The Proles

“...nobody cares what the proles say...” (Page 96)

Throughout history, the word proletariat (shortened by Orwell to emphasize his futuristic language of Newspeak) has been used to describe the lower, working class. Although it was regularly used to classify the poor during ancient Rome, it is more commonly connected to the class system of Marxism or Communism. The term itself designated the class of wage workers who earned an income primarily from doing manual labor. Despite them being hard workers, the proletariat often lived in poverty and were subject to being beggars and criminals. Orwell incorporates this class into his dystopian society simply because, in reality, there would always be a group of people who were considered destitute. Also, by including the “proles,” Orwell points out the fact that those who are not financially or socially stable often are disregarded. Later in the story, however, he counteracts this stereotypical attitude by claiming that “hope...lies in the proles,” a possible allusion to his personal opinion on equality.

"proletariat." Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica Online. Encyclopædia Britannica, 2010. Web. 26 Apr. 2010  http://www.search.eb.com.prxy2.ursus.maine.edu/eb/article-9061526.