1984 theme of class struggle

Question 1

The social classes in 1984

Answer 1

In Nineteen Eighty-Four, society is made up of three distinct social classes: the elite Inner Party, the industrious Outer Party, and vast numbers of uneducated proles.

Question 2

What does Orwell learn reading Goldstein;s book

Answer 2

When Winston reads Goldstein’s book, he learns that the history of humankind has been a cyclical struggle between competing social groups: the High, the Middle, and the Low.

Question 3

Winston’s hopes for the future

Answer 3

At various points in the narrative, Winston entertains the hope that the proles will become conscious of their oppressed state and initiate a revolution. At other times, he despairs that since the proles cannot rebel until they become conscious, and cannot become conscious until only after they have rebelled, such a development is extremely unlikely.

Question 4

Proles hope quote

Answer 4

“If there was hope, it lay in the proles! It would be a world of sanity.”

Question 5

Proles hope quote analysis

Answer 5

The proles still have enough energy and freedom to overthrow the regime. He considers that the proles might not realize this for a long time––perhaps even a thousand years––and that even when it does eventually happen, it would create a world that he might not personally feel comfortable in. However, he decides it would be worth it because there would at last be true equality and “sanity”––a world where freedom of thought and common sense were allowed to exist.