The Year of the Rat: Images of Betrayal in Orwell's Nineteen Eighty-Four

by Besenski, Seth Andrew

An examination of the image of the rat in Nineteen Eighty-Four, with a focus on how the rat becomes a metaphor for Winston. Further, an examination of how Winston's rat-like behaviour has affected his early family life and how such behaviour has continued to affect Winston. Families in the novel are examined with a view to understanding Winston's relation to the betrayal exemplified by these families, and finally as a way of understanding the true nature of Julia's betrayal of Winston in the Ministry of Love.