What is the main idea of this chapter?
On every landing in the stairwell of Winston Smith's building, there is a large poster of Big Brother: "It depicted simply an enormous face, more than a metre wide: the face of a man of about forty–five, with a heavy black moustache and ruggedly handsome features."
What does"features"mean?
Inside Winston's apartment is a telescreen, which he can dim but never turn off. "The telescreen received and transmitted simultaneously. Any sound that Winston made, above the level of a very low whisper, would be picked up by it, moreover, so long as he remained within the field of vision which the metal plaque commanded, he could be seen as well as heard."
What does"simultaneously"mean?
There are four government Ministries, "…between which the entire apparatus of government was divided. The Ministry of Truth, which concerned itself with news, entertainment, education, and the fine arts. The Ministry of Peace, which concerned itself with war. The Ministry of Love, which maintained law and order. And the Ministry of Plenty, which was responsible for economic affairs."
What does"apparatus"mean?
Which Ministry does Winston think is the really frightening one?
Winston sets his features "into the expression of quiet optimism" when facing the telescreen. What does "optimism"mean?
Winston decided to begin a diary on this particular day because of an incident with O'Brien, which "happened that morning at the Ministry, if anything so nebulous could be said to happen."
What does"nebulous"mean?
The principal figure in the daily Two Minutes Hate is Emmanuel Goldstein, the Enemy of the People. "He was the primal traitor, the earliest defiler of the Party's purity. All subsequent crimes against the Party, all treacheries, acts of sabotage, heresies, deviations, sprang directly out of his teaching."
What does"subsequent"mean?
After Winston writes DOWN WITH BIG BROTHER several times in his diary, he begins to feel panic and considers tearing out those pages. "He did not do so, however, because he knew that it was useless. Whether he wrote DOWN WITH BIG BROTHER, or whether he refrained from writing it, made no difference."
What does"refrained"mean?
Winston knows he has committed "the essential crime that contained all others in itself". What crime is he referring to?
