Winston Smith’s relationship with Julia (no last name) is among the most satisfying moments in Orwell’s 1984. It’s an interlude of romantic entanglement that begins a lustful relationship ending in pain and utter defeat. Leaving the dust of London for a safe place in the country, Winston and Julia expect to evade observation of telescreens and microphones, relax, and make love.

The day after May Day, the picnic takes place in a forest filled with bluebells and cooing of doves and whistling of thrushes. Winston says through conversation, “I’m thirty-nine years old. I’ve got a wife that I can’t get rid of. I’ve got varicose veins. I’ve got five false teeth.” The girl responds, “I couldn’t care less.” It never occurs to Winston to bring food, but Julia shares some dark, shiny, tasty chocolate. “The first fragment of chocolate had melted on Winston’s tongue. The taste was delightful.” Their sex is more animal than loving. After all, the episode’s happiness is illusory—they are being observed by Big Brother and his secret police force.

Featured Image: Michael Radford. Nineteen-Eighty-Four (1984). The screenplay by Michael Radford is based on George Orwell’s novel.

See George Orwell. Nineteen Eighty-Four. London: Secker and Warburg, 1948.