1984A PBS Great American Read Top 100 Pick With extraordinary relevance and renewed popularity, George Orwell’s 1984 takes on new life in this edition. “Orwell saw, to his credit, that the act of falsifying reality is only secondarily a way of changing perceptions. It is, above all, a way of asserting power.”—The New Yorker In 1984, London is a grim city in the totalitarian state of Oceania where Big Brother is always watching you and the Thought Police can practically read your mind. Winston Smith is a man in grave danger for the simple reason that his memory still functions. Drawn into a forbidden love affair, Winston finds the courage to join a secret revolutionary organization called The Brotherhood, dedicated to the destruction of the Party. Together with his beloved Julia, he hazards his life in a deadly match against the powers that be. Lionel Trilling said of Orwell’s masterpiece, “1984 is a profound, terrifying, and wholly fascinating book. It is a fantasy of the political future, and like any such fantasy, serves its author as a magnifying device for an examination of the present.” Though the year 1984 now exists in the past, Orwell’s novel remains an urgent call for the individual willing to speak truth to power. |
What people are saying - Write a review
User ratings
| 5 stars |
| ||
| 4 stars |
| ||
| 3 stars |
| ||
| 2 stars |
| ||
| 1 star |
|
Reviews aren't verified, but Google checks for and removes fake content when it's identified
NINETEEN EIGHTY-FOUR
User Review - KirkusThe Book-of-the-Month Club dual selection, with John Gunther's Behind the Curtain (1949), for July, this projects life under perfected state controls. It presages with no uncertainty the horrors and ... Read full review
Work of art
User Review - brokn610 - BordersBoth informative and entertaining, this novel is amazingly built and split into three parts that are sure to get the attention of boys who love the gory themes and those who are looking for a deeper ... Read full review
Other editions - View all
Common terms and phrases
actually already appeared become began believe better Big Brother body called changed confess continued course dark death door everything exist eyes face fact feeling felt fingers five followed four girl give glass hair half hand happened Hate head heart hold human impossible Julia keep kind knew less light lived looked matter meaning memory merely mind Ministry minutes move necessary never Newspeak O’Brien Oceania once pain Party passed past perhaps person piece Police possible present proles question remember round seconds seemed seen side simply sitting sometimes sort speak standing stopped street suddenly talking telescreen tell thing thirty thought took true turned voice walked wall week whole Winston woman
Bibliographic information
| Title | 1984 |
| Author | George Orwell |
| Edition | unabridged, reprint |
| Publisher | HarperCollins, 2013 |
| ISBN | 0547249640, 9780547249643 |
| Length | 304 pages |
| Subjects | › Fiction / Classics Fiction / Dystopian Fiction / Literary Fiction / Political |
| Export Citation | BiBTeX EndNote RefMan |