You had to live--did live, from habit that became instinct--in the assumption that every sound you made was overheard, and, except in darkness, every movement scrutinized.

More from 1984 (1949)

• At 50, everyone has the face he deserves.
• Four legs good, two legs bad.
• If you want to imagine the future, imagine a boot stamping on a human face forever.
• It was a bright, cold day in April, and the clocks were striking thirteen.
• You had to live–did live, from habit that became instinct–in the assumption that every sound you made was overheard, and, except in darkness, every movement scrutinized.