We
Yevgeny Zamyatin
I think an important aspect to analyze in We is how OneState is governed. The totalitarian society that is present in We slightly differs from the societies we read about in our other dystopian novels. For one, they have a Table of Hours. The Table of Hours lists out everything you MUST be doing and where you should be for the given time frame. Everyone wakes up at the same time, goes to work at the same time, and goes to sleep at the same time. In Anthem, we had a society that was similar to this, however they were not as strict about it - which takes us to The Benefactor. In Anthem and the Handmaid's Tale, there was no Benefactor. Instead, there were specific people who would take care of any problems brought up. The Benefactor in We represents the authoritarian society it strives in. The Benefactor accepts no law infraction, and punishes anyone and everyone who decides to break a law. Another thing we see in the OneState is the usage of numbers to represent people. We do see this system in Anthem, however the naming systems differ. In We, names were based on gender. Women had vowels, and men took the consonants. In Anthem, although the number parts were basically the same, the names themselves were based on ideals (Equality, Liberty, etc). Lastly, a major contribution to the totalitarian society were the pink ticket days. This really shows structure, and how the government took total control of everything in the citizen's life. Not only were the citizens unable to choose their jobs, house, appearance, or even what time they wanted to wake up in the morning; but the government controlled their love life as well. The society in We is a prime example of an authoritative, control-crazed government.
"And I hope we'll win. More-I'm certain we'll win. Because reason has to win."
This is definitely not my favorite quote from the story, but I feel like it is an important one to analyze. This is said by D-503 at the very end of the novel. He has had his imagination removed, and has become somewhat robotic -"It is day. Clear. Barometer at 760." To compare him now to how he was before, when he was with I-330, the difference is appalling. Earlier, he drank liquor, skipped work, traveled across the wall, and took part in a revolt; and now "reason has to win." This goes back to how the government takes complete control over it's citizens. They must govern everything in OneState, and take drastic measures to do so. Removing someone's imagination denies them not only the ability to dream, but the ability to think outside of the box, which is exactly what OneState wants. The change in D-503 is disappointing. He no longer thinks for himself and no longer has that spark that separated him from the brainwashed people he lived and worked with in OneState. D-503 was never a fan of reason; he always thought outside of what OneState told him to think. We know this by how he always left his sentences unfinished - as if he always had a point to say and was obviously thinking about it. He now has belief in reason and faith in reason, and the person he used to be is long gone.
I thought this novel was good. However, I thought it was hard to understand at times. The writing style is so unique, and I really like how the chapters were set up as journal entries written by D-503. I think Zamyatin is an extremely talented writer; he set the novel up really well, with the events that happened and the change in the characters as the story went on. Also, I believe the dystopian society was displayed perfectly, and I think Zamyatin created that with realistic imagery. Out of all of the books we've read, this wasn't the most captivating, but I feel like it's definitely a book that we'll remember for years to come.
"And I hope we'll win. More-I'm certain we'll win. Because reason has to win."
This is definitely not my favorite quote from the story, but I feel like it is an important one to analyze. This is said by D-503 at the very end of the novel. He has had his imagination removed, and has become somewhat robotic -"It is day. Clear. Barometer at 760." To compare him now to how he was before, when he was with I-330, the difference is appalling. Earlier, he drank liquor, skipped work, traveled across the wall, and took part in a revolt; and now "reason has to win." This goes back to how the government takes complete control over it's citizens. They must govern everything in OneState, and take drastic measures to do so. Removing someone's imagination denies them not only the ability to dream, but the ability to think outside of the box, which is exactly what OneState wants. The change in D-503 is disappointing. He no longer thinks for himself and no longer has that spark that separated him from the brainwashed people he lived and worked with in OneState. D-503 was never a fan of reason; he always thought outside of what OneState told him to think. We know this by how he always left his sentences unfinished - as if he always had a point to say and was obviously thinking about it. He now has belief in reason and faith in reason, and the person he used to be is long gone.
I thought this novel was good. However, I thought it was hard to understand at times. The writing style is so unique, and I really like how the chapters were set up as journal entries written by D-503. I think Zamyatin is an extremely talented writer; he set the novel up really well, with the events that happened and the change in the characters as the story went on. Also, I believe the dystopian society was displayed perfectly, and I think Zamyatin created that with realistic imagery. Out of all of the books we've read, this wasn't the most captivating, but I feel like it's definitely a book that we'll remember for years to come.
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