Orwell examines the process by which the ruling powers of the Party exploit human instincts to commit violent acts—described by Winston as “a hideous ecstasy of fear and vindictiveness”—by removing all other values and sources of pleasure. Reflecting upon his mother’s death, Winston explains that the only emotions that matter are “fear, hatred, and pain." As O’Brien tells Winston near the end of the book, the only principle that truly matters in Oceania is power. There is no other value in human nature that will supercede it:

We control life, Winston, at all its levels. You are imagining that there is something called human nature which will be outraged by what we do and will turn against us. But we create human nature. Men are infinitely malleable. Or perhaps you have returned to your old idea that the proletarians or the slaves will arise and overthrow us. Put it out of your mind. They are helpless, like the animals. Humanity is the Party. The others are outside—irrelevant.

In denying that human nature exists on its own, O’Brien suggests that essential human values—such as family, love, and compassion—are arbitrary and eradicable. In Oceania, this dehumanization process begins in childhood, during which phase children are “systematically turned against their parents and taught to spy on them and report their deviations,” thereby preventing non-Party values from having any influence. Orwell thus emphasizes the ethical implications of seeking power at all costs. In capitalizing upon these destructive human instincts, the Party maintains its control over the public.