Dark Irony: 75th Anniversary Edition Of Orwell's 1984 Comes With Trigger Warnings

A new 75th anniversary edition of George Orwell's classic novel "1984" includes a trigger warning in the introduction written by American University professor Dolen Perkins-Valdez notes that the novel lacks Black characters and that the protagonist Winston Smith is "problematic" due to his views on women. The introduction has sparked outrage, with critics arguing that the warning is unnecessary and that the novel is meant to be a warning about the erosion of language and freedom of thought. The novel's protagonist is intended to be flawed" and the introduction's focus on his "misogyny" is seen as misguided. Journalists Matt Taibbi and Walter Kirn have criticized the introduction, pointing out that the novel is meant to be a warning about the dangers of ideological conformity. The inclusion of the trigger warning has been seen as ironic, given the novel's warnings about the dangers of censorship and the rewriting of art to appease dogmatic sensitivities. The introduction has been met with widespread criticism, with many seeing it as an example of the very dangers that Orwell's novel warns about.