Weeks of torture continues for Winston. O’Brien explains the reason for Big Brother and the party has limitless power and can never be stopped. Winston tries to intervene by claiming not everything can be changed, like the stars in the sky. O’Brien then claims the only thing that matters are the minds of a human which the party has complete control of. O’Brien orders Winston to look in the mirror. When he does the person in the reflection is unrecognizable. Winston is gray and skeleton-like. His body is no longer healthy. O’Brien recognizes Winstons strength and loyalty being held towards Julia and because of this Winston grows even fonder of O’Brien for seeing his strength through all the pain he has gone through. O’Brien told Winston to not worry much longer because soon he would be cured but it didn't matter because at the end everyone gets shot. 

Winston is moved into a more comfortable room where the pain and torture is at a standstill. Winston dreams of the Golden Country where Julia, O’Brien and his mother are there. Winston feels foolish for not believing.Winston then begins to scream Julias name because he has passion and misses her. He knew O’Brien would torture him more if he heard him screaming Julia. Winston then realized he still had hatred for Big Brother and tried to hold it down to the point where he doesn’t recognize it, with the idea that when he dies he will hate big brother in a victory for himself. O’Brien enters back into the room with a guard. Winston is unable to help it and yells that he hates Big Brother. O’Brien tells Winston obeying Big Brother isn't good enough he must learn to love him. O’Brien orders the guards to take Winston to room 101.

O’Brien straps Winston's body down completely and tells Winston that room 101 consists of the worst thing in the world, for Winston this was rats. O’Brien grabs a cage full of rats and tells Winston he will open the cage and the rats will jump on him, eating his face. Winston then begins to subject Julia and betrays her by telling O’Brien he'd rather have Julia suffer. O'Brien, proud of Winston, removes the rats. 

Winston was free and was celebrating at Chestnut tree cafe with gin. He now fully believed in the party and on the bar wrote 2+2=5 and truly believed it. When he thought of Julia no desire came to him in fact he felt nothing besides cold repulsion from the idea of having sex with her. They knew they both betrayed each other and considered meeting up again but to understand they wouldn't continue their relationship. Winston hears a rhyme to a chestnut song about betrayal, he begins to tear up from a slight happiness remembering his mother and sister but thinks it's a false memory. He looks up at the telescreen and sees big brother. Winston feels safe and loves Big Brother.