This book is a three parter. In the first part John W. Young explains to us how language in Orwell's "1984" was used for thought control. In part Two and Three, he compares the fiction to the reality of language and terminology used in Nazi Germany and Communist Russia. Not only does he show us the flaws in totalitarion languages, he even shows us the counter-languages that develop to help people under the dictatorial rule keep things 'real'.
One point he makes is that while governments have a hard time changing the meaning of words or banning them completely, they can make words worthless by using them so much that the words lose all meaning. Kind of like how we use 'democratic' today.

Like so many of Steinbeck's other novels, The Red Pony is full of vivid imagery, raw emotion, and touching themes. However, unlike many of Steinbeck's other works, I found the Red pony to be a very unsatisfying novel. It has wonderful character and plot development, but it dosn't take us anywhere. We are introduced to the Pony, but it dies. Nothing is accomplished by its death. Each chapter of the story finishes like this. The reader is given very little completion at the end of eachc hapter and less at the end of the book. over all, the style was good, the plot development was good, the themes were powerful, but there was nothing to bring it together in the end. Of Mice & Men and The Pearl are both much more enjoyable novellas by Steinbeck.

Even though the book "The Red Pony", by John Stienbeck, was one of the saddest books I have ever read I would recommend it because the plot has many interesting turns and the theme is very emotional. "The Red Pony" was about a young boy, Jody, and his family who live on a ranch. The book consists of four short stories, each of which involves Jody learning a lesson of life. It is so tragic because in every story, something dies. In "The Gift" and "The Promise", two horses die, in "The Great Mountains" it is implied that Gitano committed suicide, and in "The Leader of the People" a part of Grandfather dies when he realizes that Westering has passed. When he realizes this, his whole motivation is gone, so a part of him is missing, or dead. My favorite story in "The Red Pony" was "The Promise", because I enjoyed the way Jody would imagine things about what he was doing on the way home from school, and about what the new colt would be like. Over all, I found this book very enjoyable, even though it was so melancholy.

John Steinbeck's "The Red Pony" is a group of four interconnected stories: "The Gift," "The Great Mountains," "The Promise," and "The Leader of the People." Each story focuses on Jody Tiflin, a 10-year old boy growing up on a ranch on the west coast of the United States. The other main characters are Jody's parents and the ranch hand Billy Buck. Also frequently appearing are the ranch dogs, Doubletree Mutt and Smasher.

"The Red Pony" is not a novel, so readers expecting the cohesion and unity of a novel will be disappointed. The book should, in my opinion, be evaluated for what it is. And once you appreciate its own peculiar structure, you may, as I did, acknowledge "The Red Pony" as a powerful and beautiful work of art.

Steinbeck masterfully captures the cycles of life, death, and renewal in the lives of both his human and animal characters. He creates vivid, often visceral scenes, that are written in a quietly powerful language. There are moving moments of joy, horror, and heartbreak. "The Red Pony" is a significant achievement by one of America's enduring literary giants.