Living Dead

            In George Orwell’s novel 1984, there were many situations that mock certain situations that happen in people’s lives now.  One of the few things in the novel that really caught my attention the most was Winston and Julia’s love and sacrifices for each other.  Winston and Julia’s relationship goes through many battles.  They made many sacrifices for each other, and at one point, the freedom they felt when they were together was all they cared about.  Despite all the rules that their society laid on them, they’d still find ways to see each other.  Just as in the song “Work Song” by Horizer, Winston was the guy he was talking about.  “Room was empty, didn’t care how he lived….No grave can hold my body down, I’ll crawl home to her”(Horizer).  He didn’t really care that they weren’t supposed to be together.  He didn’t’ care about the rules, and he knew that one day they’ll get caught.  So he took advantage of the time spent with Julia.  He didn’t let Big Brother take him down, he still went back to her regardless of the possible punishments.  There love is also symbolized in the song “Your Ex Lover is Dead” by Stars, “Live through this and you won’t look back… I’m not sorry I met You” (Stars).  Sadly, Winston and Julia’s relationship didn’t have a happy ending.  Even if they told each other numerous times that they would never betray each other, that’s what they ended up doing in the end.  They both were tortured, and eventually gave in and told them to stop and do it to Julia/Winston instead.  They were left with no choice; they had to put their love story to an end and forget what was once there.  When they saw each other again, they both didn’t even worry about one another as they did before; their “ex lover is dead”.  Even if this book didn’t end with any happy endings for Julia and Winston, the ending was still very powerful.  It just showed how much power a totalitarian government can really hold.  They fought for their own freedom, and disliked everything about Big Brother, but in the end they were brain washed, and tortured enough to get persuaded that this is really it; they’ll always live under Big Brother, and that they should love him.  Everything they once fought for is just left behind, something they don’t even bother to come back to.  They used all their strength for something, and ended up weak with no more strength to fight back.  In the end it made me think, that soon everyone in Oceania will be walking just as stiff as Julia and Winston’s ex wife; the living dead.