Therefor our personal identity is tested because we as individuals conform to society to an extent. We are by far freer than Winston yet we have rules/laws that we must follow. Descartes says, we are allowed to think, our souls are free. Our body is what acts, and our actions are not free. Winston's laws are enforced and given by big brother the power behind Oceania. Winston does not want to obey the laws and rules enforced in Oceania. He doesn't want to conform to society and lose his personal Identity. This is a direct comparison to a dystopian novel, written by George Orwell, titled "1984".
Will Winston Smith be the same person if he follows Big Brother, and obeys the vicious laws of Oceania? "While all other things in the universe are determined by the laws of the material world. Humans have the freedom to determine themselves and determine the world they live in" (Sartre 125). .
Locke agrees; your body is a material substance and your soul is an immaterial substance. Winston's body wants to rebel against Big Brother by keeping a diary. Furthermore, his body is overpowering his soul, distracting his soul from conforming to society and obeying Big Brother. If Winston were to follow all other outer party members of Oceania and conform to society, he would have to stop his diary writing and give up his desires for Julia. He would then be obeying the laws of Oceania, enforced by Big Brother. Looking at the novel from a dualist perspective Plato and Socrates agree with Locke. This theory would pull apart Winston's belief of himself having no freedom, by saying his body has no freedom, but his soul is free. Winston hasn't had the freedom to determine himself. He isn't allowed to think, he is forced to work in the ministry of truth. He has to wake up every morning to exercise. His fate is predetermined. This would contradict what Sartre says, but if you look at it from Plato and Socrates view all these actions that Winston is performing have nothing to do with his immaterial self; his soul.
