Winston is dumb

 Winston caving to continued torture didn't surprise me even a little. He has been such a pathetic character the whole book its pretty fitting that he gives up the last of his dignity rather than face a little more torture. I think if Winston was a little smarter he would have dismissed any thoughts of rebellion right at the start of the book and lived a normal life loving big brother like everyone else did. If he was a little dumber he wouldn't of had any second thoughts about big brother and would have lived happily in his ignorance.

The thought police that we see from Winston's seem like they were designed to target the not too smart and not too dumb demographic that Winston falls into. They leave obvious traps like O'Brien so gullible dissenters take the bait. The Two Minutes Hate is perfect for catching people incapable of hiding their true feelings. The room that Winston rents suspiciously has no telescreen, but Winston doesn't even think to check for hidden telescreens. I wonder if a very careful and intelligent dissident would have a shot at overthrowing the government or if the party has a separate strategy for catching tougher targets.