"James Joyce, in the person of Stephen Dedalus, made a now famous
distinction between static and kinetic art.
Great art is static in its effects; it exists in itself, it demands
nothing beyond itself. Kinetic art exists in order to demand; not
self-contained, it requires either loathing or desire to achieve its
function. The quarrel about the fourth book of Gulliver's Travels that continues to bubble among scholars -- was Swift's loathing of men
so great, so hot, so far beyond the bounds of all propriety and
objectivity that in this book he may make us loathe them and indubitably
makes us loathe his imagination? -- is really a quarrel founded on this
distinction.
It has always seemed to the present writer that the fourth book of Gulliver's Travels is a great work of static art; no less, it would
seem to
him that George Orwell's new novel,
Nineteen Eighty-Four,
is a great work of kinetic art. This may mean that its greatness is
only immediate, its power for us alone, now, in this generation, this
decade, this year, that it is doomed to be the pawn of time.
Nevertheless it is probable that no other work of this generation has
made us desire freedom more earnestly or loathe tyranny with such
fullness."
As we read, keep in mind this question of static versus kinetic art ...
After reading pages 3-31, post your first reactions to the novel. Remember, your posts must be written in complete sentences.
Only having read the first two chapters it is hard to grasp entirely what the writer of the article above meant by Nineteen Eighty-Four being a work of great kinetic art. But I do agree that the fact that the book is still read now when the future that it is predicting is now clearly the past for us, proves that this book has some everlasting lessons on the value of freedom against tyranny and totalitarianism.
ReplyDeleteMore on the text itself - I noticed that in the first two chapters of the book, Orwell succeeds in creating a familiar setting with very unfamiliar names. We have never heard of Newspeak the Ministry of Truth, of Love, the Department of Fictions, etc. but we can clearly imagine what the functions of these governmental organizations are just by listening to their names.
A lot of the adjectives used in the book so far have some connection to weakness, or evilness or other unpleasant sentiments. For instance, the "vile" wind, "gritty" dust, "frail" figure, the sky a "harsh" blue...and these are only from the first two pages of the novel.
Then there is the theme of the meaning of power, and the excessive watchfulness of the regime, and perhaps even the loss of privacy. Victory Mansions and the London that Winston lives in almost fits the description of the Panopticon. "The concept of the design is to allow a watchman to observe (-opticon) all (pan-) inmates of an institution without their being able to tell whether or not they are being watched."
"The design consists of a circular structure with an "inspection house" at its centre, from which the managers or staff of the institution are able to watch the inmates, who are stationed around the perimeter. Bentham himself described the Panopticon as "a new mode of obtaining power of mind over mind, in a quantity hitherto without example"(wikipedia)
I especially like the last part of this description of the Panopticon , where it says it is a new mode of obtaining power of mind over mind, in a quantity hitherto without example. Big Brother and the central government are doing just that.
Most striking in the parts that I have read:
-The children of Mrs. Parsons are little savages, and if they are already brainwashed at that age, and these children take administrative positions or work for the government later in their life, I can only see the passing on of this super-authoritarian regime that does not give its citizens even a chance to keep their own personal diaries without them having to fear death.
"Orwell succeeds in creating a familiar setting with very unfamiliar names." He does indeed succeed and this is one reason the novel is so unsettling. We are familiar with ministries, bureaucracy, etc.; they exist in almost every nation on earth. Equally unsettling is the function of these ministries: "The Ministry of Peace, which concerned itself with war. The Ministry of Love, which maintained law and order" (6). It seems to me that there is something very wrong with a society or a government that associates love with law and order. Perhaps even more troubling is the complete subversion of language - peace becomes war, freedom morphs into slavery.
DeleteYour comment about the Panopticon is highly relevant. Thank you for making the connection and for posting the description.
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ReplyDeleteI agree that it is difficult to fully grasp what is meant by Nineteen Eighty-Four being a great work of kinetic art when we have only read two chapters of the novel. From what I can tell so far, the main character, Winston, lives in a state of self-loathing, with desires for a completely different government. His wish is that of a totally different world. With these ideas all dependant on the decade that Winstin currently lives in, kinetic art might, in fact, be present.
