I read 1984 sometime before college, in or around the year 1984. So this return to the novel was informative. Orwell’s misogyny comes shining through the pages. Julia is a strange and contradictory character in a mostly uninteresting and contradictory way. Would she give up the caution she has been exercising as a teenager in her illegal sexual forays for her love affair with Winston Smith? Does Goldstein need to be Jewish? Probably. The “Jew” as the other who controls/destroys the system is certainly a historical social and political theme. But I know Orwell was an anti-Semite. Did he enjoy his caricaturing Goldstein?
The end was a surprise. Winston is essentially an alcoholic. After all he has been through, all his suffering, Victory Gin is self-medication. He is puffy and heavy. His pursuit of Julia post-MiniLuv is fascinating but odd. The encounter in the park with Julia at the end is strange. His pursuit of her to the tube was discordant. Does it fit into the overall story?
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