'' 'We are the dead,' he said.
'We are the dead,' echoed Julia dutifully.
'You are the dead,' said an iron voice behind them.
'You are the dead,' repeated the iron voice.
'It was behind the picture,' breathed Julia.
'It was behind the picture,' said the voice. '' (230)
I choose this quote because it represents and only obdurates Wilson's opinion about Goldenstein's book. The fact that sometimes people already know what they think, yet they are unable to put their thoughts into words. This relates to the moment of the quote I picked. Both Julia and Winston knew that a microphone and/or a camera was hidden behind the frame. Yet they didn't try to prevent the inevitable. They wanted to believe in their own imaginary world, with their real coffee, they wanted to forget about reality. Also Orwell created the scene as strong as it could be. The actual moment that Winston and Julia were literally naked, and whispered to each other about the beauty of life, the singing of a bird. They shared the moment that it was time for the Party to end. This specific moment was chosen to arrest the lovers. I personally believe that this moment bound the their love and crushed it at the same time. While Julia ''grasps for her breath'', Winston ''dared not turn his head even by a millimeter'' (232). This predicts their faith and foreshadows their weakness for each other, but also the importance of individualism. And it shows that the Party has won since it openly destroyed their relationship.
Besides, I also wanted to mention the importance of Winston's words. The fact that he says ''we are the dead''. Why does he say this? What does it mean? And who is ''we'' (the outer party members, the
Proles, the brotherhood)?
picture: http://www.123rf.com/photo_4559529_an-empty-dark-dungeon-wall-golden-picture-frame-on-wall.html
I am not sure I completely agree with you about what you mentioned in the first few sentences of your post. Perhaps I did not fully understand I am sorry about that if it is the case. However, I think these quotes are significant. I am not sure Winston or Julia knew for sure about the telescreen before Mr Charrington's voice responding to their statement: "We are the dead."
ReplyDeleteOrwell built up this scene by having the women singing outside, represented by Winston as hope for the proles to "take down" the Party. Then unexpectedly, we find out that there is a telescreen hidden behind the painting. Even though there were several hints by Orwell throughout the novel that this would happen, we are still surprised by that moment.
Personally, I believe that Winston and Julia underestimate the power the Party has in that society. They are always talking about them being there for each other no matter what and there is this idea that their love is strong, however we are constantly reminded of the Party's power and I just think that there love will be found to be weak in the Third Part of the novel.
I agree with you, the moment is surprising. This is the reason why I though Orwell chose the right moment in the novel. I also agree with you on their underestimation of the Party. Even though they have been so careful by coming to the little antique store. They are not careful at the moment that they are there. As soon as they are there, they feel at home. They speak about what they feel and what they think. They made the mistake of coming back to the same place and feeling save. In a place like Oceania, there is no thing such as a ''save place''. There is no save place at least for people who think.
ReplyDeletePersonally , I feel like they never really underestimated the party. They knew the danger they were risking and that sooner or later they will be caught however I think it is their "love" for each other that triggered such force for them to rebel and to enjoy waiting for their punishment to come. The reason why I have put love in quotes is because I do not think it is a pure real one. For me it is the best pretext and form to express their hatred for the party. The best crime that could be committed where both characters are thrilled by the physical pleasure they get and the mental satisfaction and sense of freedom that rebellion brings. The "We are the dead" and the their sudden discovery of the tele screen and the party members coming to get them right away are for me a bit of a too typical book/movie scene. The words that came out of Smiths mouth were as a summary , explicit foreshadowing of what happens, then things follow and exactly what he predicted happens. How did he know? Why would Or Well use such a technique? For me it s simply too much a coincidence and is one of the aspects that I dislike about about this novel. The style and plot of the author seems to be sometimes too straightforward , empty, lacking suspense. Maybe not suspense but something seems to be missing and it leads me to reanalyze my view about how good of literature work this novel is. As much as I find the messages transmitted strong and powerful, there is to me a lack of balance between the syntax/plot and what the author wants to tell us. Again, I might simply be a little too judgmental but that is just how I felt when thinking of this moment.
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