1985 [Hardcover]

Anthony Burgess (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1978

Ingenious, chilling and darkly comic, 1985 combines a devastating critique of George Orwell's 1984 with a terrifying vision of the future. As memorable and shocking as A Clockwork Orange, it is also as powerful and unsettling as anything Burgess has written.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"The energetic and unclassifiable Mr Burgess has once more broken new ground." - Kingsley Amis "A book as important as it is frightening." - Daily Telegraph "There is too much which is truly excellent for anyone to ignore it." - Auberon Waugh --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

About the Author

Anthony Burgess is the author of A Clockwork Orange and Earthly Powers, among more than 50 other works of fiction and non-fiction. He died in 1993. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 272 pages
• Publisher: Little Brown & Co (T); 1st edition (October 1978)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0316116513
• ISBN-13: 978-0316116510
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.8 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,064,535 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Anthony Burgess (25th February 1917-22nd November 1993) was one of the UK's leading academics and most respected literary figures. A prolific author, during his writing career Burgess found success as a novelist, critic, composer, playwright, screenwriter, travel writer, essayist, poet and librettist, as well as working as a translator, broadcaster, linguist and educationalist. His fiction also includes NOTHING LIKE THE SUN, a recreation of Shakespeare's love-life, but he is perhaps most famous for the complex and controversial novel A CLOCKWORK ORANGE, exploring the nature of evil. Born in Manchester, he spent time living in Southeast Asia, the USA and Mediterranean Europe as well as in England, until his death in 1993.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars good critical work, but a poor novel, August 8, 2002

By 

[e-mail] "[e-mail]" (Beaumont, tx USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: 1985 (Hardcover)

Burgess' 1985 is really two works combined. The first is a series of essays and self-interviews that discuss Orwell's 1984. These are a great group of essays that really throw some light on Orwell's novel. Anyone who likes 1984 should read these essays. The second half is a novella of Burgess titled 1985. The dust jacket gives the impression that it is supposed to be a sequel of sorts. It isn't. It is a dystopia that takes place in 1985 (written in 1978) and is supposed to be a (more) possible scenario at the time. It isn't very entertaining, and a lot of ideas, characters, themes, etc aren't fleshed out the way they should be. But I suppose that could do with the shortness of the story. And Burgess should have been more careful with his title. Burgess's 1985 isn't a frightening or as well written as Orwell's 1984, and Burgess drawing the reader to make a comparison only hurts his story. After the novella is a short chapter on Worker's English (WE) which is Burgess' version of Newspeak. The problem is that WE isn't used much in the story, is really nothing more than a little slang, and I understand that Burgess only has the chapter/essay because of Orwell's explanation of Newspeak, but it is dull and unnecessary. Then Burgess finishes out the volume with another self-interview which discusses the possibility of his future. All this in only 270 pages. Still, the discussion of Orwell's 1984 that the first half is comprised of is excellent and the book is worth finding, if only for that.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Illuminating, July 5, 2000

By 

Mr P R Pensom (London, England) - See all my reviews

This review is from: 1985 (Hardcover)

A stunning book which I stumbled across completely by chance - and one which throws new light on two of the last century's most important novels: Orwell's 1984 and Burgess' own A Clockwork Orange. I have long been an admirer of both books, but this book is fascinating in that it goes some way towards clarifying the moral stances which have long remained open to interpretation in the two previous books. Unusually for a popular work, the book combines a devastating critique of 1984, with it's own fictional riposte (the 1985 of the title). The latter part being particularly interesting as a reminder of just how pertinent the issue of syndicalism was in the days just before the resurgence of rampant lassez faire.

10 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of his best works., July 7, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: 1985 (Hardcover)

Two books in one, the first an examination of George Orwell's 1984, the second Burgess' own view of the future.

His analysis of 1984 is spot on as he looks at Orwell's world, (1984 was meant to be titled 1948), his background and motives for writing it. Burgess also looks at all of the worst possible futures scenarios, general social trends and thoughts for the future. His look at youth culture is particularly cutting, but incisive.

Burgess sees 1985 as a world dominated by trade unions and hyper-inflation, western liberal society and values, crumbling before a militant and virile Islam. Western culture is sapped by a dumbing down of educational standards and a destruction of art and culture. All that is offered is in return is increasingly shoddy consumer goods and a despicable popular culture.

The main character, Bev is a former history teacher, who after his wife is burned to death, because fireman would not break a sympathy strike to quell a hospital fire, decides to rebel against the system. Like Winston Smith his rebellion is doomed to failure, but the world is changing and the syndicalist future will collapse under its own weight.

In his own afterword Burgess states that like Orwell he did not take into account the basic commonsense and decency of the working man. This commonsense and decency which would not allow either nightmares to come to pass. 20 years have passed since this book first appeared, and the future is quite different. But our educational standards have been dumbed down, and our freedoms do face a threat from increasingly militant and fanatical fringe groups. A new totalitarianism is possible and indeed imminent so Anthony Burgess' final message is that we must not take for granted our physical and intelectual freedoms.

His section on Workers English is very amusing as he renders the Declaration of Independence and Hamlets Soliquy into the argot of the English working class yob.

Half a book thought provoking in the way of P.J O'Rouke at his best, the ! other half offering what all excellent fiction should do an escape into a credible, but different world.