Original artwork, not a still
1984 ‧ 1949
Sometimes they are five. Sometimes they are three. Sometimes they are all of them at once.
Behind the line
What it means
Our interpretation.
The Party does not want Winston to say two plus two is five; it wants him to believe it, and to believe it only because the Party says so. The line is the moment where truth is shown to be whatever the powerful will it to be. Readers quote it whenever facts are demanded to bend to authority.
Context reviewed
In context
Spoilers for 1984Show the scene
In Part Three, Chapter 2, Winston is strapped to a bed in the Ministry of Love while O'Brien, his supposed ally, works a dial that sends pain through his body. O'Brien holds up fingers and demands that Winston see five when there are four. Winston sobs that he cannot help seeing what is in front of his eyes: two and two are four. O'Brien answers gently with this line, adds that sanity does not come easily, and lays him back on the bed.
Sources (1)
- Nineteen Eighty-Four, full text (Project Gutenberg Australia)Part Three, Chapter 2Reference checked
Context reviewed
