Winston wrote down the date in his diary. His handwriting was messy, and he made many mistakes. He wrote about his memories, and another one came to mind.
In the Records Department, where Winston worked, people were getting ready for Hate. He spotted two people. One of them was a girl with freckles on her face. Winston immediately disliked her: he believed she was more dangerous than others. The other person was a man named O'Brien. He worked for the Party, and the room got quiet when he walked in.
The face of Emmanuel Goldstein appeared on the screen. In the past, Goldstein was one of the Party leaders – along with Big Brother – but later betrayed him, escaped, and disappeared. The room got loud: everyone was angry. The whispers in the audience soon became shouts, and someone threw a Newspeak dictionary at the screen. For a moment, Winston's hatred towards Goldstein shifted into hatred towards Big Brother.
Winston looked at his writing again. The handwriting was no longer awkward, and he felt he was writing words down automatically: DOWN WITH BIG BROTHER. He felt fear: the Thought Police would start looking for him. They usually arrested people at night.
Suddenly, there was a knock on his door. Were they here? Already! The knocking continued. Winston's heart was beating loudly as he got up from his chair and moved towards the door.
affair [ə'feə] – n дело
awkward ['ɔ:kwəd] – adj неуклюжий
betray [bɪ'treɪ] – v предавать
dust [dʌst] – n пыль
escape [ɪ'skeɪp] – v сбежать
freckle ['frekl] – n веснушка
handwriting ['hændˌraɪtɪŋ] – n почерк
hang (hung, hung) [hæŋ] – v вешать, висеть
hatred ['heɪtrɪd] – n ненависть
helicopter ['helɪkɒptə] – n вертолет
hurry ['hʌri] – v спешить
peace [pi:s] – n мир, покой
plenty ['plenti] – n изобилие
responsible [rɪ'spɒnsəbl] – adj ответственный
rooftop ['ru:ftɒp] – n крыша
shift [ʃɪft] – v изменяться
spot [spɒt] – v замечать
stare [steə] – v пристально смотреть
whisper ['wɪspə] – n, v шепот, шептать
Chapter 2
When Winston reached the door, he realised that the notebook was still on the table. He left it open, anyone could see “DOWN WITH BIG BROTHER”. The letters were big enough to see it from here. He inhaled and opened the door. It was Mrs. Parsons, his neighbour.
“Can you please take a look at the kitchen sink? There's a problem with it, and my husband isn't home.”
Mr Parsons worked with Winston. He was overweight, energetic, and incredibly stupid, but Mrs. Parsons appreciated his skills.
Winston followed her into the old flat, which smelled of boiled cabbage and sweat. The place was messy, as if wild animals ran around the rooms all day. Winston started working in the sink.
“Hands up! You're a traitor! A thought-criminal! A spy! I'll shoot you!” someone shouted from behind.
Mrs. Parsons' children jumped around Winston with their toy guns, but for Winston, they felt real. Mrs. Parsons apologised for the noise nervously and thanked Winston. Her grey face looked helpless and frightened. As he was leaving, one of the boys threw a toy gun at him.
“Goldstein!” the boy screamed. Mrs. Parsons apologised again. She looked older than she was.
Back at his flat, the telescreen spoke loudly. “Attention! There's news from the war!”
The images on the screen showed soldiers, prisoners, and a lot of blood. The voice announced that the chocolate ration would be reduced. Bad news, Winston thought. He moved to the window and looked at the posters outside. He wondered who he was writing the diary for. The Thought Police would definitely destroy it after reading. He continued writing: From the age of Big Brother to the time when thought is free – greetings!
Winston noticed ink on his fingers. This detail could betray him, so he went to the bathroom and scrubbed his hands with soap. It was harsh and unpleasant, but he was happy with the result.
He thought about hiding the notebook, but knew this was useless: someone would definitely discover it. So he picked some dust from his room and put it on the notebook. If anyone opened it, the dust would leave a trace.
apologise [ə'pɒlədʒaɪz] – v извиняться
appreciate [ə'pri:ʃieɪt] – v ценить
harsh [hɑ:ʃ] – adj суровый
helpless ['helpləs] – adj беспомощный
incredibly [ɪn'kredəbli] – adv невероятно
inhale [ɪn'heɪl] – v вдыхать
ink [ɪŋk] – n чернила
overweight [ˌəʊvə'weɪt] – adj грузный
ration ['ræʃən] – n паек
scream [skri:m] – v вопить
scrub [skrʌb] – v скрести
shoot [ʃu:t] – v застрелить
sink [sɪŋk] – n раковина
spy [spaɪ] – n шпион
sweat [swet] – n, v пот, потеть
trace [treɪs] – n след
traitor ['treɪtə] – n предатель
unpleasant [ʌn'plezənt] – adj неприятный
useless ['ju:sləs] – adj бесполезный
wonder ['wʌndə] – v желать знать
Chapter 3
At night, Winston saw strange dreams. He dreamt of his mother – a tall, silent woman with magnificent hair. He last saw his parents when he was about ten years old.
In his dream, his mother was in a boat, holding his younger