1984 3

"He must, he thought, have been ten or eleven years old when his mother had disappeared." (29)

Winston's awful childhood and the disappearance of his mother must have contributed to his unwillingness to succumb to the laws and rules of Big Brother. Generally someone's childhood and their relationship with their parents forms or at least heavily influences their character later on in life. Perhaps Orwell included this in Winston's history to justify his stubbornness. Since Winston's mother's disappearance was ultimately credited to Big Brother, it would have instilled a subconscious hatred for everything associated with that, at a very young age. Winston has feelings about his childhood, even though he doesn't claim to remember it.