YOUth Review: 1984 by George Orwell

When I first started reading 1984, courtesy of George Orwell, I expected it to be outdated. The thing was written in 1948 after all, so how up-to-date would its themes and plot even be now?

The answer is a lot. A surprising lot, in fact! From the very first pages, the book draws you in, never failing to showcase just how dreadful and dreary the world of the protagonist is. A nation run by a government known only as The Party, with Big Brother at the top of the proverbial food chain. The book follows the life of a man named Winston Smith, as he lives his life in a society in which your every move is monitored, and having even so much as an errant thought is a death sentence. This is compounded by the fact that the quality of life for those living under The Party is entirely subpar. I’d rather have to spend the rest of my life in Walmart than a single day in the dystopian nightmare that is the nation of Oceania.

Though, as much as I enjoyed the book, I didn’t particularly appreciate the way it ends. Sure, it was perfectly in line with the overall setting of the book, and realistically speaking there was really no other way that it could have ended, but I suppose I’d just prefer a sort of… Underdog rises up to fight “The Man” type of ending instead of what we got.

Still, when all is said and done, 1984 is overall a very solid book, and a must read for anyone with an interest in dystopia.

Review written by Daniel G.