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1984 Part 2, Chapters 5-8
Syme disappears. Winston realizes that he has been vaporized.
It is very hot and London is full of preparations for Hate Week. The Ministry of Truth has a lot of extra work. The theme song for Hate Week, the "Hate Song," has been composed and is being played on the telescreens. Parsons is enthusiastically organizing the volunteers decorating Victory Mansions.
A frightening poster of a Eurasian soldier is plastered all over the city, and more rocket bombs than usual are falling, causing a lot of anger and frequent demonstrations.
Topic Tracking: Proletariat 10
Winston and Julia meet seven times in the month of June. Winston is drinking much less gin and is healthier and happier. He often stops to chat with Mr. Charrington on his way upstairs. Julia and Winston are both aware the love affair cannot last. They must die sooner or later for defying the Party in this way, and yet they somehow feel secure.
"So long as they were actually in this room, they both felt, no harm could come to them." Part 2, Chapter 5, pg. 152
They make impractical, daydreaming plans for the future:
"Even the one plan that was practicable, suicide, they had no intention of carrying out. To hang on from day to day and from week to week, spinning out a present that had no future, seemed an unconquerable instinct, just as one's lungs will always draw the next breath so long as there is air available." Part 2, Chapter 5, pg. 153
Topic Tracking: Proletariat 11
They talk about possible organized rebellion against the Party, but it seems impossible. Julia does not believe that the Brotherhood can exist. Winston tells her about the odd rapport he has with O'Brien, but she does not find it strange; she is used to trusting people based on their expressions.
Julia does not believe the war is real. It is simply made up by the Party to keep people frightened. In her opinion, the Party fires bombs on London themselves. But Winston finds that in many cases she does not care about finding the real truth:
"she only questioned the teachings of the Party when they in some way touched upon her own life. Often she was ready to accept the official mythology, simply because the difference between truth and falsehood did not seem important to her." Part 2, Chapter 5, pg. 154
Topic Tracking: Reality Control 6
Winston is in the Ministry of Truth, walking down the corridor where Julia first slipped the note into his hand. O'Brien is walking right behind him and coughs to get his attention. He compliments Winston's use of Newspeak in a recent article and mentions that he was recently speaking to 'a friend' of Winston's who agreed that Winston uses Newspeak well. This is clearly a reference to Syme, who is now an "unperson." In mentioning him, O'Brien has committed thoughtcrime. Winston realizes this comment must be a kind of signal. O'Brien offers to lend Winston the latest edition of the Newspeak dictionary and gives him his address. Winston's reaction to this incident is an ambivalent one. On one hand, he has evidence of an organized rebellion against the Party. On the other, he fears for his life:
"He had the sensation of stepping into the dampness of a grave, and it was not much better because he had always known that the grave was there and waiting for him." Part 2, Chapter 6, pg. 160
Topic Tracking: Reality Control 7
Topic Tracking: Newspeak 8
Topic Tracking: Surveillance 12
Winston has a dream about being inside the glass paperweight, as if the world was inside the glass dome. His dream revolved around a single protective gesture of his mother's arm. The dream brings back a memory of the last time he saw his mother. He was about ten or twelve, his father had already disappeared, and there were many air raids and never enough to eat. His mother moved slowly and was very quiet; she spent a lot of time nursing his young sister who was always ill. They would often fight over food. She was always ready to give him the biggest portion, but no matter how much she gave him he would aggressively demand more.
"He knew that he was starving the other two, but he could not help it; he even felt that he had a right to do it. The clamorous hunger in his belly seemed to justify him." Part 2, Chapter 7, pg. 163
When a chocolate ration was issued for the first time in a long time, he took the entire chocolate bar, stealing the piece his mother gave to his sister. Feeling guilty, Winston wandered the streets for a long time before returning home. He found his mother and sister gone. His last glimpse of them, his mother sitting on the bed with his sister clutching her, reminded Winston of the dream of the two of them on a sinking ship.
Winston remembers his mother as a noble person who lived according to her own private standards and remained true to her emotions. In the world of the Party there is no room for emotions.
"The terrible thing that the Party had done was to persuade you that mere impulses, mere feelings, were of no account, while at the same time robbing you of all power over the material world." Part 2, Chapter 7, pg. 165
He realizes only the proles have remained human, by attaching importance to their feelings.
Topic Tracking: Proletariat 12
Topic Tracking: Reality Control 8
Winston and Julia discuss the inevitability of their capture. If caught by the Thought Police, they must not betray each other. Both understand they will be made to confess and say anything the Party wishes, but as long as they do not stop loving each other, they will not have truly betrayed each other. The Party cannot make you stop loving someone.
"It's the one thing they can't do. They can make you say anything - anything - but they can't make you believe it. They can't get inside you." Part 2, Chapter 7, pg. 167
The thought that the Party cannot change your feelings comforts Winston and gives him confidence.
Topic Tracking: Surveillance 13
Julia and Winston go to see O'Brien at his home. They are amazed by the difference in the way the Inner Party lives. The flats are rich and spacious, smelling of good food. They have servants; everything is clean, well run, and silent.
O'Brien's servant, Martin shows them in. They are nervous and intimidated. O'Brien is dictating a memo as they enter. Winston suddenly worries that he may have made a mistake. What if O'Brien is simply a normal law-abiding Party member? O'Brien walks towards them, and as he passes the telescreen, he switches it off.
Topic Tracking: Newspeak 9
Topic Tracking: Surveillance 14
Julia and Winston are amazed that O'Brien has the power to turn off the telescreen. He starts to break into a smile and asks, "Shall I say it, or will you?" Winston tells him that they have come because they believe there is some kind of rebellious conspiracy against the Party and they would like to join. O'Brien calls in Martin, whom he says is one of them, and pours them all wine, which Winston and Julia have never seen before. He tells them that the Brotherhood and Goldstein exist. He asks them if they would be willing to perform acts of murder, sabotage, or terrorism in service to the Brotherhood. They are willing to do anything except separate from one another. O'Brien informs them of the secret nature of the organization and the futility of their personal survival.
"You will work for a while, you will be caught, you will confess, and then you will die... There is no possibility that any perceptible change will happen within our own lifetime. We are the dead." Part 2, Chapter 8, pg. 177
Topic Tracking: Surveillance 15
He tells Julia to leave first, in order to appear less suspicious. He arranges with Winston to get a copy of the Book to him. He speaks of their meeting again, and Winston spontaneously suggests, "In the place where there is no darkness?" words from his dream. O'Brien shows no surprise but appears to recognize the allusion and agrees.
He knows the last line of the "Oranges and lemons" rhyme and tells it to Winston. Winston leaves and sees O'Brien about to turn the telescreen back on. Even for Inner Party members, he tells them, it is dangerous to leave the screen off for more than half an hour.
