Doublethink means the power of holding two contradictory beliefs in
one's mind simultaneously, and accepting both of them. The Party
intellectual knows in which direction his memories must be altered; he
therefore knows that he is playing tricks with reality; but by the exercise
of doublethink he also satisfies himself that reality is not violated. The
process has to be conscious, or it would not be carried out with sufficient
precision, but it also has to be unconscious, or it would bring with it a
feeling of falsity and hence of guilt. Doublethink lies at the very heart
of Ingsoc, since the essential act of the Party is to use conscious
deception while retaining the firmness of purpose that goes with complete
honesty. To tell deliberate lies while genuinely...