The opening
scene begins with Winston entering
the doors of the Victory Mansions, the apartment building
where he lives, and
ends with him starting to write in his diary.
This
opening
scene is significant because it lays out in brief strokes the contours of Winston's
(and
since he is a representative figure, almost everyone's) life.
Specifically, it focuses on the
constant surveillance and fear Winston (and
almost everybody else in Oceania) is subjected to
and their miserable
standard of living.
The low standard of living comes
across vividly in the broken elevator, which we are told is usually broken, forcing
Winston to
climb seven sets of stairs, and through Winston's ill health--he
has to rest on the stairs
because of an ulcer above his right ankle, as well
as through his small apartment, and the
meagre supply of poor food he has, a
bit of dry bread and Victory gin.
The
surveillance and
fear under which he lives is also vividly illustrated in this opening. Twice
he
sees the poster that says "Big Brother is Watching You," reinforcing the
ominous
message that everyone is under surveillance. We experience the
television screens which can't be
turned off and are used to spy on people.
We learn about the Thought Police, and find out as
well that because there
are no laws, anything could be construed as a
crime. We
are introduced to terrifying the Ministry of Love, and learn that the least
deviation
from orthodoxy can and will lead, at the very least, to 25 years in
a hard labor camp. By the
time Winston writes in his diary, his world has
been so well rendered that we understand how
risky and subversive the mere
act of writing has become.
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