If one harbours anywhere in one's mind a nationalistic loyalty or hatred, certain facts, although in a sense known to be true, are inadmissible.
George OrwellRead
Never again will you be capable of ordinary human feeling. Everything will be dead inside you. Never again will you be capable of love, or friendship, or joy of living, or laughter, or curiosity, or courage, or integrity. You will be hollow. We shall squeeze you empty and then we shall fill you with ourselves.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote illustrates a warning about the loss of humanity and individuality.
In this quote, George Orwell reflects on the consequences of totalitarianism and oppressive regimes that strip individuals of their emotions and personal identities. He suggests that when a person is subjected to such systems, they lose their capacity for fundamental human experiences like love, joy, and integrity, ultimately becoming hollow shells filled only with the ideologies imposed upon them by those in power.
Themes
HumanityOppressionIdentityEmotionFear
In practice
Example use cases
Discussing the effects of totalitarian regimes in a historical lecture.
More from George Orwell
All quotes →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.
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Political writing in our time consists almost entirely of prefabricated phrases bolted together like the pieces of a child's Meccano set. It is the unavoidable result of self-censorship. To write in plain, vigorous language one has to think fearlessly, and if one thinks fearlessly one cannot be politically orthodox.
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Not to expose your true feelings to an adult seems to be instinctive from the age of seven or eight onwards.
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As with the Christian religion, the worst advertisement for Socialism is its adherents.
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It is fatal to look hungry. It makes people want to kick you.
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