George Orwell
(Gordon Bowker)
Possibly one of the most enigmatic and contradictory figures in the literary world of the early 20th century, George Orwell was a writer that some loved and others simply loved to hate. But where did the writer of such biting satire and horror that is clearly evident in 1984 and Animal Farm get his start? And why was the author who came to be known as George Orwell so determined to change his name (which was originally Eric A. Blair? These are but a few of the many, many questions that Gordon Bowker tries to answer in what is an enthralling and complex portrait of the George Orwell that some of us know and the many sides to George Orwell that few of us have ever imagined. Like for instance the fact that George had a deep love of nature and often took others on walks and yet he was also an avid hunter and so both loved nature and loved to destroy it. He was an outspoken critic of totalitarianism and yet he also possessed a sadistic side to him. From his birth in India, to his awkward social interactions at a young age, to his education at Eton and St. Cyprian's, to the man who would be Down and Out in Paris and London, Bowker captures the author's life and all its ups and downs with a style that, were Orwell alive today, I am sure he would grudgingly appreciate. Orwell had his share of misfortune from an early age in terms of his health and it was his lungs that would prove the end of him but not before he bequeathed unto the world his two greatest achievements, 1984 and Animal Farm. Most of us know the story of Animal Farm and how it is a parallel for the failure of revolution but few know of the indignities and torment suffered by Orwell at the hands of the communists who betrayed him and many others in the Spanish Civil War and in so doing creating an enemy who would avenge himself in the printed word. When Animal Farm was first released it was to mixed reviews and this is not surprising given the penetration of the hardcore communist left into some of the mainstream newspapers and journals of the day. As for 1984, it is only when as a reader you discover Orwell's work for the BBC and his hatred of both bureaucracy and propoganda that you can truly appreciate the significance of the ideas behind Newspeak and Doublethink. Of course holding two contradictory ideas and believing them both was somthing that would become a hallmark of Orwell throughout his life such as the fact that though his religious beliefs were in doubt and somewhat mixed he still had an Anglican funeral. Bowker does well to not only tell the story of Orwell / Blair, but also to infuse it with the same kind of passion that the author himself was so characteristically full of.
Resumos Relacionados
- Nineteen Eighty-four
- George Orwell
- Animal Farm
- Animal Farm
- 1984
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