KBrennan+19884+Chapter+4+reactions

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Kellie Brennan Jan. 27, 2010 Laurencot 

First Reactions- After reading chapter 4, I feel that Winston wants to believe that altering the documents is forgery but is conditioned to believe what Big Brother tells him so he follows what they tell him. Also, Winston is oddly curious about what Tilloston is working on. He believes they are working on the same project but thinks that Big Brother will like his speech better and chooses his to read.

What is the meaning of chapter 4?   After rereading this chapter, I understand what Winston is doing in this chapter more clearly. Winston is assigned to go back to a speech that Big Brother made in 1983 about a man who was executed because he was going against them. However, Big Brother wants to always seem like the good guy so Winston is assigned to go and rewrite the speech. He creates this new man and makes him the ultimate respecter of Big Brother. He joins the army at a young age and wants to do everything possible to help his country. In this chapter, Winston also reflects on all the different things Big Brother has people change to make them seem like they are helping their lives when they are really not doing anything.  I think the meaning of chapter 4 is to show the reader how government can try and blind you to make themselves look like they are helping when they are really just hurting the situation. Government wants you to believe that we need them to operate peacefully so no one ever tries to go against it because they are afraid of what will happen if government disappears. However, Big Brother is hiding all these problems because they want people to believe that if Big Brother leaves, then they will not be able to function.