1984

           Itwaslikeswimmingagainstacurrentthatsweptyoubackwardshoweverhardyoustruggled,andthensuddenlydecidingtoturnroundandgowiththecurrentinsteadofopposingit. Nothinghadchangedexceptyourownattitude:thepredestinedthinghappenedinanycase. Hehardlyknewwhyhehadeverrebelled. Everythingwaseasy,except—— 

           Anythingcouldbetrue.Theso-calledlawsofNaturewerenonsense. Thelawofgravitywasnonsense. ‘IfIwished,’O’Brienhadsaid,‘Icouldfloatoffthisfloorlikeasoapbubble.’ Winstonworkeditout. ‘IfheTHINKShefloatsoffthefloor,andifIsimultaneouslyTHINKIseehimdoit,thenthethinghappens.’ Suddenly,likealumpofsubmergedwreckagebreakingthesurfaceofwater,thethoughtburstintohismind: ‘Itdoesn’treallyhappen. Weimagineit. Itishallucination.’ Hepushedthethoughtunderinstantly.Thefallacywasobvious. Itpresupposedthatsomewhereorother,outsideoneself,therewasa‘real’worldwhere‘real’thingshappened. Buthowcouldtherebesuchaworld?Whatknowledgehaveweofanything,savethroughourownminds? Allhappeningsareinthemind. Whateverhappensinallminds,trulyhappens. 

           Hehadnodifficultyindisposingofthefallacy,andhewasinnodangerofsuccumbingtoit. Herealized,nevertheless,thatitoughtnevertohaveoccurredtohim. Themindshoulddevelopablindspotwheneveradangerousthoughtpresenteditself. Theprocessshouldbeautomatic,instinctive. CRIMESTOP,theycalleditinNewspeak. 

           Hesettoworktoexercisehimselfincrimestop. Hepresentedhimselfwithpropositions—‘thePartysaystheearthisflat’, ‘thepartysaysthaticeisheavierthanwater’—andtrainedhimselfinnotseeingornotunderstandingtheargumentsthatcontradictedthem.