"The proles, it suddenly occurred to him, had remained in this condition. They were not loyal to a party or a country or an idea, they were loyal to one another. For the first time in his life he did not despise the proles or think of them merely as an inert force which would one day spring to life and regenerate the world. The proles had stayed human. They had not become hardened inside. They had held onto the primitive emotion which he himself had to relearn by conscious effort." (136)
In this section, Winston realizes just how powerful the proles are. In previous chapters, the proles are described as this massive, huddled, and clueless group of workers. Though they were viewed as dirty and uneducated by Winston and his neighbors who worked in the Ministries, the proles were the ones who were really happy, because they were not monitored by Big Brother and were exempt from their rules. Winston even goes out to state ,"The proles are human beings" and "We are not human" (137). He is saying that since the proles are free from the rule of Big Brother, they are able to have free will and a consciousness and that is what constitutes a human being. Winston and Julia have to live in fear and compliance to Big Brother so they really don't have any say in their lives. Winston envies this freedom that he witnesses in the proles and can see that the proles have the power to overthrow Big Brother.
I really enjoyed the quote you had chosen, especially because the Proles had interested from the beginning. Your analysis of the quote is really good. The proles are the real human beings because they aren't under the control of Big Brother. Like you said they "have free will and a consciousness and that is what constitutes a human being."
ReplyDeleteI agree with Winston and Julia living in fear and compliance to Big Brother. From what you said about free will and consciousness is what constitutes a human being it reminds about another quote that has to do with the consciousness to rebel. In order to rebel they need to be conscious.
ReplyDeleteI agree with what you wrote on how the proles are still considered human beings since they have more freedom unlike Winston and Julia. I also used the part where it says, "For the first time in his life he did not despise the proles or think of them merely as inert force which would one day spring to life and regenerate the world" as my quote, so it was interesting to read your analysis on the same quote. It is sad and true that Winston and Julia have to constantly live in fear because any wrong words, expressions, and actions can cost them their lives.
ReplyDeleteI agree with your post about the proles. The proles had never been shown in a positive light until now. Winston realizing that they have some since of humanity, and that Winston has none of his humanity left is very sad. He lost all of his free will to the Party who only wants to seek and control their people. However, the Party doesn't have all the power. You mentioned that the proles has the ability to overthrow Big Brother. This is something I agree because is based on its people and citizens and if the citizens aren't happy with the government they could just revolt.
ReplyDeleteI do question so parts of your post though. Why is it that free will and consciousness constitutes humanity?
If I were Winston, I would envy them too. The proles have so much freedom and they do have the potential to overthrow Big Brother. But, what motives do they have to do so; I don't see a reason why they should since rules don't apply to them and they seem to be pretty happy with their lives.
ReplyDeleteThis actually a topic that I have also chosen for this section. I agree that Winston is actually a little bit envious of the proles. It's easy to understand how you came to this conclusion. The author clearly lead you to there. It's unequivocal. If I were in the same position as Winston I would probably react the same way, and I'm assuming that you would too.
ReplyDelete