1984

           Theessentialactofwarisdestruction,notnecessarilyofhumanlives,butoftheproductsofhumanlabour. Warisawayofshatteringtopieces,orpouringintothestratosphere,orsinkinginthedepthsofthesea,materialswhichmightotherwisebeusedtomakethemassestoocomfortable,andhence,inthelongrun,toointelligent. Evenwhenweaponsofwararenotactuallydestroyed,theirmanufactureisstillaconvenientwayofexpendinglabourpowerwithoutproducinganythingthatcanbeconsumed. AFloatingFortress,forexample,haslockedupinitthelabourthatwouldbuildseveralhundredcargo-ships. Ultimatelyitisscrappedasobsolete,neverhavingbroughtanymaterialbenefittoanybody,andwithfurtherenormouslaboursanotherFloatingFortressisbuilt. Inprinciplethewareffortisalwayssoplannedastoeatupanysurplusthatmightexistaftermeetingthebareneedsofthepopulation. Inpracticetheneedsofthepopulationarealwaysunderestimated,withtheresultthatthereisachronicshortageofhalfthenecessitiesoflife; butthisislookedonasanadvantage. Itisdeliberatepolicytokeepeventhefavouredgroupssomewherenearthebrinkofhardship,becauseageneralstateofscarcityincreasestheimportanceofsmallprivilegesandthusmagnifiesthedistinctionbetweenonegroupandanother. Bythestandardsoftheearlytwentiethcentury,evenamemberoftheInnerPartylivesanaustere,laboriouskindoflife. Nevertheless,thefewluxuriesthathedoesenjoyhislarge,well-appointedflat,thebettertextureofhisclothes,thebetterqualityofhisfoodanddrinkandtobacco,histwoorthreeservants,hisprivatemotor-carorhelicopter —sethiminadifferentworldfromamemberoftheOuterParty,andthemembersoftheOuterPartyhaveasimilaradvantageincomparisonwiththesubmergedmasseswhomwecall‘theproles’.