1984 Literary Elements

Grace Ogunkunle

Prof. D. Fozouni

English 102 (SBVC)

Use of Literary Elements in 1984

30, Nov. 2017

Literary elements are tools used in literature to emphasize important points, generate interest, and convey the voice of a writer in a written work. Often, they aid readers to feel like they are part of the story, it creates images in the head/ mind of the reader, they can also cause time to disappear, they may draw one into a story, thus it can create the world in one’s vision. George Orwell used literary language in the 1984 novel very elegantly well, for instance, Personification- "If the Party could force its power to the past and say this or that even, it never happened—that, surely, was more horrifying than mere torment and death" Orwell

Repetition is another figurative speech that was literarily used in the book, for example, “Who controls the past controls the future; who controls the future controls the past”. Orwell utilizes repetition to retain reader’s interest, this compels readers to re-read and re-think more. Another literary element used is allusion; allusion is an approach in which an author associates real occurrence with a narrative without openly specifying it as such. Orwell wrote 1984 during the advancement of Communism in Europe, thus the novel is prevalent with allusion. Simile is another literary device used by George Orwell, similes use ''like'' or ''as'' to exemplify a matter by connecting two views opinions, notions, beliefs, or conceptions. Orwell writes, 'He felt as though he were wandering in the forests of the sea bottom, lost in a monstrous world where he himself was the monster. He was alone.' In comparing Winston to a monster, we can guess how it

For example, “War is peace, freedom is slavery, ignorance is strength,” He compels readers to believe that two absolute opposites such as freedom and slavery are the same, which brings hope to those in slavery and admonition to the free. Irony creates a new facet to ordinary terminology, utterances that purposively contradict what is anticipated. It is used in various ways, but not so glaringly by the Party's slogan 'war is peace, freedom is slavery, and ignorance is strength.' Firstly, the dystopian Oceania seems like a ceaseless war. Oceania can be at peace in as much as its attention, its hatred, and its energy are destroyed by the war. Secondly, the Proles i.e. the working-class citizens cannot antagonize the Party to free themselves since that would lead to oppression and bondage. Finally, the Proles must totally embrace ignorance; to oppose the Party is paramount to incapacitate the society. Each of these ideas are ironical because the indication is in contradiction to the real life of those who are living in Oceania. A symbol is any object, person, place, or action that is meaningful, and that also illustrate something larger than it does, such as a standard, a viewpoint, an opinion, or a significance. Symbolism is obvious in 1984; the telescreen is an emblem of the physical and psychological power the government exercise over the people, and the piece of coral Winston