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eric1996
eric1996
Student
High School - 12th Grade

How can Winston be seen as an unlikely hero?

In George Orwell's novel '1984.'

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Posted by eric1996 on Saturday February 14, 2009 at 3:41 AM and tagged with 1984, character profile, hero, orwell, winston.

Answers:

  1. parkerlee
    parkerlee Teacher

    eNotes Editor

    Best answer as selected by question asker.

    The reader identifies with Winston through his weaknesses rather than for his strengths. He is no bigger-than-life Hercules but a tired, middle-aged, non-descript man reduced to subservience by "the system." Despite his doubts and deep feeling of angst, he collaborates with the state (at the Ministry of Truth) by rewriting "history" to its convenience.

    Winston is not at all charismatic; he is not the kind of person who can rally people together for a common cause. He has the gut feeling that everything has gone terribly awry, but he has neither the mental resolve nor the emotiional reserve to fight back - until he meets Julia. Even then he betrays her when the pressure's on, is punished for his insubordination, and is finally conditioned to "love" Big Brother in the end. Winston is not the kind of character one can admire, but he does evoke pathos and pity. His vulnerability makes him so very human. If anything, Winston is an anti-hero, but he is nevertheless the protagonist of the story and an "Everyman" type all the same.

    Sources:
    http://www.enotes.com/1984/characters
    http://www.enotes.com/1984/george-orwell-mad-world-anti-u...
    http://www.enotes.com/jax/index.php/enotes/gsearch?m=tcs&...

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    Posted by parkerlee on Saturday February 14, 2009 at 7:28 AM

  2. ajk
    ajk Student
    High School - 9th Grade

    First of all I strongly believe that Winston Smith is not a hero.  I say this because Winston betrays Julia at the end of the book, and when looking back at all the events in the book Winston does stand out of the crowd, but at the end of the novel Winston becomes a normal person do to the brainwashing of the Party.

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    Posted by ajk on Tuesday February 17, 2009 at 4:41 PM


  3. timbrady Teacher
    College - Senior

    eNotes Editor

    The definition of a hero has evolved over thousands of years.  The current understanding, as defined in enotes (reference below) is "the principal character of a plan, novel, etc."  By this definition, he is the hero of the story.  Is he "heroic" in any traditional sense of the word?  Probably not.  But it is impossible for any individual to be a hero in this story and I think that's the point.  There can only be a hero when there is an individual free to think and act as such.  When the state can control you to the point where objective reality disappears, where you are willing to accept whatever you are told, where 2 + 2 = 5 can actually BE the truth, then the heroic is impossible.

    Winston is unlikely in the sad sense that this is what Orwell sees coming for all of us.

    Sources:
    http://www.enotes.com/literary-terms/hero

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    Posted by timbrady on Tuesday February 17, 2009 at 6:45 PM

  4. himself
    himself Student
    High School - 11th Grade

    Winston seems like an average middle aged person with slight health and social problems, yet unlike others in the party he still retains his own thoughts and can manage to see past all of the superficial slogans of Big Brother.

    He can be seen as a hero because he seems like an average every day person that most people can probably relate to in more than one way. His weaknesses make him a appear human and it is through this way that he can be seen as an unlikely hero

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    Posted by himself on Thursday July 23, 2009 at 9:08 PM

  5. heatherxx
    heatherxx

    Winston is a coward, a fool. His brains seem to be muddled from the months of tomfoolery with Julia. He is no hero, he is the enemy. A true hero would rise up, start a rebellion, not hide in the shadows. Prove me wrong.

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    Posted by heatherxx on Thursday July 23, 2009 at 9:17 PM

  6. decadence
    decadence Student
    High School - 11th Grade

    He is a normal guy. His views are no more special... his actions no more noble than any other guy on the street.

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    Posted by decadence on Thursday July 23, 2009 at 9:20 PM

  7. titsmcgee33
    titsmcgee33 Student
    Vocational

    Winston can't really be seen as a hero even though he the protagonist of the story.
    Howvever, you can take this as on of the reasons the he is an 'unlikely hero'
    In your generic plot, as the hero, he might have (but not necessarily) been younger. His age aside however, he would have developed from his image of ordinary subservient middle-aged man (with a number of undesirable physical and perhaps mental features) to a character that you as the reader can really appreciate his stuggles and feats. Contrary to this however, Winston doesn't fulfill the "hero mold" and betrays Julia and his initial ideal. In the context of 1984, when winston loses his freedom and surrenders to "2+2 = 5" the "hero" title can effectively be stripped from him.

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    Posted by titsmcgee33 on Thursday July 23, 2009 at 9:28 PM