Eye of the Beholder

The final scene of the episode “Eye of the Beholder” was frightening, and of course surprising. The entire episode was a buildup for Janet Tyler’s face to be revealed. She was nervous to see if the injections and treatments had paid off to make her look “beautiful”. Once the bandages were taken off, she gasped and covered her eyes. Even though she was gorgeous by our society’s standards of beauty, in her society she was considered repulsive. In the scenes leading up to the removal of her bandages, the doctor shared a conversation with her that paralleled O’Brien’s conversation with Winston. The doctor explained how she would need to be to a ghetto if she didn’t respond to the injections, and she protested, telling him that she just wanted to be like everyone else. She protests that the government shouldn’t have the final say in her life. The doctor told the nurses later that he felt close to her – that he had seen more than just a face – and that he felt awful sending her away. However, he knew that that would be what he had to do.

After her mask was taken off and the rest of their faces were displayed, a man with the same frightening face appeared on a screen giving a speech about their unified society, much like Big Brother. Their main goal was to change Janet Tyler so she would fit into the rest of society. In 1984, they did the same thing to Winston; however, the Ministry of Love succeeded in changing Winston to fit the party and the hospital in the Twilight Zone did not succeed in fixing Janet’s face.