1984+Reading+Response+Activities+for+Part+1+CH+1-8


 * RR#_ ** **Analyzing Stylistic Choices**

In Chapter VIII, Winston visits a district that is inhabited by proles. The proles are generally friendly, but they speak informally and use a lot of slang. Winston visits a pub because he wants to ask an old man about the past, especially about what the party says about capitalists. When Winston first sees him, he is arguing with the barman. He says “I arst you civil enough, didn’t I? You telling me you ain’t got a pint mug in the ‘ole bleeding boozer?” What does he mean by that in standard English? Why doesn’t the barman understand?

Select two or three sentences spoken by the old man in the pub. Copy them into your notebook and translate them into standard English. Then discuss what effect Orwell was trying to create by representing the old man’s speech in slang and dialect. Are the old man’s words as effective in standard English?



__**RR# **__**_** **Summarizing and Responding**

The first part of a novel should do at least three things:


 * • Establish the setting of the action, making the world of the story real to us in details and principles.


 * • Establish the characters (especially the viewpoint character) in terms of personality, role or job, and strengths and weaknesses.


 * • Set the action in motion by giving the characters things to do and problems to solve.

It may also hint at some of the themes or big ideas that the novel will explore and develop.

Review your marginal notes, sticky notes, word lists, and answers to questions to solidify your understanding of Section One of the novel. Write a paragraph summarizing Section One in terms of the setting, the characters, the intentions of the characters, and any ideas you have about the themes of the novel.