Bio:
"Who controls the past controls the future: who controls the present controls the past" (Orwell 248).
"'If you want a picture of the future, imagine a boot stamping on a human face-forever'" (Orwell 267).
O'Brien's Role in 1984:
Orwell created O'Brien to let the readers into the Inner Party and to represent the brutality and mystery of the Party's rule. O'Brien's ability to manipulate Winston in just the right way in order to get him to accept doublethink and the Party's contradictory beliefs suggests that he must have some greater understanding of human nature. He represents one of the few who keeps his power by keeping others ignorant.