Irony in 1984

The book,”1984” by George Orwell, is analyzed as the author’s prediction of the future. George Orwell uses his literary skills to give details on what he assumes would take place in the year, 1984. There are many possible themes that can sum up this story such as, ignorance, dystopia, hatred, propaganda, sexual intercourse and irony. There are three commonly used parts of irony such as, dramatic irony, situational irony, and verbal irony. Dramatic irony is when the reader knows something the character doesn’t. Situational irony is when something occurs that was totally unexpected. Verbal irony is when the speaker says one thing and means another. In 1984 there are many examples of irony such as the slogans, Winston (main character), and the dark-haired girl.

            Admittedly, the slogans that the party promoted are a great example of verbal irony. The slogans were, “War is Peace, Freedom is Slavery, and Ignorance is Strength.” For the inner party, these slogans mean as long as Oceania is at war, the masses are able to direct their anger at an enemy and not at the party. The inner party enjoys its freedom insomuch as it enslaves the masses, and outer party members, proletariats, or workers are out in the war zone. As long as the masses remain ignorant to the truth, the party remains strong. Those not understanding the machinations of the inner party believe peace can only be achieved by conquering the world and eliminating the enemies of the party and of Oceania. They believe that to act freely would lessen Oceania's strength and lead it to possible doom. They believe that any deviation from the party weakens the nation, preferring to remain ignorant. There were meanings behind the slogans but overall they were very ironic.

            Undoubtedly, both Winston and Julia, known as the “dark-haired girl,” had ironic situations. The main character, Winston Smith, uses the "Memory hole" to deposit things. One would think that the memory hole would be place of past memories and thoughts of the past. Contrarily, the memory hole is used to dispose of documents and other items in an incinerator. Winston does this as a part of his job within the party in an attempt to get rid of all past events and history. The dark-haired girl wears a chastity belt above her waist to indicate that she has not had sex. While in all reality she has been with numerous men. Winston hated the dark-haired girl then came to a reality that he really wanted her. These situations held many depths of irony.

            As you can see, George Orwell’s novel, “1984” was analyzed as an extraordinary prediction of the future. Not only did he describe his thought well but he used the theme of irony all throughout the story keeping the reader fascinated at how dramatic the future may be.  This book was cleverly put together. In the novel, 1984, there are many examples of irony such as the slogans, Winston and the dark-haired girl.