ReplyDeleteWhat I thought to be very interesting was the governmental use of control and manipulation within novel. Perhaps they are two of the book's main themes as well. In chapter one, Winston expresses his loss of control in every area of his life. The government watches his every move at work, home, even in the bathroom. We're given a glimpse into the extent at which citizens are not in control of their very own lives. When citizens are required to attend the Two Minutes Hate each day, they are encouraged and brought up into a furry of rage, an expression of hatred towards those who are from rival nations. All the while, the so called "ministries" are pro love and truth, contradicting all the really happens during the Two Minutes Hate meetins.
Interesting quote:
"We shall meet in the place where there is no darkness" (27).
What exactly is the darkness? Does it foreshadow a plae where, later in the novel, there is zero complete control by the government, or no secrets for that matter?
Sandy, thank you for drawing attention to the above quotation. It's definitely intriguing. It makes me think of how dark the novel is - "and though the sun was shining and the sky a harsh blue, there seemed to be no colour in anything, except the posters that were plastered everywhere" (4). Even Big Brother's eyes are described as "dark" (4). It also makes me think about the symbolic significance of light (a la Streetcar and more generally in art, literature and even religion). Perhaps "the place where there is no darkness" is a place of truth.
DeleteI agree with both of you, yet I think there are more interesting parts in the novel besides the savage children (So-Jung). I agree with the fact that it is interesting and maybe even scary that young children, in this case 9 and 7 years old, can be this savage and blood hungry. They already glorify The Party, which glorifies cruelty by making death an entertaining and amusing event.
ReplyDeleteThe fact that the children are brainwashed relates to one of the main themes(?) of imprisonment. Winston describes a cold and heavy environment to live in, since opinions are basically abolished. And you might be watched all the time by the telescreen. To describe this situation, Orwell uses the word ''lonely'' a lot, which show Winston's self consciousness and inability of being with someone. I think the reader can already tell that the protagonist is a real thinker, but is also scared to think. This is the main reason why he is so scared for the ''Thought Police''. Winston is scared to show his true feelings, and the reason why he is lonely. I feel like Winston is not only imprisoned in his life but also in his mind because of his fear. Yet he has decided to figure out what he thinks.
One of the most interesting thing of the beginning of the novel, is the fact that even though Winston seems very solemn and ''expressionless''. His outrageous behavior during the ''two minutes of hate'' show his true colors. This is probably the way all the people in London let go of their hatred and can relieve their emotions in that short period of time. Why I think this part is so significant, is because Winston is hiding nothing during this part but at the same time everything. All of the sudden he reveals his sexual frustration toward the beautiful and young girl. Yet, he also has this eye contact with mr O'Brien, which turns his life upside down.
I love how you make a connection between loneliness and imprisonment. Obviously Winston is not brainwashed at all and has the capabilities of thinking what he thinks to be ethically correct regarding the roles of the government yet I don't think he is necessarily "scared" of the Thought Police. I mean he is aware of the consequences if he makes it noticeable that he has been committing thoughtcrime, but he is more cleverly avoiding this situation albeit with some paranoia because it would be stupid to be sentenced to death by voicing your own opinion when it does not count. Moreover, in a society that kind of pushes a symbiotic community-mindedness amongst its constituents; it is easy as Winston says in the novel to kind of blend in and make yourself feel like a part of the whole rather than to stand out. It also makes it easier for him to show his "true colours" as you said. Is there such thing as an individual or is it just one big lump of people molded by the party?
DeleteI think there's such a thing as individual since we are all separated in society. For example, we all have our own passport/ identity, we don't share it with any one. This also relates to our human instinct and our animalistic desire to survive. This means that we are individuals, yet, I do think we need to make ourselves happy. And maybe, this is only possible with another human being... however, it probably depends on the kind of person your are. Anyways, back to the novel, for the Party only ''one big lump of people'' exists. This is because there aren't enough people who show what they think because they are silenced by fear.
DeleteThis is very interesting: "I feel like Winston is not only imprisoned in his life but also in his mind because of his fear. Yet he has decided to figure out what he thinks." Winston seems to be a rebel in some ways - he buys the book and writes in it - yet, as you point out, he fully participates in the Two Minutes Hate, which is what the party wants. He is clearly at battle with himself which shows how powerful and successful the party is. Of course it is not totally successful because a spark of rebellion survives in Winston.
DeleteI think the Two Minutes Hate is a brilliant creation and a brilliant tool. Just as the children have been trained, manipulated, brainwashed (however you want to put it) to the point where "all their ferocity was turned outwards" (26), the adults are given a moment of release that is completely controlled and directed by the party. It's the one moment in the novel - so far at least - that we see individuals expressing themselves in the presence of others, but that expression is limited to a certain time and space.
