50 Eye-Opening George Orwell Quotes: Unveiling the Wisdom of a Literary Maverick

Hey there, fellow seekers of intellectual enlightenment! Are you ready to dive into the mesmerizing world of George Orwell's timeless wisdom? Well, fasten your seatbelts because we're about to embark on an exhilarating journey through 50 eye-opening George Orwell quotes that will leave you both inspired and contemplative. As we navigate through this literary labyrinth, be prepared to have your mind blown, your perspectives challenged, and your sense of reality redefined.

Now, let me take you on a captivating anecdotal detour. A young George Orwell, adorned in a faded tweed suit, sits hunched over a typewriter, lost in the cacophony of words swirling within his mind. Raindrops pitter-patter against the windowpane, casting a melancholic symphony in the background. The year is 1948, and Orwell's dystopian masterpiece, “1984,” is gradually taking shape. Little did he know that his words would transcend the boundaries of time, resonating with future generations and etching his name into the annals of literary brilliance.

But George Orwell's prowess extends far beyond the confines of “1984.” His unparalleled ability to capture the essence of human nature, societal complexities, and political machinations is evident in a plethora of other works as well. So, get ready to unleash your inner rebel, challenge the status quo, and delve deep into the profound thoughts of George Orwell with these 50 eye-opening quotes that will spark a fire within your soul.

“In a time of deceit, telling the truth is a revolutionary act.”

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“Political language is designed to make lies sound truthful and murder respectable.”

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“Freedom is the freedom to say that two plus two make four.”

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“War is peace. Freedom is slavery. Ignorance is strength.”

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“The most effective way to destroy people is to deny and obliterate their own understanding of their history.”

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“If liberty means anything at all, it means the right to tell people what they do not want to hear.”

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“Big Brother is watching you.”

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“Doublethink means the power of holding two contradictory beliefs in one's mind simultaneously, and accepting both of them.”

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“The choice for mankind lies between freedom and happiness and for the great bulk of mankind, happiness is better.”

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“In our age, there is no such thing as ‘keeping out of politics.'”

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“Power is not a means; it is an end.”
“All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others.”
“Reality exists in the human mind and nowhere else.”
“The essence of being human is that one does not seek perfection.”
“If you want a vision of the future, imagine a boot stamping on a human face – forever.”
“The past was dead, the future was unimaginable.”
“Men can only be happy when they do not assume that the object of life is happiness.”
“The quickest way to end a war is to lose it.”
“We sleep safe in our beds because rough men stand ready in the night to visit violence on those who would do us harm.”
“We know that no one ever seizes power with the intention of relinquishing it.”
“Nationalism is power-hunger tempered by self-deception.”
“To see what is in front of one's nose needs a constant struggle.”
“The further a society drifts from the truth, the more it will hate those who speak it.”
“Those who control the present, control the past and those who control the past control the future.”
“Happiness can exist only in acceptance.”
“The essence of oligarchical rule is not father-to-son inheritance, but the persistence of a certain world-view and a certain way of life.”
“The object of terrorism is terrorism.”
“In times of universal deceit, telling the truth becomes a revolutionary act.”
“To survive, it is often necessary to fight and to fight you have to dirty yourself.”
“The creatures outside looked from pig to man, and from man to pig, and from pig to man again; but already it was impossible to say which was which.”
“If you kept the small rules, you could break the big ones.”
“The essence of tyranny is not iron law. It is capricious law.”
“So much of left-wing thought is a kind of playing with fire by people who don't even know that fire is hot.”
“But if thought corrupts language, language can also corrupt thought.”
“Reality is not external. Reality exists in the human mind, and nowhere else.”
“Perhaps one did not want to be loved so much as to be understood.”
“The great enemy of clear language is insincerity.”
“Power is not a means; it is an end. One does not establish a dictatorship in order to safeguard a revolution; one makes the revolution in order to establish thedictatorship.”
“The choice for mankind lies between freedom and happiness and for the great bulk of mankind, happiness is better.”
“We know that no one ever seizes power with the intention of relinquishing it.”
“The past was dead, the future was unimaginable.”
“In our age, there is no such thing as ‘keeping out of politics.'”
“To see what is in front of one's nose needs a constant struggle.”
“The further a society drifts from the truth, the more it will hate those who speak it.”
“Nationalism is power-hunger tempered by self-deception.”
“The quickest way to end a war is to lose it.”
“We sleep safe in our beds because rough men stand ready in the night to visit violence on those who would do us harm.”
“All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others.”
“To survive, it is often necessary to fight and to fight you have to dirty yourself.”
“The creatures outside looked from pig to man, and from man to pig, and from pig to man again; but already it was impossible to say which was which.”

Chris Ventura

Writer & Editor for Ventured. Interests include: Golf | Building Businesses | Trying to find great pizza wherever I am

50 Eye-Opening George Orwell Quotes: Unveiling the Wisdom of a Literary Maverick

“In a time of deceit, telling the truth is a revolutionary act.”

“Political language is designed to make lies sound truthful and murder respectable.”

“Freedom is the freedom to say that two plus two make four.”

“War is peace. Freedom is slavery. Ignorance is strength.”

“The most effective way to destroy people is to deny and obliterate their own understanding of their history.”

“If liberty means anything at all, it means the right to tell people what they do not want to hear.”

“Big Brother is watching you.”

“Doublethink means the power of holding two contradictory beliefs in one's mind simultaneously, and accepting both of them.”

“The choice for mankind lies between freedom and happiness and for the great bulk of mankind, happiness is better.”

“In our age, there is no such thing as ‘keeping out of politics.'”

“Power is not a means; it is an end.”

“All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others.”

“Reality exists in the human mind and nowhere else.”

“The essence of being human is that one does not seek perfection.”

“If you want a vision of the future, imagine a boot stamping on a human face – forever.”

“The past was dead, the future was unimaginable.”

“Men can only be happy when they do not assume that the object of life is happiness.”

“The quickest way to end a war is to lose it.”

“We sleep safe in our beds because rough men stand ready in the night to visit violence on those who would do us harm.”

“We know that no one ever seizes power with the intention of relinquishing it.”

“Nationalism is power-hunger tempered by self-deception.”

“To see what is in front of one's nose needs a constant struggle.”

“The further a society drifts from the truth, the more it will hate those who speak it.”

“Those who control the present, control the past and those who control the past control the future.”

“Happiness can exist only in acceptance.”

“The essence of oligarchical rule is not father-to-son inheritance, but the persistence of a certain world-view and a certain way of life.”

“The object of terrorism is terrorism.”

“In times of universal deceit, telling the truth becomes a revolutionary act.”

“To survive, it is often necessary to fight and to fight you have to dirty yourself.”

“The creatures outside looked from pig to man, and from man to pig, and from pig to man again; but already it was impossible to say which was which.”

“If you kept the small rules, you could break the big ones.”

“The essence of tyranny is not iron law. It is capricious law.”

“So much of left-wing thought is a kind of playing with fire by people who don't even know that fire is hot.”

“But if thought corrupts language, language can also corrupt thought.”

“Reality is not external. Reality exists in the human mind, and nowhere else.”

“Perhaps one did not want to be loved so much as to be understood.”

“The great enemy of clear language is insincerity.”

“Power is not a means; it is an end. One does not establish a dictatorship in order to safeguard a revolution; one makes the revolution in order to establish thedictatorship.”