Charrington's shop for a place where he can be "utterly alone, utterly secure, with nobody watching [him], and no voice pursuing [him]" ironically exposes him and Julia to the Party through the hidden telescreen behind the painting of St. Clement's Church (Orwell 86). His decision to reside in the room whilst unknowingly sacrificing his security highlights his need to increase his chances of survival. This also captures his desperation to find a place he can be free from the worries of the haunting phrase, "BIG BROTHER IS WATCHING YOU.".
When Winston faces his greatest fear, survival takes precedence over his lover, Julia. As O'Brien places the mask and rat cage on Winston and releases the first lever, "the black panic [takes] hold of Winston (Orwell 255). Although Winston vows to remain loyal to Julia and declares to her "if they could make me stop loving you-that would be the real betrayal" before their imprisonment at the Ministry of Love, he breaks his promise when he surrenders and forfeits her life (Orwell 147). He begins to repetitively cry out "do it to Julia! Not me! Julia! I don't care what you do to her. Tear her face off, strip her to the bones. Not me! Julia! Not me!" to avoid the savage, flesh-eating rats (Orwell 256). Therefore, his deliberate sacrifice reveals how he relinquishes his love for Julia because he values his life over hers and has no other option to stay alive. Furthermore, it establishes the idea that surviving becomes the primary focus in any given life or death situation.
Finally, Winston sacrifices his humanity to save his life after receiving a variety of physical and psychological torture in Room 101. Towards the end of the novel, Winston's physical appearance begins to ˜[rot] away, " and he then becomes "aware of his ugliness, his gracelessness, a bundle of bones in filthy underclothes sitting weeping in the harsh white light " as O'Brien defines his humanity (Orwell 243).