I would just be repeating what the three girls above just said, but it's hard to understand the whole concept of kinetic art and kinetic art in Nineteen Eighty-Four after reading only 30 pages. But so far, I think that the novel is leading up the the concept of kinetic art. Although it is a bit frightening to think that our world would end up as so how George Orwell's describes it in his book, the prediction is kinetic art.
ReplyDeleteAfter reading the first two chapters, I found myself enjoying every part of it. And no, it's not because I am sadistic or cynical, it is particularly because of how normal the life is. To us, we read through the the pages of the novel and are shocked because in our society and how we live, this is completely against everything we know as a society. But when you read the novel, you can observe how the characters in the book have adapted to that lifestyle. For example, the sandy-haired lady, screaming at the screen which had Goldstein on it. Everything is opposite, hence the book genre being dystopia. To me, I find it so fascinating the life of society in the novel is so different to ours.
But at the same time, I begin to wonder, is their society THAT much different to ours? Think about it, we, too, have had our fair share of "brotherhoods". But instead of calling them brotherhoods, we call them dictators. We had Adolf Hitler, Joseph Stalin, Mao Zedong. But again, these men did not preach what the brotherhood, in the novel, preaches. The don't preach "War is Peace. Freedom is Slavery. Ignorance is Strength", but they did preach some lower level of those phrases.
Also, a little respond from what Sandy mentioned with her quote concerning darkness. I have the same question. That part especially got to me. I found it hard to understand what darkness was revering to, or the quick eye contact made between Winston and O'Brien. I might be missing something, but I feel that this "darkness" is foreshadowing something.
"But at the same time, I begin to wonder, is their society THAT much different to ours?"
DeleteI'm pleased that you connected the novel to our lives/modern history. And I think Orwell would have been pleased. I'm sure Mr. Mattiace could give us a plethora of examples from 20th century history and from right now. Off the top of my head, I can come up with Pol Pot in Cambodia and the current political situation in North Korea. Also, the children in the novel remind me of the Hitler Youth.
Lots to talk about here.
When I first started reading Nineteen Eighty-Four by George Orwell, I first found it difficult to understand all the ideals of the novel. As stated in the New York Times article, the novel is evoking kinetic art, through the unwillingness of the main character to be brainwashed by the society’s propaganda, as well as his Winston’s inferred desire to not have to live in this society with no freedom and peace.
ReplyDeleteWe only read the first two chapters, but from those, several thoughts came to my mind. Propaganda in the novel was seen through the signs, the telescreen, and the society in general.
“BIG BROTHER IS WATCHING YOU” is one example of propaganda in the novel. The citizens are constantly watched and cannot show any opposition to the party. This extreme absolute power the Party has is also reinforced by Mrs Parsons’s children. At a young age, they are already brainwashed and spies for the Party, finding citizens that are not loyal to them. The mother also seems to be a little afraid of them.
“Two Minute Hate” is also another example of propaganda where all of the people would meet in an assembly to be brainwashed to be on the same side as the Party and have the same “hatred” for their enemies.
The quote “War is Peace. Freedom is Slavery. Ignorance is Strength” (Orwell, 6) really made me think for a while about its meaning in context of the setting. I thought of the phrase “War is Peace” in the way that since the nation is at war and they all are grouped as one, they have the same enemy which therefore brings them together as a nation with an internal “peace” and understanding.” “Freedom is Slavery” was hard for me to think of at first. When thinking of slavery, I thought of control, which is the case in the novel. However, the freedom made me think of it as safe and in a “sealed” agreement. For the phrase “Ignorance is Strength,” I simply thought of it as if the person is ignorant, then they are less likely to question different ideas, which makes their opinion on something fixed, giving it more “strength”/power.
Like Sandy, I found the quote “We shall meet in the place where there is no darkness” (Orwell, 27) very interesting and intriguing. I thought of the the place with “no darkness” as the place where Truth, reality, and freedom is found. It does seem to foreshadow something that can happen later on in the novel, but I am not quite sure of what it is.
Rabea, thank you so much for bringing up the slogans. They are fundamental to the novel and our understanding of the dystopia Orwell has created. Your reading of the slogans is perceptive and a good starting place for further discussion.
