Brainwashing In 1984 By George Orwell

George Orwell writes about many important issues in his book, 1984. He writes about a future government where many different problems are portrayed dramatically and obviously. The book is about a totalitarian government that has complete control over its citizens, and intrudes on people’s privacy, to the point where even thoughts aren’t safe. Not only do they invade their thoughts, but they also control them. The government brainwashes their citizens to get them to be unquestioningly loyal the party. The issue of brainwashing stands out as one of the most important topics in this book as well as one that is very relevant to today. Orwell communicates through his book that brainwashing is pervasive and destructive to our sense of reality and …show more content…
We get to see the party’s thoughts in full detail as O’Brien explains everything to Winston and simultaneously brainwashes him. We also see how it then negatively affects Winston afterwards. There are examples of how brainwashing is relevant not only in Orwell’s book, but also in today’s societies. Some examples are small and don’t have a very big impact, such as brainwashing through advertisement. Another example is the totalitarian government of North Korea that has brainwashed an entire country into believing lies. George Orwell's novel isn’t just a dramatised story of a terrible government meant to scare people; it actually represents real things happening right now, and how they affect the lives of people …show more content…
These actions and motivations are finally explained during the tortured arguments between Winston and O'brien in the ministry of love when O’brien completely picks apart Winston’s logic and twists it to make him believe in Big Brother. O’brien, who stands for everything Winston is against symbolizes the party. He believes that Winston is insane and that he must be fixed. The whole last part of the book is about Winston trying to resist giving over to O’brian’s twisted logic, trying to resist being brainwashed. In fact, throughout the whole book he is found resisting brainwashing, trying to figure out what is true and what is lies fed to him by the party. O’brien wholeheartedly believes that Winston needs to be saved from himself, to be made sane. He claims “Reality exists in the human mind and nowhere else. Not in the individual mind, which can make mistakes, and in any case soon perished; only in the mind of the party, which is collective and immortal. Whatever the Party holds to be the truth is truth. It is impossible to see reality except by looking through the eyes of the Party.” (p. 249). And thus, by believing that reality exists in the human mind, he also believe that a