WOW. Where to begin? Vaguely put, this book was like nothing I've ever read before. But, of course, this description doesn't do the book any justice. In every literary aspect, WE challenged the dexterity of my mind to the fullest. I attempted to follow D-503's scattered thoughts, pick up on Zamaytin's deep metaphors, and read into the symbolism of it all. I must say though, this is easier said than done!
From a reader's point of view, I felt an initial disappointment that the novel didn't have a "happier" ending. But the more I thought about the components and overall tone of the story, I realized that a fairytale ending wouldn't suit the novel in the least. Although I really believed that D-503, I-330, and the rest of the group plotting against the onestate would successfully escape, I think that this ending would have left me more dissatisfied because of its improbability. Their emancipation would have gone against the entire scheme of the novel, where the onestate always wins. The rebels had to be suppressed. Once again, their thoughts and dreams were crushed, which was necessary in further showing the power of the onestate. And even though at one point in the story I thought that was nearly impossible for rebels to not succeed in gaining freedom, the Benefactor and associates were able to suffocate their only chance for real happiness. So the cold, mecanized world lives on. Here, D-503 is no longer human. He is a robot in this society of machines where a soul is sickness, imagination is absurd, and freedom is inconceivable.
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