1984 Question By Kevin Dang
George Orwell said, "Sanity was statistical. It was merely a question of learning to think as they thought" (Orwell). It is also important to note Winston's mindset before his capture and going into the Ministry of Love where he is serverely altered, verses when he is freed and has a completely different mindset. Thinking about the quotes and Winston's alteration, was he insane before being captured while having rebelious thoughts about freedom, or was he insane after when he reformed to the Party's views? What does this imply about the theme of sanity in this book?
He was insane after he reformed to the Party's Views. It implies that sanity is a very prevalent theme.
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion I prefer to believe that Winston is insane after he was reformed to the Party's views. What leads me to that conjecture is when Winston was being tortured in the Ministry of Love and O’Brien says “Never again will you be capable of ordinary human feeling. Everything will be dead inside you. Never again will you be capable of love, or friendship, or joy of living, or laughter, or curiosity, or courage, or integrity. You will be hollow”(Orwell pg.256). I interpreted this quote as saying that you are insane if you experience these emotional states which then implies that people like me are insane since I, myself experience feelings such as love, friendship, laughter, and curiosity. So if I were to say that Winston was insane before being captured while having rebellious thoughts about freedom, then wouldn’t I be saying that I am insane like Winston given that I do feel emotions like friendship and curiosity? Sanity as a theme of this book implies that people may never know the true difference between sanity and insanity. According to google the definition of normal is conforming to a standard; usual, typical, or expected. Which often times is associated as being sane. Whenever a person doesn’t do something that is expected they are labeled as being mentally different or rather they are insane. A hundred years ago or so if you weren’t straight but instead a homosexual they would brand you as insane and throw you into a mental asylum. Given my example, the definition of sanity versus insanity will vary from person to person.
ReplyDeleteWhy would you say that he was insane after he reformed to the Party's views? Insanity is something that is not common, by definition. Therefore when Winston was commiting thought-crime, he was doing something that was not normal. So wouldn't that mean that he was insane before he was captured? Then after he was released and tortured, when he conformed to society's views on freedom and war and peace, would he be sane? What I am trying to say is that by using the definition of sanity, one could argue that he was indeed insane before being captured, and was sane afterwards. But it can also be just as easily argued in the opposite way. Some could say that he was just expressing normal human thoughts before being captured while everyone else was insane, and after, he became insane because he then believed in the Party's Views. I do believe that he was insane after he was reformed to the Party's Views because after that he was not able to think properly and independanly, which is the definition of insanity.
ReplyDeleteWhy would you say that he was insane after he reformed to the Party's views? Insanity is something that is not common, by definition. Therefore when Winston was commiting thought-crime, he was doing something that was not normal. So wouldn't that mean that he was insane before he was captured? Then after he was released and tortured, when he conformed to society's views on freedom and war and peace, would he be sane? What I am trying to say is that by using the definition of sanity, one could argue that he was indeed insane before being captured, and was sane afterwards. But it can also be just as easily argued in the opposite way. Some could say that he was just expressing normal human thoughts before being captured while everyone else was insane, and after, he became insane because he then believed in the Party's Views. I do believe that he was insane after he was reformed to the Party's Views because after that he was not able to think properly and independanly, which is the definition of insanity. To be insane it must also be important to look at the beliefs of a person. If they believe in the party, then they would be considered insane before being arrested by the thought police because they would be having seriously dangerous thoughts. And also vice versa, if they do not believe in the Party then they would be considered insane after being released from the Ministry of Love and being changed after the torturings.
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