doesn’t disqualify him as a hero. His rebellious acts consisted of ones that he could hide from suspicious eyes. And when every television street, and even every child is watching your every move, that is no easy task. Even then, the majority were small in scale, even most of them were reason enough to warrant his arrest. He would slip into the prole district even though “Party members were supposed not to go into ordinary shops” (6). The most consist rebellious action he took was in his own mind. After all, when you can nothing, at least you can try to think. Winston expressed it himself, “Anything that hinted at corruption always filled him with a wild hope. Who knew, perhaps the Party was rotten under the surface, its cult of strenuousness and self-denial simply a sham concealing iniquity. If he could have infected the whole lot of them with leprosy or syphilis, how gladly he would have done so! Anything to rot, to weaken, to undermine!” …show more content…
Even if he failed in the end, it doesn’t matter to his character. Even when he was arrested, held in the ministry of love, Winston knows what his fate will be, but still he did his best to resist. When he was broken by O’Brien’s torture, Winston thinks to himself “he knew he was in the wrong, but he preferred to be wrong.” Showing he still maintained the drive to desire freedom. Which was what led to him being sent to Room 101, betraying Julia because of his fear of rats. His perseverance up until the end shows that Winston is a heroic character. Even though he failed, it doesn’t taint his prior actions. 1984 was never meant to have a happy ending. It was written to serve as a warning to not let society go down the path shown in the book. Winston was to be written as a relatable every-day man, struggling to help in what was he can, for himself and others. His fate is irrelevant regarding his heroism. If anything, it’s a testimony to his efforts that it was warranted to break him and brainwash him, to no longer be a
Winston …show more content…
Despite this, this doesn’t disqualify him as a hero. His rebellious acts consisted of ones that he could hide from suspicious eyes. And when every television street, and even every child is watching your every move, that is no easy task. Even then, the majority were small in scale, even most of them were reason enough to warrant his arrest. He would slip into the prole district even though “Party members were supposed not to go into ordinary shops” (6). The most consist rebellious action he took was in his own mind. After all, when you can nothing, at least you can try to think. Winston expressed it himself, “Anything that hinted at corruption always filled him with a wild hope. Who knew, perhaps the Party was rotten under the surface, its cult of strenuousness and self-denial simply a sham concealing iniquity. If he could have infected the whole lot of them with leprosy or syphilis, how gladly he would have done so! Anything to rot, to weaken, to undermine!” …show more content…
Even if he failed in the end, it doesn’t matter to his character. Even when he was arrested, held in the ministry of love, Winston knows what his fate will be, but still he did his best to resist. When he was broken by O’Brien’s torture, Winston thinks to himself “he knew he was in the wrong, but he preferred to be wrong.” Showing he still maintained the drive to desire freedom. Which was what led to him being sent to Room 101, betraying Julia because of his fear of rats. His perseverance up until the end shows that Winston is a heroic character. Even though he failed, it doesn’t taint his prior actions. 1984 was never meant to have a happy ending. It was written to serve as a warning to not let society go down the path shown in the book. Winston was to be written as a relatable every-day man, struggling to help in what was he can, for himself and others. His fate is irrelevant regarding his heroism. If anything, it’s a testimony to his efforts that it was warranted to break him and brainwash him, to no longer be a