V is the main character of the film, his past is a mixture
of pain, injustice, hate and rage against a totalitarian
government that took away his past identity.
His rage makes him look for revenge during the whole
film by means of complex plans which are always
successful.
V isn’t only an anarchist who fights against the regime,
but he embodies a forgotten idea, and he always tries to
remind people of the values that ruled the world.
V was a suitable person for the role he
wanted to represent, in fact he wore Guy
Fawkes’ mask because their targets and
their ideals were the same, like to blow up
the Parliament and to give back freedom to
the people.
Evey is another main character. She’s V’s
successor. She represents a common person
enslaved by the government. But she
cooperates with V even if at the beginning she
distrusts him because he is anyway a terrorist.
Adam is the leader of Norsefire. He’s interested
only in power, he holds it by means of fear and
he kills a lot of people to get it.
Finch is the chief of Norsefire’s police. The truth
about St. Mary’s virus scares him; however he
wants to know it. He wants to do what he thinks
is right, he is not interested in power.
Creedy is the chief of Norsefire’s special
police, punishment squads. He kills Adam to
prevent his own killing. He’s very interested in
power like Adam.
Prothero, also called “London’s
voice”, is a former official who is a
journalist who spreads Norsefire’s
ideas. He was involved in the
experiment of St. Mary’s virus. He’s
one of V’s main targets with Adam, a
priest and a doctor.
“V For Vendetta” is full of themes
and ideas like:
• Revenge, because V wanted to take
revenge against the people who hurt
him.
•Freedom, indeed Great Britain
wasn’t free, because of the Party
that ruled without pity and respect
of its people.
• Justice, because the institutions of
the U.K. were totally corrupt by the
totalitarian regime.
• Power, because Adam was thirsty
for this and he wanted everything to
be under his control.
•
•
•
The main characters, V and
Evey, often referred to
quotations from Shakespeare’s
works like Macbeth, Hamlet,
Richard III and Marlowe’s Faust.
V used these quotes to compare
himself to the characters of
Shakespeare’s works.
Indeed, after leaving Saint
Mary’s “lager”, he took his
revenge like Faust; he made
bloodshed against the leaders of
Norsefire Party like Macbeth,
and, like Hamlet, he was thirsty
for justice.
God
is in
the
rain
Artists use lies to tell
the truth, while
politicians use them
to cover the truth up
“I dare do
all that may
become a
man; Who
dares do
more is
none.”
Macbeth
V for Vendetta and 1984
have the same aim and
almost the same ideals, but
in 1984 there isn’t anyone
who gives hope or a positive
final, even if they both
want to warn everybody
against dictatorship.
This film is important for
its themes, like freedom,
love, justice, truth which
are totally eliminated by
the Party.
You can discover this film
can apply to our current
situation. It is a timeless
work, even if it was written
in 1948.
1984 gives the reader
many points of
reflection, but it is
sometimes too sad,
gloomy and
tragical.
So a lot of people
can dislike this
film, but the writer
doesn’t mind about
this because the
real aim of 1984 is
to warn everybody
against a possible
near future.
The events happened in this film
aren’t possible in the real world,
because people may be submitted by a
totalitarian party, but they can’t
believe in it for such a long time, in a
world without privacy, love or freedom
of thought…
War is peace: perpetual and changing battles,
alliances and treaties maintain a status quo
which guarantees in a paradoxical way stability
to the Party, also creating in all people a
feeling of “belonging” and fighting for the
same cause, thus driving all their energies
against futile enemies rather than the real one,
the Party.
Ignorance is Strength: this is the
force of denial. Ignoring what is
even evident and moulding one’s
thoughts to fit the Big Brother’s
mind-frame reinforces the group
and, most of all, his absolute
power over every citizen.
Freedom is Slavery: there is no place for
individual and for individual choices in
Oceania. Anyone outside this realm of
conformity is ostracized. “Freedom” (free
will) is now “slavery” (being bound up to
oneself; alienation) according to the
current value system.
Ministries of Oceania
Ministry of Peace
Ministry of Plenty
Ministry of Peace: leads
Oceania’s perpetual war
Ministry of truth
Ministry of Love
Ministry of Plenty:
responsible of rationing
and controlling food and
goods, along with the
production of all domestic
goods.
The propaganda arm of
Oceania’s regime, controlling
information, such as news,
entertainment, education,
and the fine arts.
Ministry of Love:
Responsible for the
identification,
monitoring, arrest
and torture of the
regime opponents.
The basic procedure
is to wear down the
subject with a long
series of beating and
electrical torture.
When the subject is
nearly broken, they
are sent to “Room
101”, where they are
exposed to their
worst fear.
Freedom is the freedom to say that
two plus two is four. If that is
granted, all else follows.
Strength through Unity
War is Peace
Unity through Faith
Freedom is Slavery
Ignorance is Strength
Ways to hold the
power
Norsefire
holds the
power by
means of fear.
Ingsoc holds the power
because it makes the
people love Big Brother
and hate the enemies
and because Thought
Police watch
everywhere and capture
opponents.
War is Peace
Freedom is Slavery
Ignorance is Strength
Strength through Unity
Unity through Faith
Special police force
(Punishment Squads)
They hurt opponents, they
arrest them and they don’t
care if someone sees
them or not.
They torture and kill them.
(Thought Police)
They hurt and arrest rebels
at night to prevent everyone
from seeing them and they
hide all that might make
people remember them.
They brainwash opponents
and after they love Big
Brother, they kill them.
War is Peace
Freedom is Slavery
Ignorance is Strength
Strength through Unity
Unity through Faith
Leaders
The leader is Adam.
Sometimes he appears
on TV.
There are other
important members of
the Party.
People think the
leader is Big Brother
but nobody has seen
him and only his
photo appears on
telescreens.
However the Inner
Party leads Oceania.
War is Peace
Freedom is Slavery
Ignorance is Strength
Strength through Unity
Unity through Faith
People’s thoughts
A lot of people
think the
Party’s news
are not always
true.
Few people (only
thoughtcriminals)
don’t believe the
Party’s news are
true.
War is Peace
Freedom is Slavery
Ignorance is Strength
Strength through Unity
Unity through Faith
The end
The story ends in
an optimistic
way: Norsefire
fails and V
reaches his
target.
The story can end in an
optimistic or in a pessimistic
way: it depends on the version
of the story: in the one where
Winston writes 2+2=5, Ingsoc
has reached its aim and can not
fail; in the one where he writes
2+2=?, Ingsoc has not
completely reached its aim and
Winston is not sure of his ideas,
but he keeps being human. So
Ingsoc in the future may fail.
Made by:
2^C
2010/2011
Liceo Scienze Applicate
Prof. Paola Iori