1984

It's still required reading at my school, along with Animal Farm, Brave New World, Farenheight 451, and Lord of the Flies

 

I started 1984 and couldn't finish it. I felt no emotional connection to Winston what so ever. It's like when I'm reading a book the charactars become real...I wonder what they're up to when I put the book down. But I din't think about him at all when I wasn't reading it.
But for some reason long after I'd stopped reading it, I kept coming across things in the newspaper, on-line and on television that would make me think of 1984!!! The book and the message was always in the back of mind. So began reading it again and actually enjoyed it.

It also prompted me to get A Brave New World...which is much better.

 

It's true that Brave New World sorta goes hand-in-hand with 1984, but I don't think you can really compare them, and definitely Slutter you shouldn't make it sound like 1984 isn't worthwhile. (Personally I liked it more.) They're both books about dystopias, but very different visions of a terrible future.
1984 is tyranny through terror, Brave New World is tyranny through pleasure.
Read 'em both.

 

Personally I think 1984 is a much stronger book than Brave New World (not to say that Brave New World isn't a great work in it's own right). But I found 1984 to be one of the most devastating and depressing books I've ever read. It's not only a critique of totalitarianism but also the human condition itself. In the end Wiston Smith is unable to maintain the one thing that gives him freedom and defines him as an individual - his love for Julia. In the end his torturers force him to utterly betray everything including Julia. By the time they are done with him Smith doesn't even have the will to love anymore.

I think the reason this book isn't taught a lot in High Schools anymore - at least not in more prudish school systems, is because of all the references to sexuality.

 

The parallels between 1984 and today are quite disturbing. I have to say, the British do this genre best. Has anyone seen the 1984 movie? Doesn't do the book justice.

 

I enjoyed Brave New World.
I love 1984.
I have read it several times.
I think that 1984 is closer to today's times.
But if you want a good Aldous Huxley book read The Doors of Perception.
It is more like an essay than a book.

 

1984 is a great book. I havent read Brave New World (yet) but im soon going to start Farenheit 451.
We did read Animal Farm last year in school, but I felt the teacher was a little out of her comfort zone, so I'm not quite sure the class benefited as much as it could have.

I didnt like the 1984 1984 film very much though. I couldnt quite watch it all the way through...

 

Absolutely.

And coming true, every day!

 

1984 is one of my favourite books.i felt that connection from the first page to the last one.and at the end there was a pain in my stomach.i wanna read it again.
the animal farm is also effective,but aspidistra made me a little disappointed.
who is the writer of Brave New World?you made me wanna read it

 

1984 was great. It was easily one of the most depressing books I've ever read, but it was amazing. Brave New World was good, too.

 

Brave New World was good but no where near as believable or as likely to happen as 1984. I actually think that if the internet had never come into existence, 1984 would surely have been able to happen.

 

when i gave emma goldmans book to my religion teacher(he is an atheist!)last week,he said "have you read brave new world?you must read it!"..i wanna read this book,what is it about?

 

Nice insight, I wish more thought like you do. Just noticed you are a contemporary of mine agewise, maybe that has something to do with it. Get your post count up so you can take part more in the political forums.

 

Brave New World:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brave_New_World

This is better description than the one I would have written. I don't think Huxley or Orwell were trying to be prophets, I think they were stating possible outcomes to current thought. The fact that they have indeed started to be accomplished by powerful organizations and individuals is not amazing. The fact that the timing has been off can be accounted for the little man's resistance and resilience.

More reason to pay attention to the arts. Afterall these were works of fiction.

 

I've read 1984 and Brave New World, to study for my English class. I think 1984 is better, but Brave New World does touch on some things 1984 does not.

 

For real, we're already there.
Conspiracy and bulshit aside.

CCTV is coming to a city near you soon. Rather then address the root causes of crime, let's put camera's everywhere, identify agitators against us more swiftly, and push violent crime against marginalized peoples further into the shadows

The HATE sounds very reminscient of th six o clock news. The "fascist dictators" that lead out revolutions with the peope are "terrorists". Where as state sanctioned terrorism is okay, as long as it's us doing it.

Look at the city's! In vancouver the cops now have an armoured personal carrier and automatic weaponry.

Future my ass. Not to even speak of the atrocities committed directly every day against indigenous people's domestically

 

I pretty much just finished 1984 and I absolutely loved it. The best part is clearly Goldstein's book, incredible. George Orwell is a master writer.
We had to read Animal Farm as school curriculum (though not 1984) and I would say that 1984 definitly beats Animal Farm, maybe because Animal Farm is too short.

I actually just got Brave New World in a garage sale, I picked it up because I had heard about it somewhere and I was told I should read it so I was like sure why not. I've only got a chapter in but I'm currently leaning towards 1984 still. But I still have to read Brave New World.

Oh and I'll definitly put Farenheit 451 on my list.

 

Love the book. Really began to open my mind.