Main Page | See live article | Alphabetical index The phrase "two plus two make five" (or "2 + 2 = 5") is sometimes used as a succinct and vivid representation of an illogical statement, especially one made and maintained to suit an ideological agenda. Its common use originates from its inclusion in the novel Nineteen Eighty-Four by George Orwell (Part Three, Chapter Two), where it is contrasted with the true, mathematical phrase "two plus two make four." Orwell's protaganist, Winston Smith, uses it to consider the possibility that the State might declare "two plus two makes five" as a fact; he ponders that if everybody believes in it, does that make it true? This article is from Wikipedia. All text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License.