Examples Of Heroism In 1984

The most significant lesson of a story is found in its ending. Children’s stories often give the impression that good always trumps evil, and as such, the hero always wins. The stories one encounters when they are older have more critical and realistic perspectives on certain situations. 1984 and Elysium are excellent examples of this. Both of the protagonists in these works are anti-heroes who struggle to fit in and thrive in their societies. They do not achieve their goals merely because they have good intentions. Throughout their journeys, it appears as though it is impossible for either of them to defeat the monsters who are in positions of power. There is some debate as to which story’s anti-hero evokes the greater sense of hopelessness …show more content…
The endings of the two works convey thoroughly different messages in terms of the ability of the human race to rise above the power of a corrupt government. In Elysium, Max is eventually able to change the code to allow everyone on Earth, no matter how rich they are, to become citizens of Elysium. After this happens, everyone is presumably shipped off to the utopian paradise and treated for their wounds with the help of the advanced technology. They all get to live happily ever after in prosperity. This ending makes the audience feel that the world has a chance. The movie implies that even if the state of the world goes off track and everyone becomes poor under the control of a fraudulent government, there is still hope for people to make a change and stand up to those in charge. There is still hope to build a brighter future. 1984’s message is unfortunately less optimistic. Despite all of his efforts, Winston is ultimately unable to overcome the government’s control. He betrays Julia and he becomes brainwashed into accepting the ideals of the Party. In the beginning, he holds strong beliefs about his society and writes such things as “DOWN WITH BIG BROTHER” (Orwell, 20) in his secret journal. However, the thought police are eventually able to break him down. The last words of the novel consist of this haunting phrase, “He loved Big Brother” (Orwell, 311), which shows how much Winston’s character has changed due to the government’s power. This ending evokes the feeling in readers that there is no way to rise above an authority that possesses so much control over its citizens. In the end, the people at the top will prevail and those on the bottom will inevitably continue to suffer. As a result, the reader begins to feel hopeless. Hopeless about the technology of tomorrow that makes their lives one