George Orwell: An Essay Automatic translate

“All the serious writings that I have written since 1936 are directly or indirectly directed against totalitarianism and for democratic socialism, as I understand it.” So said George Orwell in one of his most famous essays, "Why I Write" (1946), which describes his own path to writing - one of the most prolific of the twentieth century, as it turns out. Although the novels Animal Farm and 1984 account for more than half of his book sales worldwide, he has written over four hundred essays, as well as articles, political editorials, and, of course, fiction novels and poetry.

Orwell began his writing career by publishing in magazines, including fifteen London letters in March and April 1941 for the American quarterly Partisan Review.

Two anthologies of his writings were compiled during Orwell’s lifetime, including a book of his essays. The situation changed after his death, when more than a dozen anthologies appeared, including a very ambitious attempt to collect all of his essays and letters in one hefty volume, as well as a twenty-volume collection of his entire work, published in the late 1980s.

The most famous collection of his essays is called "Inside the Whale", the most famous of the essays also gave the collection its name. The second book of essays, Dickens, Dali and Others, was published in America in 1958. Most of Orwell’s essays were overtly political, without allusions or metaphors, but explaining why he strongly believed in socialism and strongly opposed totalitarianism. His most famous essays are "Shooting the Elephant", "England is Your England", "Such, such were the joys" and "Inside the Whale".

Like many of Orwell’s writings, his essays form the core curriculum in the English education system, leading many to express concern about the politicization of children’s education and the apparent bias of ideological teaching. However, many note the undeniably conservative aspects of his ideology; his biographer, Christopher Hitchens, claims that Orwell was inconsistent but never afraid to stop learning and testing his own intelligence.

George Orwell is undoubtedly one of the most insightful essayists in the modern literary tradition. However, it is rather sad that of all his literary works, his essays have been neglected - of course, compared to his dystopian novels. George Orwell had the ability to entertain and inspire a deep sense of contemplation in his readers.

Many journals had a direct influence on the kind of essays Orwell wrote. His essays, like his other works, posed a comprehensive challenge to the political ethics that surrounded him, which helped him to create the idiosyncratic and idiosyncratic narrative that is today considered very characteristic of his writings. The political motif dominates in The Lion and the Unicorn: Socialism and the English Genius, in which Orwell speculates and puts forward the idea of ​​a much-needed socialist revolution as the prevailing class system impedes progress and triumph in times of war.

Orwell’s consciousness and his understanding of the political culture that surrounded him can be seen in the essay "Shooting the Elephant", where he criticizes and denounces British imperialism at length and shows the moral fallacy of being ambivalent about such an undertaking.

In Politics and the English Language, Orwell makes a connection between the decline of language and the rise and triumph of political dogmas as they exist in his society. In this essay, he deconstructs the very language used in politics in order to understand the stagnation in the political ethos.

Professor Harold Lasky

The works of Professor Lasky are among the topics discussed by Orwell in his essay. Most of Lasky’s books are devoted to comparing English writers, in particular Shelley and Milton. According to Orwell, Lasky’s work lacks meaning. There are no clear conclusions in his works, so the reader cannot understand the purpose of his literature. Orwell also adds that Lasky uses a "bouncy style" that includes verbosity and vague conclusions.

Professor Lancelot Hogben

Hogben was a zoologist and linguist who devoted most of his literature to biology. However, Orwell notes, like Lasky’s, Hogben’s work is difficult to decipher. However, unlike Weasel, Hogben makes several hints that his writings are related to biology, mentioning several animals. Despite this, Orwell characterizes Hogben as a lazy writer who does not waste time searching for the vocabulary he uses in his literature, but uses random biological terms that do not have a clear meaning in the context.

English professor

The English professor is a hypothetical character that Orwell invented to convey his thoughts to the reader. Through his English professor, Orwell proves that overblown writing is like bad acting. The use of complex and long statements does not make a person intelligible, on the contrary, it changes the propriety of the whole statement. According to Orwell, overblown words make dishonest people appear truthful and killers appear respectable.

