(Book One: Chapters 7 and 8, and Book Two: Chapters 1 and 2): Desensitization in Oceania
Quote:
"There was a little pile of plaster lying on the pavement ahead of him, and in the middle of it he could see a bright red streak. When he got up to it he saw that it was a human hand severed at the wrist. Apart from the bloody stump, the hand was so completely whitened as to resemble a plaster cast. He kicked the thing into the gutter, and then, to avoid the crowd, turned down a side-street to the right. Within three or four minutes he was out of the area which the bomb had affected..." (Page 82)
What I Have to Say:
This serves as a great example for how Winston and most likely the rest of the citizens of Oceania have become desensitization. Throughout the book we have seen how Winston is very aware of all of the shady things going on; he notes how history is constantly being rewritten, how openly the government lies about production statistics, how 85% of the population is held to different standards, and how the Party enforces a very solitary existence to limit the chance of camaraderie (among "comrades", how fitting). Despite this awareness Winston's behavior is generally detached from his reality.
For this particular scene, through Orwell's choice of words we get the feel that Winston doesn't really care that people have just died as a result of rocket bombs that he himself noted earlier in the book most likely come from the Party themselves. He kicked away the "thing", not a hand of someone who died just about 20 seconds ago. The description is based on the hands resemblance to an object, like plaster, instead of the gruesome details, thus removing any human reaction from it. Winston just kicks it away like it doesn't matter, like it is common and has no important meaning. He moves on, and away from the wreckage, he forgets and goes on with his day.
We can see similar behavior in Winston's work space; as he works, he is often thinking about how he is literally rewriting history so it matches whatever the Part sees fit, but this is normal to him. He doesn't really get upset, and certainly doesn't do anything about it. He just continues to work, because what he is doing is just considered another normal part of his life. While I understand it is dangerous to react differently to these things or to stand up against them, the contrast between the understanding of injustice and the lack of reaction to it is just interesting.
I have noticed that desensitization, however, is not the only way that the Party has been molding the minds of citizens. For instance, Two Minutes Hate is used as a way to brew fear and hatred in the masses. Winston notices that despite knowing that everyone gets really riled up, he cannot stop himself from starting to feel the same way. During the Two Minutes Hate that is described to us in the first chapter, we get to see a lot of his own violent thoughts that he cannot control (although he can somewhat control what it is directed towards). When he sees that Julia has been following him as he is coming back from the shop where he purchased the blank book and paperweight, he immediately thinks of killing her. Although he ultimately decides against it, the complete distrust for others that the Party has (subtly) encouraged and the fear of vaporization after being exposed led him to immediately think of violence. This sort of reaction is understandable for his situation, but it is amazing to think just how much influence the Party has over the citizens of Oceania.
"There was a little pile of plaster lying on the pavement ahead of him, and in the middle of it he could see a bright red streak. When he got up to it he saw that it was a human hand severed at the wrist. Apart from the bloody stump, the hand was so completely whitened as to resemble a plaster cast. He kicked the thing into the gutter, and then, to avoid the crowd, turned down a side-street to the right. Within three or four minutes he was out of the area which the bomb had affected..." (Page 82)
What I Have to Say:
This serves as a great example for how Winston and most likely the rest of the citizens of Oceania have become desensitization. Throughout the book we have seen how Winston is very aware of all of the shady things going on; he notes how history is constantly being rewritten, how openly the government lies about production statistics, how 85% of the population is held to different standards, and how the Party enforces a very solitary existence to limit the chance of camaraderie (among "comrades", how fitting). Despite this awareness Winston's behavior is generally detached from his reality.
For this particular scene, through Orwell's choice of words we get the feel that Winston doesn't really care that people have just died as a result of rocket bombs that he himself noted earlier in the book most likely come from the Party themselves. He kicked away the "thing", not a hand of someone who died just about 20 seconds ago. The description is based on the hands resemblance to an object, like plaster, instead of the gruesome details, thus removing any human reaction from it. Winston just kicks it away like it doesn't matter, like it is common and has no important meaning. He moves on, and away from the wreckage, he forgets and goes on with his day.
We can see similar behavior in Winston's work space; as he works, he is often thinking about how he is literally rewriting history so it matches whatever the Part sees fit, but this is normal to him. He doesn't really get upset, and certainly doesn't do anything about it. He just continues to work, because what he is doing is just considered another normal part of his life. While I understand it is dangerous to react differently to these things or to stand up against them, the contrast between the understanding of injustice and the lack of reaction to it is just interesting.
I have noticed that desensitization, however, is not the only way that the Party has been molding the minds of citizens. For instance, Two Minutes Hate is used as a way to brew fear and hatred in the masses. Winston notices that despite knowing that everyone gets really riled up, he cannot stop himself from starting to feel the same way. During the Two Minutes Hate that is described to us in the first chapter, we get to see a lot of his own violent thoughts that he cannot control (although he can somewhat control what it is directed towards). When he sees that Julia has been following him as he is coming back from the shop where he purchased the blank book and paperweight, he immediately thinks of killing her. Although he ultimately decides against it, the complete distrust for others that the Party has (subtly) encouraged and the fear of vaporization after being exposed led him to immediately think of violence. This sort of reaction is understandable for his situation, but it is amazing to think just how much influence the Party has over the citizens of Oceania.
I like the quote you chose to write your analysis on. It shows how Winston does experience desensitization especially when it comes to encountering a severed human hand and not really having a reaction to it. Another example which you did write about is when Winston had murderous thoughts about Julia. It is interesting to see the effects that the Party had on the people of Oceania.
ReplyDeleteVery interesting topic, I hadn't really analyzed this. I agree with you on the concept of the members of the Party being desensitized. They've accepted that things are how they are. When people go missing in the middle of the night or commit suicide they just accept that things but have to be that way. Children don't think about losing their parents they think about the Party. I think that considering that Winston isn't surpirsed by his reaction to Julia, that violent thoughts aren't something they're taught to be concerned about.They WANT to go to hangings even as young children(which brings up a whole racial analysis of how that could connect to young white children going to lynchings of black people) and are used to the violence they hear about.
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