1984: a Symbol of Defeat Essay Example

“We shall meet in the place where there is no darkness” (27). In the novel 1984 by George Orwell, this statement is first heard in a dream. It seems to be a symbol of hope: A chance to meet with someone that shares the same ideas; a way to escape the dreary world of Big Brother. However, later in the novel it is discovered to be a symbol of defeat. Winston is a dead man, simply waiting for his bullet. By examining the symbolism in this novel we can trace the total destruction on Winston. One of the largest symbols in the entire novel is the figure of Big Brother. The massive gloomy face plastered on every building is the Party leader. Just his essence is an extreme icon of power and strength. Whether Big Brother really exists as a person is never completely determined. However, his face alone, along with help from the Inner Party, controls approximately 90% of the population. In contrast to Big Brother’s horrid world, we discover a place of beauty and peace: the Golden Country. The large pasture with foot paths, elm trees, and the stream is a place Winston has only dreamed of. We encounter this wonderful place multiple times throughout the novel. This paradise symbolizes simply beauty in a grubby crumbling world. In the secret underworld of this awful society is said to be a secret ‘Brotherhood’. It is consisted of individuals who wish to over run the Party. “The Book” has been written by the Brotherhood and explains everything that they do. To Winston the information about The Book and the Brotherhood are symbols of hope. If they are both real it means that there are others out there like him. As he thinks about the Brotherhood and the Book he tries to figure out any way possible that the Party could be over thrown. There is only one way with potential. He writes in his secret diary, “If there is hope... it lies in the Proles” (72). The Proles are a shining symbol of hope; the only likely way that the Party could ever be defeated, although, they are far too