ENGLISH DRAFT 1
Imagine Winston sitting down at the small table, that
stood left of a telescreen, effortlessly slipping the V
for Vendetta DVD out of his blue overalls. When I was
watching V for Vendetta for the 3rd time, there was
only one question that lingered in my mind – What
would Winston think of it?
For those of you who don’t know, V for Vendetta is an
enthralling film directed by James McTeigue in 2006.
Set in 2020, where the UK is swept by the St Mary’s
virus, and is under the fascist dictatorship of High
Chancellor Sutler, V (place picture of him on screen)
sparks a collective rebellion, to fight the injustice
caused by the Norsefire Party.
Throughout this presentation, I will be focusing on
Winston and his human experiences, up until he is
caught by the thought police in Part II.
Our human experiences are shaped by a variety of
interrelated factors, which is shown here. Whilst there
are many experiences in both, I would like to share
with you 3 scenes, and how I believe they would
impact Winston.
Orwell demonstrates part of the collective experience
of freedom, where conformity makes us lose our
individual identity, through Winston’s paradoxical
behaviour at the two minutes hate: “In a lucid
moment, Winston finds that he is shouting and kicking
his heel violently against the rung of his chair.” As I
envisioned vivid kinaesthetic imagery, Winston’s lack
of control over his behaviour illustrates that he is
deprived of freedom of expression, which has
ultimately is degrading his emotional complexity. This
made me think, how would he feel when he watches
part of Valerie’s letter? In V for Vendetta, Valerie is a
homosexual individual who is used for illegal genetic
testing. As the camera pans up, the long shot shows
Valerie’s girlfriend Ruth is taken away, with the slogan
‘FOR YOUR PROTECTION’ coming alight as the van
drives off of the dim, narrow street. McTeigue skilfully
uses the ironic slogan, where Ruth is potentially
compelled to conform to show another aspect of the
experience of freedom, where dehumanising loss of
autonomy makes us lose our sense of identity. Whilst
Winston watches it, I know that he will reflect upon
his experience at the two minutes hate, connecting to
the idea that the Party conducts these events to
subconsciously wither their individual identity.
Hardship is shaped by the collective idea of the need
to be understood. In 1984, Winston feels void. Orwell
depicts this through a hopeless tone, by describing
Winston as a “lonely ghost, uttering a truth nobody
would ever hear”. Metaphorically depicting Winston
as a ghost conveys the idea that our sorrow is caused
by an integral human need- the need to be
understood. Because of Winston’s individual
experience, I believe that Valerie’s letter will certainly
impact him. As Valerie remembers “how different
became dangerous” the grim piano and the hysteric
chant grows to a crescendo, and the extreme close-up
zooms in, showing Valerie clenching her girlfriend’s
hand. Where holding a loved one’s hand is a universal
motif of strength and support, this symbolises
Valerie’s anxiety, and through this, McTeigue
artistically conveys our despair, fear and anxiety that
arises when we aren’t understood.
As Winston watches it at his small table(bring up that
picture again), I know that Winston will shift
perspective on the intentions of Newspeak, and
reflect upon the conversation he had with Syme.
Valerie’s fear and anxiety as she loses the acceptance
of her within her society will cause Winston to realise
that Newspeak’s real intention is to restrict the range
of thought so that the defiance to the party is
prevented.
The final scene which I believe may impact Winston is
when V states ( play clip of: people shouldn’t be afraid
of their government). Winston will feel comforted and
empowered as he can relate to V, who shares his
human experience of wanting to spark rebellion
thereby challenging the assumption that he is a
“lonely ghost”. However, would Winston ever be able
to spark a rebellion like V? To me, V can only be a
figure of admiration to Winston. V for Vendetta
cannot make Winston to spark a collective rebellion
like V as he is shackled by his underlying fear to the
Party, which we see when he consciously conforms
during the 2 minutes hate, showing that he is afraid to
be different.
V for Vendetta will radically change and challenge
Winston’s perspectives on his experiences and ideas.
Yet, can YOU imagine Winston and his comrades,
hysterically waving a banner etched with “DOWN
WITH BIG BROTHER”?