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Q&A Does success imply validation and agreement?

In 1984, Big Brother succeeds. Big Brother is a very successful bully. In the end, one even learns to love Big Brother. There is no validation and agreement in 1984. There is a terrible warning. ...

posted 5y ago by Galastel‭  ·  last activity 5y ago by System‭

Answer
#4: Attribution notice removed by user avatar System‭ · 2019-12-12T21:57:37Z (almost 5 years ago)
Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/a/43951
License name: CC BY-SA 3.0
License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/
#3: Attribution notice added by user avatar System‭ · 2019-12-08T11:28:29Z (almost 5 years ago)
Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/a/43951
License name: CC BY-SA 3.0
License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/
#2: Initial revision by (deleted user) · 2019-12-08T11:28:29Z (almost 5 years ago)
In _1984_, Big Brother succeeds. Big Brother is a very successful bully. In the end, one even learns to love Big Brother.

There is no validation and agreement in _1984_. There is a terrible warning.

This too is a path you can choose to take with your story.

How would you do that? By keeping sympathy firmly on the victim's side. You are not in the bully's head, there is no thrill of victory. There is fear of the bully, fear of what the bully might do, horror at what he does, revulsion. We keep rooting for the victim, we keep hoping that he would prevail. But the victim doesn't - life isn't always the way we'd like it to be. And we are left with a bitter taste in our mouth, and a smouldering fire in our minds, not to let it happen in real life.

(Orwell does this masterfully. Overdone to melodrama, the same path would lead the reader to put your story aside in boredom and rejection.)

#1: Imported from external source by user avatar System‭ · 2019-03-23T01:10:37Z (over 5 years ago)
Original score: 3