The book didn't take long to read at all since it certainly was a page-turner if there ever was one. Although the story of the totalitarian state is depicted, the book seldom delves into an 'action-oriented' narrative but rather, the protagonists interact with the world while the third-person narrative describes the mechanics of the frightening society that exists in the year that is also the book's title. This format is especially engaging when the story focuses on character dialogue that questions the concept of truth and metaphysical abstractions, where antagonists justify the totalitarian party's techniques at suppressing truth. If the book appears daunting to you as a potential reader, please don't let this get in the way of enjoying such a magnificent classic for possessing the appearance of a 'hard' book. It isn't. In fact, I would go as far to say that it is very easy to read, much easier than some contemporary books even.
In short, the language is crisp and completely non-superfluous, making the storyline quick to advance and as a result, the page-turing increasingly enjoyable. The protagonist of Winston is not quite a 'cookie-cutter' figure but rather a reasonably well-defined character with certain complexities. He isn't exactly a character with whom you can easily relate due to certain constrains placed upon him by the story, but his being coupled with additional protagonist Julie adds an interesting dynamic, the pair complementing one another in their structure as characters. A final point on characterisation is on the antagonists who -unlike in other stories- are decidedly evil and have little characterisation to the contrary, which -as you would imagine- could potentially make the story less complex with good and evil well-defined as opposed to blurred. But this evil characterisation of the antagonists plays well into the dystopia of the book, with intelligent character dialogue where antagonists attempt to justify their evils, as mentioned already. These justifications only serve in most cases to increase dislike of the antagonists, but nevertheless, this kind of scene serves the book well as far as its dystopia and sense of hopelessness goes.
In summary, 1984 is a book that I will remember for years to come. An all-time classic that is more relevant today than at any point in history.
In short, the language is crisp and completely non-superfluous, making the storyline quick to advance and as a result, the page-turing increasingly enjoyable. The protagonist of Winston is not quite a 'cookie-cutter' figure but rather a reasonably well-defined character with certain complexities. He isn't exactly a character with whom you can easily relate due to certain constrains placed upon him by the story, but his being coupled with additional protagonist Julie adds an interesting dynamic, the pair complementing one another in their structure as characters. A final point on characterisation is on the antagonists who -unlike in other stories- are decidedly evil and have little characterisation to the contrary, which -as you would imagine- could potentially make the story less complex with good and evil well-defined as opposed to blurred. But this evil characterisation of the antagonists plays well into the dystopia of the book, with intelligent character dialogue where antagonists attempt to justify their evils, as mentioned already. These justifications only serve in most cases to increase dislike of the antagonists, but nevertheless, this kind of scene serves the book well as far as its dystopia and sense of hopelessness goes.
In summary, 1984 is a book that I will remember for years to come. An all-time classic that is more relevant today than at any point in history.
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