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1984 Rhetorical Analysis

Decent Essays

Famous philanthropist Stephen Hawking once stated, “We are all different. There is no such thing as a standard or run-of-the-mill human being, but we share the same human spirit.” In the world of George Orwell’s 1984, this shared human spirit is abused, neglected, and utterly destroyed. This is most apparent when O’Brien deconstructs the argument of Winston and, in turn, tears down his human spirit. While Winston clings to a persistent hope of the failure of The Party, O’Brien uses logos and pathos strategies to methodically tear apart this belief. This maniacal argument for The Party, the strong imagery involved in the interrogation, and the mental collapse of Winston produce one of the most thought-provoking, saddening, and terrifying scenes in 1984. Initially, the imagery of this section is the memory that connects with the reader. This precisely articulated expressions and emotions of the characters brings life to the argument that itself it could not create. The preface to this interrogation, the period of torture Winston suffers, creates the mindset of helplessness and pain before Winston ever even discusses with O’Brien. “Always there were five or six men in black uniforms at him simultaneously. Sometimes it was firsts, sometimes it was truncheons, sometimes it was steel rods, sometimes it was boots. There were times he rolled about on the floor, as shameless as an animal…” (Orwell 263). All of this inhumane torture degraded our protagonist to a decrepit state. For

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