Nineteen Eighty-Four - Literature Kit Gr. 9-12

Book excerpt: Visit a dystopian society to see what an alternate 1984 could have looked like. The variety of engaging activities can easily be broken up for students over several weeks to coordinate with assigned reading. Use what you know about Winston’s memory of his mother to describe what family relationships are like in Oceania. Predict what will happen to Winston based on what you know of the world he lives in and the consequences of his actions. Identify statements about Winston and Julia’s first meeting as true or false. Use what you have already read about room 101 and predict how Winston will react to his experiences there. Describe what the word “betrayal” means to you, and how it relates to the events in the novel. List events from the book that connect to the plot’s major themes. Aligned to your State Standards and written to Bloom's Taxonomy, additional crossword, word search, comprehension quiz and answer key are also included. About the Novel: Nineteen Eighty-Four is the year of an alternate dystopian era in which there are three ruling nations: Oceania, Eastasia and Eurasia. The former are partnered together in a war against the latter, and that’s how it’s always been. Or has it? Winston Smith works for the Ministry of Truth office. His job is to alter the history books so they line up with whatever the Party wants its citizens to believe. Everything is controlled by the Party, including language. Those that dare to have free thought are dealt with severely. Winston begins to question the Party and how things are run. He starts to rebel by purchasing a diary to write his thoughts in, beginning a relationship with a mysterious dark-haired woman, and seek out the Brotherhood who would like to see the Party taken down. But with the unseen eye of the Party leader Big Brother always watching, it’s only a matter of time before Winston is caught.