The Proles: The Dystopian Society

The Proles are the building block of the dystopian society that Orwell has created. As the majority of the population, they complete most of the work, and consume most of the resources. The Proles generally are uneducated, lacking knowledge of the workings of the Party and general facts. Moreover, the Proles are poor, and live in extreme poverty. One of the focal points within their oblivious lives is the lottery. By creating a class of people who lack knowledge, ability and funds, Orwell constructs a plausible scenario where the masses will not rebel against an oppressive government. The Proles sustain the Party and all of Oceania but the Party does not have to devote resources to surveillance of them. This explains how the Party can maintain
the surveillance of party members. The Party is a smaller group, and therefore it doesn’t drain resources the same way full surveillance of the population would. In devising the Proles the way Orwell did, he creates a possibility of a sustaining functioning totalitarian government, where the masses will not rebel.