P A Jungian approach to self-fragmentation of twentieth century in orwell’s nineteen eighty four

Abstract

The problematic life of modern human has always been a significant issue for many areas of study. In reaction to the absence of romantic values and the unity of the pre-modern world, Human being was afflicted with a sense of inner crises which is referred to as self-fragmentation. Fragmentation is one of the significant features of twentieth century when a mode of anxiety subjugated both art and society. In such an atmosphere many writers of the modern century attempted to reflect in their works of literature, what they had experienced in the real world. Orwell’s Nineteen Eighty Four is one of the popular novels of Modern Era that describes a modern but fragmented society wherein the modern human’s lack of self-integration is perceptible. By representing how the protagonists respond to the voices of their psyches through characterization and dreams, which is also of crucial significance in Jung’s Analytical Psychology, Orwell explores the roots of modern human’s urge for achieving a cohesive sense of self. Accordingly, this study, attempts to illustrate how modern human steps in the path of individuation and to what extent these efforts meet with success, if any. To achieve this goal, some terms and notions of Jungian Criticism such as archetypes and the process of individuation will be borrowed, and a particular focus will be held on dreams occurring in the course of the story. In addition, this paper would like to argue that the dystopian society portrayed in these novels is the offspring of a mere rationalism which prevents human from knowing the opposing forces working within as well as the forces functioning from without.