A Summary Of Bach's 'Fugue In G Minor'

Bach in Time
The musical composition, “Fugue in G Minor” by Johann Sebastian Bach reflects the conflict riddled throughout the story of 1984 by George Orwell. The fugue presents the musical theme as what Big Brother’s ideologies are. The different aspects of the fugue represent Winston Smith, society, and Big Brother’s interactions throughout the book. In the story, Winston goes through an internal and external struggle of rebellion against Big Brother. The constant movement in the music and the discord of the different vocal parts helps develop the scenes of the book. Using Hegel’s dialectic to analyze the story of Winston Smith and Big Brother, Winston Smith acts as the “slave” to the “master” Big Brother, which ends with Winston finally accepting his love for Big Brother. This dialectic is presented in the fugue as the notes by the different voice parts clash; then at the end of the piece they come into harmony. The classical work of “Fugue in G Minor” and the modernist story 1984 imitate the same theme of domination and present the same dark mood.
According to the Merriam Webster dictionary, a fugue is defined
In 1984 Winston deals with the internal struggle of rebellion against Big Brother. At first, Winston tries to live the way Big Brother wants him to, but his thoughts are constantly wandering. The soprano part shows the constant change of thoughts and ideas in his head. In the book, while struggling to decide whether or not to write down his feelings, Winston is always challenged by the notion of what Big Brother wants him to be doing. In the novel Winston writes in his journal, “Thoughtcrime does not entail death: thoughtcrime IS death” (15). Winston struggles with the thought of thoughtcrime, he also thinks the way Big Brother dominates over the city is not right. The movement in the soprano part of the fugue mirrors the constant confliction of Winston’s thoughts throughout the story