1984

           InthiswayeverypredictionmadebythePartycouldbeshownbydocumentaryevidencetohavebeencorrect, norwasanyitemofnews,oranyexpressionofopinion,whichconflictedwiththeneedsofthemoment,everallowedtoremainonrecord. Allhistorywasapalimpsest,scrapedcleanandreinscribedexactlyasoftenaswasnecessary. Innocasewouldithavebeenpossible,oncethedeedwasdone,toprovethatanyfalsificationhadtakenplace. ThelargestsectionoftheRecordsDepartment,farlargerthantheoneonwhichWinstonworked, consistedsimplyofpersonswhosedutyitwastotrackdownandcollectallcopiesofbooks,newspapers,andotherdocumentswhichhadbeensupersededandwereduefordestruction. Anumberof‘TheTimes’whichmight,becauseofchangesinpoliticalalignment,ormistakenpropheciesutteredbyBigBrother,havebeenrewrittenadozentimes stillstoodonthefilesbearingitsoriginaldate,andnoothercopyexistedtocontradictit. Books,also,wererecalledandrewrittenagainandagain,andwereinvariablyreissuedwithoutanyadmissionthatanyalterationhadbeenmade. EventhewritteninstructionswhichWinstonreceived,andwhichheinvariablygotridofassoonashehaddealtwiththem,neverstatedorimpliedthatanactofforgerywastobecommitted: alwaysthereferencewastoslips,errors,misprints,ormisquotationswhichitwasnecessarytoputrightintheinterestsofaccuracy. 

           Butactually,hethoughtashere-adjustedtheMinistryofPlenty’sfigures,itwasnotevenforgery. Itwasmerelythesubstitutionofonepieceofnonsenseforanother. Mostofthematerialthatyouweredealingwithhadnoconnexionwithanythingintherealworld,noteventhekindofconnexionthatiscontainedinadirectlie. Statisticswerejustasmuchafantasyintheiroriginalversionasintheirrectifiedversion. Agreatdealofthetimeyouwereexpectedtomakethemupoutofyourhead.