George Orwell's epic novel, 1984, about 'a' future seen through the author's eyes based on his observations through the year 1949 when it was published. It remains a literary classical read and discussed from high school to universities and beyond today.
1984 Quotes: The 30 Best & Most Important Lines From George Orwell’s Masterpiece by four minute books
https://fourminutebooks.com/1984-quotes/
From the article . . .
Key Takeaways
** The most powerful way to either control or empower humans is language.
** Freedom is the ability to say what’s true, to say what you think, and to make your own choices.
** Totalitarian governments succeed when they turn off our individuality via gaslighting.
To give perspective here is 2024 . . .
Here are the most popular ten quotes from the novel based on voting at Goodreads. See the article for all thirty.
1. “Perhaps one did not want to be loved so much as to be understood.”
2. “Who controls the past controls the future. Who controls the present controls the past.”
3. “War is peace. Freedom is slavery. Ignorance is strength.”
4. “The best books… are those that tell you what you know already.”
5. “If you want to keep a secret, you must also hide it from yourself.”
6. “But if thought corrupts language, language can also corrupt thought.”
7. “If you want a picture of the future, imagine a boot stamping on a human face—for ever.”
8. “We shall meet in the place where there is no darkness.”
9. “It was a bright cold day in April, and the clocks were striking thirteen.”
10. “Doublethink means the power of holding two contradictory beliefs in one’s mind simultaneously, and accepting both of them.”
Is it worth considering rereading the novel today having lived ??? years since first reading it? Will perspective change? Are there universal truths? How does it reflect today, 2024? Were there any favorite quotes of the thirty that stood out in your memory?
Sharing, I reflected with hazy thoughts of #2. “Who controls the past controls the future. Who controls the present controls the past.” jumped out at me when I saw the meme on Facebook shared above.
Thoughts, criticisms, accolades, and/or commentary?
Wow, Tim. Number 2 and that meme. Very relevant indeed. 1984 is looking more prophetic all the time.
Thanks for the comment, John!
"2. “Who controls the past controls the future. Who controls the present controls the past.”
Playing around, from one's personal 'reality', which is a vast discussion for discovery and learning, look at it from the perspective of curiosity and pondering.
The individual reading something is being controlled no matter how you slice it. The author of what is read is controlling the reader's present related to the mind at the time of what is read. Thus, from Orwell's #2 from '1984' the past is being controlled.
One can view the past as being that composed of recalled memories of the subconscious mind becoming conscious or now the present. And, then, "Who controls the past controls the future" or the immediate new thoughts conjured following along a timeline of the 'thought' events.
Actions follow thoughts while reactions follow innate responses such as the fight/flight/fawn response. Not matter either path leads to the future becoming 'Now'.
"2. “Who controls the past controls the future. Who controls the present controls the past.”
What does that meme mean? Of course it will vary as each person is a unique individual formed by their 'unique past a result both of experiences and gained knowledge arrived through choices.
How many people know who the four horseman are?
From Britannica arrives . . .
" Who are the four horsemen of the apocalypse? The four horsemen of the apocalypse are four biblical figures who appear in the Book of Revelation. They are revealed by the unsealing of the first four of the seven seals. Each of the horsemen represents a different facet of the apocalypse: conquest, war, famine, and death." (Revelations Chapter 6) They precede the biblical end time.
Skipping about, 'misinformation' is "false or inaccurate information, especially that which is deliberately intended to deceive."
"2. “Who controls the past controls the future. Who controls the present controls the past.”
Misinformation (witnessed or experienced in the present) is controlling the 'past' related to one's personal reality composed of memories that are recalled at the time of the stimulus, though other memories may have not been conjured.
Thus, "Who controls the past controls the future." or what happens next for any who has read the preceding including myself.
Just a bit of wandering through the past arriving to 'Now' controlled by . . .
"Wow, Tim. Number 2 and that meme. Very relevant indeed. 1984 is looking more prophetic all the time." authored by Jodah (John)
I haven't read the book, but your discussion impressed me, so I added the ebook to my cart. I will procure it in a few days and go through it.
In the meantime, I would like to say that the quotes you selected are thought-provoking. The meme is appealing. It paints a true picture of the world today.
Misinformation is today's greatest enemy. It suits the saying, " Who controls the present controls the past."
Appreciate your contribution, Venkat!
I hope you do read the book, '1984'. It is a classic. It is a treasure in its own way.
I read it twice so far in my life. Once way back about 1973 (age 19 in my first year of college/university) and then again 2003 (age 49 the first year I returned to college/university). Both times they were strongly suggested to be read by Dr. Levy, my reading class instructor as a book to meet the class requirement for books to read in the semester.
It is on a shelf of book shelves gathering dust now, though presently memories of it are being conjured while reflecting on how much of an influence it made on my life through the oddities of the subconscious mind and the mysteries of the cosmos.
I am purchasing the book now.