DeleteI just have just spent 2 hours reading just these 30 pages, not seldomly reading a passage twice or even thrice, just because the message, or messages, to me were so overwhelming. I agree with most points you girls stated above, so I'll try to stay out of that and focus on other aspects of the novel so far that seemed equally important to me:
ReplyDeleteTo begin with, the quote that ultimately stayed in my memory the best was when Winston is to fix his neighbor's sink, he says that "He hated using his hands" (23). This seemed completely paradox to me. On one side we have this character who seems to nearly burst with unexpressed opposition against the big brother, while in the meantime he doesn't even want to, even more, "Hates" to use his hands, which are often seen as a metaphor to express action, individuality, creativeness, and basically everything else that opposes the concept of the Big Brother.
I also think that while individually seen the motifs seem unfit and the emotions and reactions surreal, there are indeed a couple of events or situations in history that are in their own way comparable to the atmosphere or environment described in the book. At any time this book always forced me think back to a movie I once watched about Nazi Germany, for instance when Winston states that "It was almost normal for people over thirty to be frightened of their own children" (27). The film dealt with mind control in the third Reich, and how no one was ever safe from his coworkers, neighbors, or even children; where any disobedience would be recorded and punished immediately.
The one and only truly positive sounding quote I could find throughout the two chapters was "Nothing was your own except the few cubic centimeters inside your skull" (29). It might have been intended to create a claustrophobic or frightening feeling but I actually find it reassuring to know that your mind is the one and only place in the world that is reserved all to you and that no one else has any power over. Much like the corner that Winston writes his diary in, hidden from the telescreen, his mind is the one thing that can never be taken away from him and where he can think and express himself freely, regardless of the imprisoning world around him.
I have thought about this novel very intensely and have finally come to the conclusion that as I will read it I will suffer. This is due to the simple but predominant fact that the injustice and the mechanical nature of this novel will be very hard to handle. It is obvious and very direct that this novel will most likely be not about the sensation of experiencing an emotion or about the thrill of a beautiful though or description. I look forward to reading the book open-mindedly however I am sure I would have enjoyed a book with a lot more focus on emotions and maybe a twist in the plot with a love involved.
ReplyDeleteAs I read the novel I have noticed that the world Winston lives in is very gray and dead, the only source of color is the poster of the Big Brother staring at the people of Oceaian. It scares to realize that this image reminds me very much of the Soviet Union and how my grandmother used to say "the way the system drained the color from everything". I find it particularly striking that there are people that can live in this sort of environment and some even happily. It also shocked me that the people of the city London live on the emotion of hate. It is the only thing that binds all of them together and forces the feeling of a community. I find it terrible and very scary that this negative and very powerful emotion could be used in such way to manipulate people.
Further more the slogan of the Big Brother "War is Peace. Freedom is Slavery. Ignorance is Strength"(18) strikes me with very strong motions. It seems to me that the people of Oceaina had already given up and this slogan illustrates it. It is as if they have accepted the injustice that will be cast upon them and they are not doing anything about it. It also hurts to realize that there are people in our world today that believe this is a very valid and truthful statement. In my opinion people should be free and know of things however knowing humanity they would abuse that right so everything should be granted in appropriate portions.
I can clearly see that everybody is getting around the same first impression. I had a lot of trouble understanding the writing and knowing what is truly going on, but I little by little understood that it was quit a complex novel that has to be studied very closely as they are things between the lines. For me as Tina mentioned, the most choking quote so far was the slogan of the big brother: " War is Peace. Freedom is Slavery. Ignorance is Strength"(18). It only prepares me for a very strong emotional experience where social classes are strongly discussed and inequality striking;
ReplyDeleteMy first impression of this very kinetic piece of dystopian fiction is the societies willingness to function, even under such terrible situations. Orwell's description of this desolate world makes me almost want to curl up in a ball and never want to experience such grotesque lack of freedom. I, however, found it interesting when William noted to himself as he opened his journal that there was actually no laws any more. This furthers my fear of such a place, because with no laws the government has complete control over the actions it can take against its citizens. As Winston noted, that Big Brother would just come in and take you in the night, as it pleased. This totalitarian act is almost unthinkable in today's society and Winston merely brushes it off as a side note, knowing he can be put to death for just thinking about writing in a journal. Another interesting fact is the dumbing down of the language on a national language, referred to as "newspeak" abbreviating words was a very interesting and all too real concept to see. Seeing as even today, people are speaking online with silly abbreviations and it is becoming apparent even in our oral language and sometimes written. This novel is obviously kinetic art to me for the great amount of loathing that came out of it and the desire to keep my rights and freedoms that are so easily tossed around.
ReplyDelete