Book 3 chapter 1-3
"You believe that reality is something objective, external, existing in its own right... But I tell you, Winston, that reality is not external. Reality exists in the human mind, and nowhere else. Not in the individual mind, which can make mistakes, and in any case soon perishes: only in the mind of the Party, which is collective and immortal. Whatever the Party holds to be the truth, is truth. It is impossible to see reality except by looking through the eyes of the Party... You must humble yourself before you can become sane."
What O'Brien said holds some water. Our perception is based on sight and what we believe is our reality. However what we see is something that can easily be distorted. Our opinions and beliefs cloud our judgment of the world and see something when it's really not there. For example, some people see women wearing a hijab reading book and automatically place a negative connotation on her presence. People don't ever see something for its face value, instead see their assumptions. So when O'Brien says that "reality exists in the human mind," he means the person's reality or their interpretation of the world around them. However when he says that "the Party holds the truth" and that "reality is through the eyes of the Party" is part of their propaganda. The propaganda tries to distort reality to their own goals. It makes the party's job easier because if the citizens all believe that the party word is true then they can control them.
O'Brien's speech is also very manipulative. He talks like Winston's thoughts are a mistake and that the Party does nothing wrong. It very sinister and malicious. The line "You must humble yourself before you can become sane," is so evil. He makes a helpful advice like being humble into a mechanism for control.
What O'Brien said holds some water. Our perception is based on sight and what we believe is our reality. However what we see is something that can easily be distorted. Our opinions and beliefs cloud our judgment of the world and see something when it's really not there. For example, some people see women wearing a hijab reading book and automatically place a negative connotation on her presence. People don't ever see something for its face value, instead see their assumptions. So when O'Brien says that "reality exists in the human mind," he means the person's reality or their interpretation of the world around them. However when he says that "the Party holds the truth" and that "reality is through the eyes of the Party" is part of their propaganda. The propaganda tries to distort reality to their own goals. It makes the party's job easier because if the citizens all believe that the party word is true then they can control them.
O'Brien's speech is also very manipulative. He talks like Winston's thoughts are a mistake and that the Party does nothing wrong. It very sinister and malicious. The line "You must humble yourself before you can become sane," is so evil. He makes a helpful advice like being humble into a mechanism for control.
I agree with what you said. Our judgments are biased of what we deem "good", and that perception of "good' can be easily altered. Outlets like the news, social media, and even the people we hang around can influence our thoughts. We must not be blind when making actions.
ReplyDeleteAlso, I never really thought about how being humble can silence you and make your a puppet. I just thought it was a way to get by, but The Party manipulates that quality and uses it to control the Citizens of Oceania.