My son says he watched the movie (but did not read the book). So I can read the book and also watch the film on OTT. That would be a double thriller.
by Jplanet 12 years ago
If God is omni present and knows the past ,present, and future, then why would he test us when...he already knows the outcome of our actions?
by Firoz 11 years ago
When is your future behind you?
by Sophie 12 years ago
If you'd have the opportunity, would you travel back (or forward) in time?I've been recently wondering, what would I do if I was suddenly able to travel in time.I guess I'd love to travel BACK, just to relive or be able to see certain events in my life again, or be with my beloved relatives who...
by Deborah Sexton 14 years ago
Give me your month and day of birth (No need for the year) and I can tell you a little about your life.
by Angie D 12 years ago
If time travel were possible, would you go back into the past or into the future?And would you stay there? Or come back to the present?
by aefrancisco 12 years ago
What is more important? the past? the present? or the future?
Copyright © 2024 The Arena Media Brands, LLC and respective content providers on this website. HubPages® is a registered trademark of The Arena Platform, Inc. Other product and company names shown may be trademarks of their respective owners. The Arena Media Brands, LLC and respective content providers to this website may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website.
Copyright © 2024 Maven Media Brands, LLC and respective owners.
As a user in the EEA, your approval is needed on a few things. To provide a better website experience, hubpages.com uses cookies (and other similar technologies) and may collect, process, and share personal data. Please choose which areas of our service you consent to our doing so.
For more information on managing or withdrawing consents and how we handle data, visit our Privacy Policy at: https://corp.maven.io/privacy-policy
Show DetailsNecessary | |
---|---|
HubPages Device ID | This is used to identify particular browsers or devices when the access the service, and is used for security reasons. |
Login | This is necessary to sign in to the HubPages Service. |
Google Recaptcha | This is used to prevent bots and spam. (Privacy Policy) |
Akismet | This is used to detect comment spam. (Privacy Policy) |
HubPages Google Analytics | This is used to provide data on traffic to our website, all personally identifyable data is anonymized. (Privacy Policy) |
HubPages Traffic Pixel | This is used to collect data on traffic to articles and other pages on our site. Unless you are signed in to a HubPages account, all personally identifiable information is anonymized. |
Amazon Web Services | This is a cloud services platform that we used to host our service. (Privacy Policy) |
Cloudflare | This is a cloud CDN service that we use to efficiently deliver files required for our service to operate such as javascript, cascading style sheets, images, and videos. (Privacy Policy) |
Google Hosted Libraries | Javascript software libraries such as jQuery are loaded at endpoints on the googleapis.com or gstatic.com domains, for performance and efficiency reasons. (Privacy Policy) |
Features | |
---|---|
Google Custom Search | This is feature allows you to search the site. (Privacy Policy) |
Google Maps | Some articles have Google Maps embedded in them. (Privacy Policy) |
Google Charts | This is used to display charts and graphs on articles and the author center. (Privacy Policy) |
Google AdSense Host API | This service allows you to sign up for or associate a Google AdSense account with HubPages, so that you can earn money from ads on your articles. No data is shared unless you engage with this feature. (Privacy Policy) |
Google YouTube | Some articles have YouTube videos embedded in them. (Privacy Policy) |
Vimeo | Some articles have Vimeo videos embedded in them. (Privacy Policy) |
Paypal | This is used for a registered author who enrolls in the HubPages Earnings program and requests to be paid via PayPal. No data is shared with Paypal unless you engage with this feature. (Privacy Policy) |
Facebook Login | You can use this to streamline signing up for, or signing in to your Hubpages account. No data is shared with Facebook unless you engage with this feature. (Privacy Policy) |
Maven | This supports the Maven widget and search functionality. (Privacy Policy) |
Marketing | |
---|---|
Google AdSense | This is an ad network. (Privacy Policy) |
Google DoubleClick | Google provides ad serving technology and runs an ad network. (Privacy Policy) |
Index Exchange | This is an ad network. (Privacy Policy) |
Sovrn | This is an ad network. (Privacy Policy) |
Facebook Ads | This is an ad network. (Privacy Policy) |
Amazon Unified Ad Marketplace | This is an ad network. (Privacy Policy) |
AppNexus | This is an ad network. (Privacy Policy) |
Openx | This is an ad network. (Privacy Policy) |
Rubicon Project | This is an ad network. (Privacy Policy) |
TripleLift | This is an ad network. (Privacy Policy) |
Say Media | We partner with Say Media to deliver ad campaigns on our sites. (Privacy Policy) |
Remarketing Pixels | We may use remarketing pixels from advertising networks such as Google AdWords, Bing Ads, and Facebook in order to advertise the HubPages Service to people that have visited our sites. |
Conversion Tracking Pixels | We may use conversion tracking pixels from advertising networks such as Google AdWords, Bing Ads, and Facebook in order to identify when an advertisement has successfully resulted in the desired action, such as signing up for the HubPages Service or publishing an article on the HubPages Service. |
Statistics | |
---|---|
Author Google Analytics | This is used to provide traffic data and reports to the authors of articles on the HubPages Service. (Privacy Policy) |
Comscore | ComScore is a media measurement and analytics company providing marketing data and analytics to enterprises, media and advertising agencies, and publishers. Non-consent will result in ComScore only processing obfuscated personal data. (Privacy Policy) |
Amazon Tracking Pixel | Some articles display amazon products as part of the Amazon Affiliate program, this pixel provides traffic statistics for those products (Privacy Policy) |
Clicksco | This is a data management platform studying reader behavior (Privacy Policy) |