Orwell’s ‘1984’ To Get Feminist Rewrite

In an ironic twist to beat all ironic twists, “1984,” George Orwell’s dystopian sci-fi tale that warns of the dangers of revising history and rewriting books for ideological ends is, itself, getting a feminist re-write. With approval from the Orwell estate, it will be re-told from a woman’s perspective.

As first reported in The Guardian, the new narrative will be told from the point of view of Julia, the love interest of Orwell’s main character, Winston Smith, who in the 1949 novel works at the Ministry of Truth, rewriting history to suit the authoritarian government’s propaganda purposes. Titled “Julia,” the book comes from American author Sandra Newman, whose past work has been nominated for a Folio Prize and the British Baileys Women’s Prize for Fiction.

Neman’s publisher Granta told The Guardian that as a protagonist, Julia “understands” Orwell’s fictional world of Oceania “far better than Winston and is essentially happy with her life,” adding that Orwell’s son, Richard Blair, “has been consulted and approves of the project.”