War is Peace
How has war changed since the early decades of the 20th century? pg. 185-186
- "between combatants who are unable to destroy one another, have no material cause for fighting, and are not divided by any genuine ideological difference"
- "involves small numbers of people", "causes comparatively small casualties"
- "it is always the same war", and "there is no longer, in a material sense, anything to fight about"
How has the vision of the future, as the people of the early 20th century saw it, been overturned? pg. 188-189
"The world of today is a bare, hungry, dilapidated place...still more so if compared with the imaginary future to which the people of that period looked forward...the vision of a future society unbelievably rich, leisured, orderly and efficient...This failed to happen, partly because of the impoverishment caused by a long series of wars and revolutions, partly because scientific and technical progress depended on the empirical habit of thought,which could not survive in a strictly regimented society."
"the ravages of the atomic war of the 1950s have never been fully repaired"
In the eyes of Big Brother, why is it important that citizens never have contact with foreigners? (pg. 196)
"If he were allowed contact with foreigners he would discover that they are creatures similar to himself and that most of what he has been told about them is lies. The sealed world in which he lives would be broken, and the fear, hatred, and self-righteousness on which his morale depends might evaporate."
What is the aim of the High? pg. 201
To remain where they are
What is the ideal profile of a Party member? pg. 211
"not have only the right opinions, but the right instincts"
"no private emotions an no respites from enthusiasm"
"live in a continuous frenzy of hatred of foreign enemies and internal traitors, triumph over victories, and self-abasement before the Party"
"discontents produced by his life are turned outwards"
Goldstein says "it is a warfare of limited aims." What are those aims? pg. 187
"it is a war for labor and power"
Why is scientific and technological progress stunted? pg. 189
the machine caused "an all-round increase in wealth [that] threatened the destruction...of a hierarchical society...the most obvious and perhaps the most important form of inequality would already have disappeared...in the long run, a hierarchical society was only possible on a basis of poverty and ignorance"
“The war is waged by each ruling group against ______, and the object of the war is not to make or prevent conquests of territory, but to _________” (199).
"The war is waged by each ruling group against its own subjects, and the object of the ar is not to make or prevent conquest of territory, but to keep the structure of society intact."
What is the aim of the Middle? pg. 201
To change places with the High
Is Big Brother real? Does it matter? Why or why not? pg. 208
"he is a face on the hoardings, a a voice on the telescreen...he will never die...Big Brother is the guise in which the Party chooses to exhibit itself to the world."
Previously, wars were waged for territory and resources. Why is that no longer necessary? pg. 187
"With the establishment of self-contained economies, in which production and consumption are geared to one another, the scramble for markets which was a main cause of previous wars has come to an aend, while the competition for raw materials is no longer a matter of life and death. In any case, each of the three superstates is so vast that it can obtain almost all of the materials that it needs within its own boundaries."
How is the hierarchical society of Oceania different from previous hierarchies? pg. 190-191
"nor was it a satisfactory solution to keep the masses in poverty by restricting the output of goods...that entailed military weakness...goods must be produced, but they need not be distributed. And in practice, the only way of achieving this was by continuous warfare"
How are the three remaining superpowers alike? pg. 196-197
"Everywhere there is the same pyramidal structure, the same worship of a semi-divine leader, the same economy existing by and for continuous warfare."
What is the aim of the Low? pg. 201
to abolish all distinctions and create a society in which all men shall be equal
What is crimestop? What is blackwhite? pg. 212
Crimestop = protective stupidity; stopping short at the threshold of dangerous thoughts
blackwhite = to an opponent, contradicting plain facts; to a Party member, the willingness to say black is white when the Party demands it. The ability to BELIEVE that black is white, to KNOW that black is white -- to believe doublethink
Where in the world are wars primarily concentrated? Why? pg. 187-188
"Tangier, Brazzaville, Darwin, and Hong Kong, containing within it about a fifth of the population of the earth...equatorial Africa, the Middle East, Southern India, Indonesian Archipelago"
"All of the disputed territories contain valuable minerals and...important vegetable products...above all they contain bottomless reserves of cheap labor."
What is the effect of a “general state of scarcity”? (pg. 191)
"a general state of scarcity increases the importance of small privileges and thus magnifies the distinction between one group and another"
How does Goldstein explain the paradox that “War is Peace”? pg. 198-199
"It would probably be accurate to say that by becoming continuous war has ceased to exist...The effect would be much the same if the three superstates, instead of fighting one another, should agree to live in perpetual peace, each inviolate within its own boundaries...A peace that is truly permanent would be the same as a permanent war. This...is the inner meaning of the Party slogan: War is Peace."
According to Goldstein, have the revolutions of the past brought greater equality? Why not? pg. 202-203
"For long periods the High seem to be securely in power...they are then overthrown by the Middle, who enlist the Low on their side...as soon as they reach their objective, the Middle thrust the Low back into their old position of servitude, and themselves become the high. Presently a new Middle group splits off from one of the other groups...and the struggle begins again..Only the Low are never even temporarily successful in achieving their aims."
What is the relationship between doublethink and the mutability of the past? pg. 213-214
doublethink is the "system of thought which really embraces all the rest," to "know that black i white and to forget that one has ever believed the contrary. This demands the continuous alteration of the past."
Doublethink is necessary because the Party has to cut off all standards of comparison and to safeguard the infallibility of the Party.
What is the primary aim of modern warfare? (pg. 188)
"the object of waging a war is always to be in a better position in which to wage another war"
"The primary aim of modern warfare...is to use up the products of the machine without raising the general standard of living"
What are the two aims of the Party? (pg. 193)
"The two aims of the Party are to conquer the whole surface of the earth and to extinguish once and or all the possibility of independent thought."
Why is war "a purely internal affair"? pg. 199
"It eats up the surplus of consumable goods, and it helps to preserve the special mental atmosphere that a hierarchical society needs."
How do the members of the Inner Party remain in power? What is the role of surveillance? pg. 205-207
"the invention of print, however, made it easier to manipulate public opinion, and the film and the radio carried the process further. With the development of television...private life came to an end. Every citizen...could be kept for twenty-four hours a day under the eyes of the police and in the sound of official propaganda...enforcing not only complete obedience...but complete uniformity"
With what question is Winston left as he falls asleep? pg. 217
"He had still, he reflected, not learned the ultimate secret. He understood HOW; he did not understand WHY."