A Marxist criticism of George Orwell's nineteen eighty four

“Nineteen eighty four”, published in 1949 is one of George Orwell's most famous novels. Set in “Oceania”, the power base of the oligarchical “Party”, the all seeing, all knowing government. In “1984”, George Orwell portrays his opinions about the highly marginalised class system. He shows the values of socialism and the possible nightmare that capitalism could evolve into.

The protagonist in the story, Winston, works for the Outer party in the ministry of truth. However, secretly hating the party, he dreams of one day rebelling. Winston is a classic example of themes touched in Marxist ideals such as the lower class rebelling against the elitist, known as the revolution of the proletariat. Marxism tells us that capitalism thrives on exploiting its labourers, so that only the elite hold the power, free to use the masses which they deem dispensable, at their disposal.This is evident in “1984” as the Party uses the general population as tools, to fund and facilitate their constant wars.The party dehumanises them in that Big brother removes their personal freedoms, control minds, they prohibit creative thought, even as far as outlawing emotions, stripping down humanity to the flesh, tools.

The party itself is autocratic, dictatorial in that it controls every single aspect of life. Their power is unquestionable and infinite. They not only control the masses physically with walls and borders, yet also mentally with mind control, control of free thought and free actions.This is apparent in marxist doctrine in that the advanced capitalism of the party determines the social superstructure, therefore restricting creative efforts. People are no longer free. The shadow of authority, that of the Party is overwhelming and successful, therefore public receptiveness and opinion is unimportant because their domination of the mental and the physical is irrefutable, agreeing with the marxist theory that people are not free, they only think they are.

The overwhelming actions of the party mean that Winston and Julia desire to rebel, however they are so brainwashed and unable to articulate their thoughts that they do not have the passion to rise up.This is common in history such as the failed revolution of 1905 in Russia. The people were so consumed by society and the conservative bubble that they lived in that they were neither ready or capable of rising up and overthrowing the elite that continued to squash them. Marxism supports the idea of the proletariat, the working class, rising up and taking power, changing the mode of production, changing the social circumstances in which people feel so trapped and lost.

Orwell was a strong supporter of socialism, seeking a world based on harmony and socialist ideals. “1984” was an attempt to educate and show people the possible outcome of capitalism and the values and advantages of socialism. He prayed for people to stand up and use their voice, to deter oppression and injustice. In conclusion, George Orwell's 1984 is a perfect marxist example of the possible outcome of capitalism and the need for social change, not just on a local, national, world level, but also on a personal level.