Jono's Chapter Summary

Chapter VII Summary

After three consecutive chapters describing the work life of the ‘lesser’ Party members, he shifts his focus towards the ‘proles’ of the novel: the poor working class of Oceania.

What happens basically? (No techniques here, just simplifying plot for people)

During Chapter 7, Winston contemplates in his diary as to whether or not the proles have the ability to ‘release’ Oceania from the Party’s dictatorship. He strongly believes that under the correct leadership, they will be able to do overthrow the Party, mainly because of the fact that they make up 85% of Oceania’s population. Winston also believes that as capable as the proles are of overthrowing the Party, they lack the willpower and intelligence to do so, and that they are even too ignorant to know why they are being so oppressed by the Thought Police.

Winston then pulls out a children’s ‘history’ book, which is essentially a form of propaganda against Capitalism: the primary ideology against Totalitarian values. It describes how pre-Party London was a ‘dark, dirty and miserable’ place where children worked twelve-hour days and were treated like slaves of the money-loving Capitalists. It also claims that if anybody disobeyed them, they would be imprisoned, starved or made jobless. Winston questions the validity of this book, seeing that it was written by the Party.

After reading part of the book, Winston recalls a disturbing memory that exposed the lies of the Party. The story is of three men who were charged by the Party of being traitors to Oceania with various crimes such as passing on intelligence and murder. These three rebels then were forced to ‘confess’ to their crimes, and were then released. News of their treachery was then spread throughout Oceania. However at the time that these men were supposedly committing their crimes in Eurasia, they were in fact in New York. This was confirmed by a ‘Times’ newspaper clipping that Winston accidentally came across, showing an image of all three rebels in New York from ten years earlier on the same period of time that they were supposed to have ‘committed their crimes’ in Eurasia.

Winston questions his own lunacy, deciding to himself whether he is the only person who sees the ideology of the Party to be a sham. He then suddenly remembers O’Brien and how he is potentially a logical thinker like Winston himself.

The novel ends with Winston writing in the novel as if he were writing to O’Brien, briefly describing that freedom is the right to say that 2+2=4, contrary to popular belief that 2+2=5.

Significant lines and why (S&W):

1. “Until they become conscious, they will never rebel, and until they rebel, they will never become conscious” -Page 74

S&W: This line refers to the proles who have the power, but not the will or intelligence to overthrow the Party. It describes a ‘chicken and egg’ type of problem where there will be no ‘spark’ for the revolt against the Party. Essentially, it describes how if such a force as the prole cannot overcome the Party, nothing can. The themes, ‘loss of individuality’ and ‘psychological manipulation’ is addressed in this quote.



2. “I understand HOW: I do not understand WHY” -Page 83

S&W: This line acts as a contrast to all the values of the Party. So far within the novel, it appears that Oceanians are spoon-fed information without any form of reasoning, and the fact that Winston can muster up the intelligence to query this sets him apart from society. This pertains to the theme of ‘alienation’ and ‘manipulation of history’.



3. “Freedom is the freedom to say that two plus two make four. If that is granted, all else follows” -Page 84

S&W: This quote underlines how ‘unstable’ the values of the Party are. It essentially illuminates that if the smallest shred of doubt, such as the confirmation that 2+2=4, is planted into the minds of people, it will have a snowballing effect against the Party, ultimately overthrowing them. The themes, ‘reasoning’ and ‘psychological manipulation’ are addressed in this quote.