Topics

Weapon - "You and the Atomic Bomb"

Orwell acknowledges that "eras in which the dominant weapons are expensive or difficult to produce will tend to be epochs of despotism, while when the dominant weapons are cheap and simple, the common people have a chance." Thus, for example, tanks, battleships and bomber planes are inherently tyrannical weapons, while rifles, muskets, bows and hand grenades are inherently democratic weapons. Weapons are indispensable in the modern era. With the help of weapons, people and countries get the opportunity to defend themselves. The military power of a country is determined by the caliber of weapons it possesses. Powerful and less powerful countries alike need the nation as part of their security.

Virtues - "Reflections on Gandhi"

Orwell explains: “While no doubt he was quite astute in recognizing dishonesty, he seems to have believed wherever possible that other people are well-meaning and have a better nature through which to approach them… the feeling when he first met him in his worst form in South Africa seems rather to have struck him. Even when he was waging a war that was essentially a war of colors, he didn’t think of people in terms of race or status."

In his social activities, Gandhi was guided by the virtues that attract all people, regardless of their race. Instead of branding Europeans as enemies for their imperialism and racism, he addresses them through his virtues, which emphasize the equal worth of all people. If Gandhi had been a biased man, he would have had no comrades among the Europeans. He has risen above the factors that divide people, which unnecessarily divide people into races, some of which are perceived as inferior and others as superior.

Language - "Politics and English"

Orwell says, “But if thought corrupts language, then language can corrupt thought. Bad use can be spread by tradition and imitation, even among people who should and know better. The corrupted language I was talking about is, in a sense, very convenient. Phrases such as unfounded speculation, leaves much to be desired, would not serve a good purpose.”

Phrases used in communication can be used to determine if a person is corrupted or not. Incorrect use of language can lead to corrupt listeners. Language plays a key role in the spread of various ideologies, which can influence the audience both positively and negatively. Therefore, thoughts (both good and bad) and language are interconnected.

Communication - "Politics and English"

Orwell recommends: “Never use metaphors, simils, or other figures of speech that you are accustomed to seeing in print…Never use a long word where a short one will do…If you can cut a word, always cut it….Never don’t use a passive where an active can be used… Never use a foreign phrase, a scientific word, or a slang word if you can find an equivalent in everyday English.”

The use of colloquial expressions is not the same as effective communication. Moreover, if you avoid cliches, then the arguments will be different from others and will be relevant. Simple words are easy to understand, so they should not be replaced by complex ones. In addition, you should know exactly the meaning of various jargon before using them in communication.

Elephant shooting

In this essay, Orwell recalls his own experience of shooting an elephant in Burma. The animal terrorized the bazaar, but the narrator strongly doubted whether it was worth killing it. He did this out of fear of being seen as weak.

The essay is set in Mulmein, Lower Burma, and is based on the author’s personal experience with the Indian Imperial Police. Orwell’s task is to respond to the death of a man killed by an elephant. The crowd urges Orwell to kill the animal, but Orwell realizes that the animal is probably no longer dangerous. Despite his reluctance to kill the elephant, Orwell realizes that if he does not, he will be humiliated. He goes for it, and the death of the animal is described in excruciating detail.

The elephant, like the Burmese people, was an unwitting victim of the British imperialists’ need to save face. The content of the essay is intertwined with Orwell’s thesis that imperialism inflicts heavy damage not only on the oppressed, but also on the oppressors. He says in his essay: "When a white man becomes a tyrant, he destroys his own freedom."

Politics and English

In the essay Politics and the English Language, written in 1946, Orwell talks about how to write English prose in a precise and rhetorically powerful style. He states that many modern prose works in English are unnecessarily complex and incomprehensible. Orwell attributed the decline of literature to the excessive use of Latin and foreign derivatives, outdated and clichéd phrases, and dilapidated sayings. The essay includes a helpful list of rules and norms to follow when writing prose.

The essay is considered one of Orwell’s most significant critiques for correctly analyzing the vague and overly complex rhetoric that covered the post-World War II political landscape.

The work of George Orwell is mainly devoted to the dangers of authoritarianism. In Politics, Orwell articulates his conviction that the manipulation of language is a powerful tool in the arsenal of autocracy.