Freedom in the Context of 1984

Freedom is an important theme in the novel 1984. The majority of the people of Oceania have been denied as much freedom as possible by the government, and they have taken about everything away, and try to enforce it. The freedom of the mind is what keeps Winston to break the rules set by Big Brother. Freedom is all a mental condition; to be able to act according to one’s own will without being oppressed by another person’s own will. The government in the book sets the freedom of the people so low that they can’t distinguish what is being kept from them, so in their minds, they are unaware that they have no freedom. Freedom cannot be definitely measured; it is measured by one’s awareness and will, information and desires. The slogan used by Big Brother, “Freedom is Slavery”, is a translation of the fact that there is always someone who will try to use his own freedom to deny others from their own freedom. Freedom is a psychological word. There is always a fight for fair and just freedom. Achievements are results of freedom, may it be from one person or multiple people, achieving more is linked to freedom.

Dear Jin Jingzhi,

Did you view Mao as a man with good ideas and morals?
Were any members of the Red Guard people you knew?
How was the land and people around you around you changed by the Great Leap Forward?

I found interesting that your life could related to the lives of us so perfectly, even though you were citizens of this period in a completely different society. The Chinese citizens' lives and interests were similar to ours as human beings living in a comfortable society, as well as their thoughts and motives. It seemed so alien because of all the things that Mao did that would have been strange in our society. You also were always in a positive and hopeful mood, you believed that everything would turn for the better.