1984 Symbolism What is symbolism Symbolism is when

‘ 1984’ Symbolism

What is symbolism? ¡ Symbolism is when a writer uses objects, characters, figures, and colours to represent abstract ideas or concepts.

Symbolism in ‘ 1984’ ¡ Big Brother ¡ The glass paperweight and St. Clement’s Church ¡ The place where there is no darkness. ¡ The Telescreens ¡ The Red Armed Prole Woman

Big Brother ¡ ¡ ¡ Everywhere Winston goes he is faced with the picture of Big Brother. The citizens are told that he is the leader of the nation and the head of the Party, but Winston can never determine whether or not he actually exists. For most people, he is a symbol of reassurance as the name suggests. However, he is also an open threat that one cannot escape from ‘BIG BROTHER IS WATCHING YOU’ Also a symbol of the vagueness that seems to go along with the world the occupy. Winston thinks he remembers that Big Brother emerged around 1960, but the Party’s official records date Big Brother’s existence back to 1930, before Winston was even born.

Big Brother ¡ BIG BROTHER IS WATCHING YOU. Scared yet? Big Brother is the face of the Party, the leader behind the great power. The best part is that we never come to confirm his actual existence. He might not even be real. Maybe the Party just hired an intimidating -looking male model to make those posters. The face of the Party, Big Brother acts as reassurance and a trustworthy entity for many (his name is warm and fuzzy and easy to embrace). Yet, he is also your biggest enemy and threat – if you are one of the criminals (he is watching your every move). So about his name. This is more irony. "Big Brother" should be a nice guy that, even if he gives you wedgies once in a while, still has your back on the playground. But since war is peace, freedom is slavery, and ignorance is strength, Big Brother is also a controlling and not remotely brotherly guy.

The glass paperweight and St Clement’s ¡ ¡ Winston buys a paperweight in an antique store in the prole district that comes to symbolize his attempt to reconnect with the past. The old picture of St. Clement’s Church in the room that Winston rents above Mr. Charrington’s shop is another representation of the lost past.

The place where there is no darkness ¡ ¡ At the beginning of the novel, Winston dreams of meeting O’Brien in the place where there is no darkness. In reality he does meet him in a place where there is no darkness it’s just that this is in the Ministry of Love It symbolises Winston’s hope for the future as well as his fate- it’s just that these mean different things. He allows himself to trust O’Brien despite the fact that inwardly he senses that he might be a Party insider.

The Telescreens The most visible symbol of the ever present party. ¡ Dual role; to control party members and also for constant stream of propaganda. ¡ Symbolises the totalitarianism government’s abuse of technology. ¡ Exploits knowledge to improve civilisation ¡

The Telescreens ¡ With their dual ability to blast Party propaganda and to view and hear the exact goings-on in a room, these telescreens are a visible symbol as well as the direct means of the Party’s constant monitoring of its subjects. They also symbolize the tendency of totalitarian governments to abuse technology to further their own ends instead of to improve living standards.

The Red- Armed Prole Woman This is the woman that Winston hears singing when he is with Julia ¡ Represents Winston’s one hope for the future; that the proles will unite to get rid of the party. ¡ A symbol of fertility; that the woman’s offspring are a sign for the future. ¡

Victory Gin, Victory Cigarettes ¡ Discontented with his life, Winston turns to vices as a means of escape and self-medication. In Winston’s case, it’s alcohol and cigarettes. He drinks gin to sedate his paranoia, like that time he downs a shot or two before finally writing in his journal. He smokes cigarettes for a similar reason: to calm himself down. These common vices help Winston check his doubts and paranoia at the door. Irony - Winston’s "vices" aren’t personal decisions, nor are they small acts of individuality or rebellion. Rather, his vices have been assigned to him. Which kind of defeats the purpose of vices altogether. There was a Simpsons episode where Marge tells Bart he can’t have vegetables until he finished his ice cream. The result? Ice cream is not so enjoyable anymore. Same deal here.

Winston’s Varicose Ulcer Above His Ankle ¡ ¡ A thing that swells and itches, and after you scratch it, flakes. Sounds gruesome, right? Observe when the symptoms subside and then become evident again.

Memory Holes ¡ These were only briefly mentioned in the novel, but that doesn’t mean they are unimportant. Memory holes are those things in the ground that the Party insists any scraps of paper get tossed into. They lead to a furnace. Let’s think about this for a second. Memory…furnaces…memory…are memories being burned here? Why yes, they are. By destroying paper, the Party destroys documents and therefore evidence of the past. Which, given all the thought control going on, would seem to be the only real link left to history. Well, it was, anyway, until it got sent to the furnace.

Emmanuel Goldstein ¡ The ultimate symbol of opposition to the Party, we are not sure whether Goldstein actually exists. Publicly, he is known as a Party enemy, but he actually serves the Party’s purposes as a scapegoat. Every time something goes bad or wrong, the Party attributes it to Goldstein – conveniently. Could Goldstein be a device created by the Party?

Julia’s Scarlet Anti-Sex Waist Sash ¡ This represents a citizen’s devotion to Party doctrine and Party cause. A symbol of chastity in the book, Julia’s sash actually represents her duality. A devout Party member by appearance, Julia uses the sash to disguise her true actions.

Winston’s Mother ¡ Appearing only in his dreams and memories, Winston’s mother represents better, pre-Party days when life was safe and not quite so oppressive. As the novel progresses, however, we also come to see that she represents Winston’s intense sense of guilt. If Winston didn’t actually kill his parents (and we’re leaning toward this), then Winston’s mother is the epitome of a pleasant past colored by the lies and manipulation of the Party.

Paperweight ¡ “Here comes the chopper to chop off your head!” This is an important foreshadow, as it is the telescreen hidden behind the picture that ultimately leads the Thought Police to Winston, symbolizing the Party’s corrupt control of the past. ¡ When the thought police capture the two, they smash the paperweight, symbolising the control the Party has over the past.