George Orwell: 1984 Chapter Summaries

Make sure you are receiving the most out of 1984 with your chapter-by-chapter reviews for books 1, 2, and 3.
Use this 1984 Study Guide to review Orwell's classic. Find more novel study guides at Brighthub.com.
Chapter One: The novel's first chapter introduces people to the novel's protagonist, Winston Smith of Airstrip One, Oceania. Winston is definitely an unimportant part of Ingsoc, the controlling party of Oceania. As he labors in the stairs to his apartment, he passes several posters of Big Brother, the embodiment of party leadership, who in fact represents oppression, but to citizens represents all that is good. Winston commits



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thoughtcrime by writing DOWN WITH BIG BROTHER as part of his diary, the possession of which constitutes thoughtcrime.
Chapter Two: Winston hears a knock with the door and fears it's the thought police. It's actually his neighbor whose sink he unplugs and whose children are junior spies for the party.




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Chapter Three: Winston desires his mother, of an naked girl running toward him, as well as Shakespeare, seventy one of which represent thoughtcrime. He awakens to the telescreen's shrill cry of exercise time.
Chapter Four: Winston travels to work at The Ministry of Truth. His job is to falsify past records to ensure they are conform to current reality.
Chapter Five: Winston eats lunch with Syme, a professional on Newspeak, the state language from the party, whose purpose is to reduce the amount of words and render thoughtcrime impossible.
Chapter Six: Winston records his most recent sex act in the diary, a disgusting affair which has a Prole prostitute without having teeth. He longs to get a meaningful romance, what he considers the greatest rebellion from the party.




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Chapter Seven: Winston writes as part of his diary that the only hope is within the Proles, the functional class. He longs for the sense from the past, sees a children's history book, and realizes any record in the past is controlled by the party and has been falsified.
Chapter Eight: Winston wanders in to the Prole district and buys a paperweight with the same store he bought the diary. He notices a female from the Ministry of Truth and fears he is being followed. He contemplates smashing her face in having a cobblestone.
Analysis: The party controls its citizens through media manipulation, language manipulation, psychological trickery, the dissolving of family ties, and torture. The party has created illegal everything that make life enjoyable: family ties, sex, romantic love, the freedom to consider, great literature, and anything which involves introspection. Although Oceania has no specific laws prohibiting any one of Winston's actions, his actions are outward signs he has committed the best crime, thoughtcrime.
Book One introduces the reader to the novel's other two significant characters, Julia, the woman in the blue overalls, and O'Brien, the inner party member who Winston believes is often a fellow conspirator.
Chapter One: The girl who earlier Winston wanted to strike within the face which has a cobblestone passes him a communication that says "I love you." It takes several attempts, nevertheless the two can easily converse and schedule a meeting at Victory Square. Winston feels she has a reason to reside.
Chapter Two: The two meet within the country and participate in romantic love acts.
Chapter Three: The two return to normal party lives and be capable of meet simply for short intervals. They rendezvous in an abandoned church. Winston realizes that Julia is just not interested in an extensive rebellion. She is only considering outsmarting the party and having intercourse.
Chapter Four: Winston rents a room above Mr Charrington's shop, where he purchased the diary and the paper weight. He realizes it is a huge risk but he feels it's worth it.
Chapter Five: Syme disappears (as WInston predicted earlier). Winston constantly considers the room above Charrington's shop, considering what proceeds there, I think we understand.
Chapter Six: O'Brien stops Winston within the hall and provides him his address. Winston isn't sure if it is a sign through the underground or if he's a stride closer to his doom.
Chapter Seven: Winston and Julia visit their rented room frequently. They know they'll eventually be captured and tortured knowning that renting the space is stupid. They carry on and rent it anyhow and promise each other they are going to remain loyal.
Chapter Eight: Winston and Julia visit O'Brien and discuss the underground with him. He promises Winston he will deliver the sunday paper containing the secrets in the underground.
Chapter Nine: Oceania is not really at war with East Asia. It's at war with Eurasia. This forces Winston and his awesome Ministry of Truth coworkers to log 96 hours during the next couple weeks. Finally, Winston has the capacity to escape to his rented room where he reads the novel given him by O'Brien. The book explains the significance and specification of War is Peace, Ignorance is Strength, and Freedom is Slavery.
Chapter 10: As it turns out, Mr. Charrington is a an affiliate the Thought Police as there are a telescreen behind the picture within the room above his shop. Winston and Julia are arrested.
Analysis: The moment WInston, Julia, and the various readers have all been awaiting finally occurs with the end of chapter 10. The only question remaining is actually Winston and Julia betray one another. Don't you hate it whenever you buy illegal items from an undercover thought policeman? I imagine Winston feels pretty stupid. That whole "Here comes a chopper to cut off your mind poem" has haunted me since part one and may have been an idea to Winston that both Charrington and O'Brien are not to be trusted.
Chapter One: Winston awaits his punishment in a cell to prisoners, victims of starvation and beatings. His coworker Ampleforth continues to be arrested, as has his neighbor Parsons. O'Brien enters and reveals himself as a possible agent from the Ministry of Truth. A security guard smashes Winston's elbow using a club. It hurts. Bad.
Chapter Two: O'Brien efforts to "cure" Winston's "insanity" with torture. Winston agrees to anything O'Brien tells him and starts to love O'Brien as they can stop the pain. O'Brien explains that the party has perfected a system that will keep them in power forever. They do not kill any prisoners until they're "cured."
Chapter Three: O'Brien tortures Winston more. He tells Winston the party's true aim would be to remain in power forever by controlling things. Winston argues how the party cannot control external events. O'Brien thinks otherwise, explaining that as long as the party controls your brain, anything may be possible. O'Brien admits that Winston has yet to betray Julia, but doesn't seem too upset by it, realizing that eventually so many people are cured.
Chapter Four: Winston is taken to a more comfortable room, is fed regularly, and is not really tortured. He still hates Big Brother and wants to die hating Big Brother as being a last act of rebellion. He wakes up from the dream and shouts Julia's name many times. O'Brien arrives and orders Winston to room 101.
Chapter Five: Winston's face is strapped to a cage which contains starving rats. Just before O'Brien pulls the lever to discharge them, Winston asks that Julia take his place. With the final betrayal complete, the torture stops.
Chapter Six: Winston sits with the Chestnut Tree Cafe drinking Victory Gin and accepting everything Big Brother says. He has met with Julia once since released but neither had any fascination with continuing girls whatsapp number their relationship. After news of your great war victory, Winston acknowledges he loves Big Brother.
Analysis: Evil wins. All it took was weeks of torture, a cage full of rats, and enough gin to paralyze a rhinoceros. I love Big Brother.