"September 24,
1974:
I’ve been
assigned to work at the Ministry of Truth as a mechanic. It seems that I’ll be
fixing machines, but that’ll be comfortable as I love to work with tools and
machines. It feels weird to be leaving school and to be working for the Party.
However, it’ll be a relief from those boring, pointless lectures that the
educators always give about purity and devotion to the Party, as well as the “History”
lessons which I know are not correct at all- my grandfather, before going “missing”(I
know the Party took him away, I’ll never forget that) told me about the history
in his time, and I know that Big Brother wasn’t popular since the 1930’s- he
only rose up in fame during the 1950’s!
All the Party’s
talk about cleanliness and purity in the Outer Party is stupid and ironic; how
has the Party has taken control of our minds? The Party, wanting to transform
our unfulfilled desires and frustration into unmoving support for them, has
made sex forbidden between Outer Party members. Why should pleasures be taboo
in society?
What boring
brainwashing lectures I’ll be missing and what pleasures I’ll be taking part in,
but I have to be on my guard at all times. Who knows if I’ll end up working with
a Thought Police agent? I’ll be careful to dodge the Party’s suspicion, because
I’m still actively partaking in the Junior Anti-Sex League (haha, what irony?)
and I was amazingly popular during my years in the Junior Spies. I’ll still be
actively participating in the Community Centre during most of my free time, leading
the groups on hikes and activities. However, in the few hours of free time I manage
to save up, I’ll be looking forward to love and desire.
In fact, just
yesterday, as I was being introduced to my workplace, I met an old Inner Party official;
say around 60 years old or so. He seems to have an interest in me, and I feel a
strange desire to him. I don’t know why; his old ugly face does not appeal, but
I sense a feeling of not belonging in that old man. Well, I’ll just have to see
how it goes between him and me..."
This is a journal entry by Julia, the second most important character in the novel, who happens to be Winston's lover throughout the story and maintains a brief but passionate relationship with Winston. Although Julia turns out to be a fellow Thoughtcriminal, while Winston worries about the social problems in Oceania, Julia is more concerned with pleasure and freedom. Julia is a very important character to the story- whereas without Julia, Winston simply worried and thought about the problems in Oceania, with Julia, Winston became more aggressive, more out-going and followed through with his actions, even to the point of joining the Brotherhood, an anti-Party association, and reading the illegal (Prohibited) book that the Brotherhood is compelled to read. Julia persuaded and influenced Winston to be more daring and bold during their brief relationship.
However, Julia is introduced only as the "Little brown-haired girl" in the beginning of the novel. Her origins are not explained thoroughly, and the only thing we know about her past is that she had a grandfather who was taken away by the Party. I felt compelled to write about her younger years, when she just arrived in the Ministry of Truth and reveal more of her youth. Also, as she described herself, Julia had her first affair with an old Inner Party official, who later hanged himself in fear. Using that information, I illustrated the beginnings of Julia's criminal life.
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