1984

Winston is exhausted from working 90 hours within only five days during Hate Week. At a hate rally, Oceania inexplicably switches war allies and enemies. There is momentary chaos as the public immediately suspects an anti-Party conspiracy, but just a moment later the crowd is roaring against the new enemy: “The Hate continued exactly as before, except that the target had been changed” (230). The change in hate targets means that Winston must work overtime to rewrite any historical reference to the previous enemy. When he’s finally finished with his work of rewriting history, Winston arrives at Charrington’s apartment eager to read Emmanuel Goldstein’s book in a quiet, private setting.

Goldstein’s book The Theory and Practice of Oligarchical Collectivism offers a history of how the global political structure followed a natural progression from capitalism to socialism before evolving into its current totalitarian state. It outlines how the three current mega-powers came to be as the world fell into systemic arms races and constant war. The book confirms for Winston how the party came into power and the various forms of oppression used to subdue the populace, but Winston is still left wondering why the Party desires so much power.