Codi Revis
English 1102
Among the Dust in 1984
For centuries writers have tried to depict the perfect society or utopia. Works such as Sir Thomas More’s Utopia, written in 1516, have fascinated readers for generations and made curious the idea of a truly perfect society with flawless social, moral, and political values. However, the reality of a utopia is that it cannot exist successfully, which is the reason for the popularity of dystopic works such as The Communist Manifesto, written in 1848 by Karl Marx. In dystopic societies people are plagued by deprivation, oppression, and terror. This is the case in George Orwell’s 1984, written in 1949. Orwell gives readers a horrifying glimpse into the fictitious life of Winston Smith, a man oppressed by political control. 1984 is layered with symbolism of Winston’s impending doom. However, Winston’s annihilation is visible in the first chapter of the novel by the use of a simple term: dust. Dust is the primary symbol in Winston’s world representing the inescapable power of “The Party,” and is used by Orwell as a principle element in the structure of the novel.
One of the key principles of a utopia is that it exists as an imaginary place or “no place” this is ironic because there is no place on earth that does not hold dust. Dust is defined as particles of matter regarded as the result of disintegration. Dust is therefore symbolic of the disintegration of Winston’s life due to the power and control of “The Party.” It is evident in the opening paragraph of the book that Winston will be unable to escape the cruelty of “The Party” when he attempts to close the glass doors of Victory Mansions to escape a vile wind, “though not quickly enough to prevent a swirl of gritty dust from entering along with him” (Orwell 3). From the moment Winston inadvertently allows the entry of dust into the complex, his fate is sealed. The dust will continue to plague Winston, and although he often takes notice of its presence, he is never truly aware of his demise or the affiliation of the two.
Dust is also used to characterize the inhabitants of London who have been fully assimilated into the state (Lee 137). For example, when readers are introduced to Mrs. Parsons, Winston’s neighbor, “one had the impression that there was dust in the creases of her face” (Orwell 22). Then as Winston leaves her house he notices “with interest that there actually was dust in the creases of her face” (Orwell 25). This of course, is a reference to the woman’s slavery to the state. Mrs. Parsons represents the typical ignorant, unthinking citizen. The dust is also present in her wrinkles because, like Winston, she will fall victim to “The Party” when her husband is captured by the Thought Police.
Another early use of the dust symbol has added implications (Lee 137). In a rebellious attempt to maintain a physical link to the past, Winston commits an inconceivable crime and starts a diary. It is here that Winston becomes somewhat aware of his destruction. He writes in the diary that he is dead. However, he unintentionally places the diary under the control of the state with a minute piece of dust: “He put the diary away in the drawer. It was quite useless to think of hiding it, but he could at least make sure whether or not its existence had been discovered. A hair laid across the page-ends was too obvious. With the tip of his finger he picked up an identifiable grain of whitish dust and deposited it on the corner of the cover, where it was bound to be shaken off if the book was moved” (Orwell 31). When the Thought Police come and examine the diary, while Winston still believes himself to be free, “even the speck of whitish dust on the cover of his diary they had carefully replaced” (Lee 138). The whitish grain of dust represents both physical Oceania and the inevitability and totality of the state’s power and control. The fact that the thought police replaced the speck of dust only proves that Winston is clueless to his own demise.
Thus, Winston’s foray into the prole section of London, in an attempt to find someone who can remember the past and disprove any current fact, ends in failure. The man that Winston finds is feeble and his memory is nothing more than a collation of clichés. Winston assumes that this is due to the man’s age: however, his failure was inevitable. Winston and the man talk in a “dingy little pub whose windows appeared frosted over but in reality were merely coated with dust” (Orwell 90). Because of the dust symbol, readers know before Winton ever enters that “The Party” already controls the pub and everyone in it. Winston’s attempt to subvert his world has once again been symbolically foredoomed to failure (Lee 138).
Another major attempt to defy the system is the love affair between Winston and Julia, which is also haunted by the dust symbol. In their rapid involvement Julia arranges their first rendezvous in the countryside. As Winston travels to the isolated destination, he is aware and anxious of the country’s surroundings. Readers are aware, due to the dust symbol, that he is not free and will not actually be alone with Julia because “The sweetness of the air and the greenness of the leaves daunted him. Already, on the walk from the station, the May sunshine had made him feel dirty and etiolated, a creature of indoors, with the sooty dust of London in the pores of his skin” (Orwell 125). Their first meeting is successful and they continue to meet sporadically. In one of their meetings a bomb is dropped nearby and the explosion leaves Julia’s lips covered with “some powdery stuff” (Orwell 135), no doubt a form of dust. And thus, as Winston seals his fate in the diary with a single grain of dust, Julia symbolically dooms their relationship when deciding that it is now safe to return to their original spot in the woods (Lee 139). “And in her practical way she scraped together a small square of dust, and with a twig from a pigeon’s nest began drawing a map on the floor” (Orwell 143), which obliterates any chance Winston and Julia may have had of returning to their cozy nook in the woods. As the last defiant act in Winston and Julia’s delusion of freedom, they meet with supposed acquaintance O’Brien, to complete their initiation into the Brotherhood. O’Brien tells them “We are the dead. Our only true life is in the future. We shall take part in it as handfuls of dust and splinters of bone” (183-184). O’Brien is correct because Winston will in the end become the dust. When Julia and Winston are captured in the room above the antique shop, the dust symbol is used in another context when a member of the Thought Police shatters the glass paperweight. The variation of the dust symbol allows the state to take on a new role of punisher. The paperweight has represented the past. When it is smashed against the hearth it becomes apparent that it has in fact represented Winston and Julia’s relationship, and the end of their existence. The fragments of glass are a mere variation of dust (Lee 140).
Then, due to his lengthy torture, Winston becomes a shadow of his former self. When he sees himself in the mirror he notices, “Except for his hands and a circle of his face, his body was grey all over with ancient, ingrained dirt” (Orwell 284). The final use of the dust symbol occurs when Winston is captured and becomes a true member of the party and a true believer of Big Brother. Once placed back into society, “Occasionally, perhaps twice a week, he went to a dusty, forgotten-looking office in the Ministry of Truth and did a little work, or what was called work” (Orwell 307). In conclusion, George Orwell’s 1984 could not have existed without the dust symbol. It is a window into the state, a warning of what is to come, and eventually it becomes Winston Smith.
Works Cited
Lee, Robert A. Orwell’s Fiction. Note Dame: UNDP, 1969.
Orwell, George. Nineteen Eighty-Four. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1987.
Marx, Karl and Frederick Engels. Manifesto of the Communist Party. London: 1848. 15 April. 2004 <http://www.anu.edu.au/polsci/marx/classics/manifesto.html>.
More, Thomas. Modern History Sourcebook: Utopia 1516. 15 April. 2004 <http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/mod/thomasmore-utopia.html>.