Memory, History and the Future

Theme flow on the struggle between the Party's control of the past and the individual's fragile memory.

increasingBearing stren­gth in each eventdecreasing

Who Controls the Past

Who Controls the Past The Maxim The Party slogan states: 'Who controls the past controls the future: who controls the present controls the past.' It is the core of Ingsoc's governance. The Mechanism All records are destroyed or falsified, and memories are continuously trained. The past is whatever the Party says it was. The Consequence Winston understands that if the Party can erase his memory, it can erase his future. His own mind is the only record he can trust, and it is under attack.

The Photograph as Fossil

The Photograph as Fossil The Concrete Fragment The photograph of Jones, Aaronson and Rutherford is a fossil bone in the wrong stratum, destroying a geological theory. It cannot be denied, only destroyed. The Choice Winston destroys the photograph, but the memory of it remains. He believes that the memory of a fact is enough to prove the fact once existed. The Uncertainty O'Brien later destroys even that certainty by denying the memory. The past becomes a liquid thing that can be poured into any shape.

The Old Man's Useless Memories

The Old Man's Useless Memories The Rubbish Heap Winston asks an old prole about life before the Revolution, but the man can only recall irrelevant details: a lost bicycle pump, a quarrel, the smell of a top hat. He cannot compare eras. The Erasure Without records and without interpreters, the old man's memories are useless. They are lost to history, like the rhyme of St Clement's without its bells. The Lesson The Party does not need to kill the old; it only needs to make their memories worthless. The link with the past is broken, and the future is empty.

The Place Without Darkness

The Place Without Darkness The Promise O'Brien says, 'We shall meet in the place where there is no darkness.' Winston interprets it as the future, where they will both be free. The Realization The place is the Ministry of Love, a windowless cell of white porcelain, lit forever. There is no darkness, but there is also no escape. The Meaning The future is not a refuge; it is a prison. Winston's hope for a future with truth is replaced by a future of permanent surveillance.

the Party's slogan in Chapter III

Winston's discovery

the pub scene

recurring dream and promise