1984: The Graphic Novel

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A copy of this book is available at Grayson College Library

741.5 NES

 

George Orwell: 1984 The Graphic Novel by George Orwell (Adapted and Illustrated by Fido Nesti) 

 

 Many people have experienced the original classic dystopian novel 1984 by George Orwell, either in high school or  in college English literature classes, or maybe, like me, just read it on their own out of an interest of some aspect of the iconic masterpiece.

It is, in case you didn't know, a look into the dystopian future of 1984. For background, when Orwell first wrote the novel in 1948, he just interposed the "48" to "84" as an ostensible year in the future. In this nightmarish vision of the future the government controls just about everything, including what you are allowed to think. The world of the future comprises only three nations, Oceania (where our protagonist lives), Eastasia and Eurasia. There is always a war going on between the countries, but as seen from the eyes of Winston Smith, the protagonist, it is never really certain who is at war with who.

The job that Winston has is to keep altering the past so that it fits with the current viewpoint. For example, Oceania is currently at war Eurasia and is allied with Eastasia, and that is the way it has always been.  But Winston is almost certain that at sometime in the recent past it was the other way around... Oceania had been at war with Eastasia and allied with Eurasia, and THAT was the way it had always been.

Everyone is being watched by Big Brother, the government in other words, and there are no secrets from the government.  Even your own home has a camera in it to spy on you in your private lives. And God forbid if you should be involved in doing something the government considers subversive and not conducive to the Party line.  The only problem is that keeps changing and at any moment the police could come and take a person away for subversive acts. And said person would disappear.  Not just from society, his or or total existence would be expunged from the records as if they had never existed.

The main plot of the first part of the story tells how Winston meets a woman, Julia, and begins what they think is a clandestine relationship; one that would bring the Big Brother down on them if it were discovered.  Both are secretly revolutionary, as in wanting the downfall of Big brother, but both are rational enough to know that it would be hazardous to their health to try anything overt.

I don't want to give away any more if you've never read the original story.  As far as this particular book, you are getting the main gist of the story, but like cheating and just reading the Cliff Notes for a classic book, some of the subtleties may be missing. Nothing is actually changed over the course of this graphic novel from it's original source. In other words Winston does not actually lead a revolution and overthrow Big Brother, instead of how the actual novel ends.  But it is slightly more compact.  The bonus however is the illustrations that graphic comic artist Fido Nesti brings to the project.

In 1984 (the actual year), a movie made it's big screen debut with John Hurt as Winston, Suzanna Hamilton as Julia and  Richard Burton as O'Brien . As well, in 1956 there had been a version with Edmond O'Brien as Winston, Jan Sterling as Julia,  and Michael Redgrave as O'Connor (changed from O'Brien in this film, maybe due to the lead actor's last name being O'Brien?)    While those two films are worth checking out, I kind of like Nesti's artistic renderings of the characters, especially that of Winston. It seems to fit the character a bit better as the drudge who is somewhat down on his lot in life.

 

Until next time, happy browsing.

Quiggy

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