Time Of Publication Of Wigan Pier Orwell example essay topic

George Orwell Many writers use satire to attack areas of life they didn't agree with. Satire is a cunning way to express their opinions. Some of these works today are considered masterpieces and works of art. One writer who was a genius at incorporating beliefs in his writings was George Orwell. Commonly known by his pen name, George Orwell was an English novelist and social critic (Wadsworth 866).

Orwell was born in Be gal, India and was later educated in Eton, England. He was the son of Richard Blair an opium agent and his 'much younger wife' Ida. Relations between Orwell and his father we non-existent for the first eight years of his life ('Orwell,' The Oxford Companion 516). Orwell was considered to be 'another public school boy,' who always seemed to the with an 'awkward squad' (George Orwell,' The Oxford Illustrated History 442).

In 1990-4, Orwell, his mother, and his older sister moved to England leaving Orwell's father on his own in India until he retired in 1911. Orwell continued his education at 'St. Cyprian's Preparatory School under the regime of Mr. and Mrs. Wilkes,' which he later brutally portrayed in his novel Such, Such Were the Joys' ('Orwell,' The Oxford Companion 516). After leaving school, he joined the 'Imperial Indian Police,' and after five years in Burma, resigned in 1928 ('George Orwell,' The Oxford Anthology 2140). Burma left him with a 'lifelong distaste' for power ('George Orwell,' St. Martin's Anthologies 398). Orwell remained living a 'life of poverty' in England and Europe until the mid-1930's (Wadsworth 866).

In 1927 after an attack of 'dengue fever' he returned to Europe ('Orwell,' The Oxford Companion). In 1936 he took over a village store, married, and was commissioned to write about England's um employed. When living among the poor, he wrote Wigan Pier, which helped him develop his own kind of politics: 'Anti-imperialist, , anti-capitalist, but not identified with any socialist institution' (George Orwell,' The Oxford Anthology 2140). 'A strong autobiographical element runs through most of Orwell's writings, giving both his novels and essays a sense of immediacy and conviction' (Wadsworth 866). At the time of publication of Wigan Pier Orwell was already in Spain fighting the the 'Republicans as a member of the P.O.U.M. militia, where he was wounded in the throat ('George Orwell,' The Oxford Companion 516). He was an outstanding essayist and journalist, writing in the 1940's' ('George Orwell,' St. Martin's Anthologies 398).

During this time Orwell wrote a weekly column for the left-wing Tribune. Orwell's novels of the thirties are somewhat depressing but 'bring the reader face to face with aspects of the world that are often forgotten' ('George Orwell,' The Oxford Illustrated 443). He saw the poor, as he saw the population in colonies, as 'exploited' ('George Orwell,' The Oxford Anthology 2141). In 1945, when Orwell's wife died he settled on the island of Jura off the scottish coast ('George Orwell,' The Oxford Anthology 2141). His wife had reacted 'adversely to anesthetic' during an operation, and he was left alone to bring up their newly adopted son, Richard. Orwell's 'financial rewards' came too late to share with his wife, Eileen.

Animal Farm, ' an animal fable satirizing Communism' (Wadsworth 866). This novel 'securely' established Orwell as a novelist, who enjoyed worldwide success. Orwell had also completed his most 'formidable work of fiction' Nineteen Eight-Four ('Orwell,' The Oxford Companion 516). 'The book is a frightening portrait of a totalitarian society that punishes live, destroys privacy, and distorts truth' (Wadsworth 866). Soon after Orwell was diagnosed as a tubercular and was hospitalized for the last year of his life. He was married to Sonia Brownell at his bedside in Univeristy College Hospital.

When Orwell died in 1950, he was judged as a 'major author by critics on both sides of the Atlantic, and his value as a cultural critic has been increasingly widely ' ('Orwell,' The Oxford Companion 516). George Orwell was brought up into a life of poverty, yet, managed to relieve a good education. His job opportunities with the poor continuously contributed to his writings that showed the less fortunate class' point of view. Orwell was proclaimed and will be remembered as one of the best political writers of the twentieth century.

Bibliography

George Orwell,' The Oxford Anthology of English Literature. Ed. Frank Ker mode. 2 ed. New York: Oxford University Press, 1973.
George Orwell. ' The Oxford Illustrated History of English Literature. Ed. Pat Rogers. New York: Oxford Univeristy Press, 1987.
Orwell. ' The Oxford Companion to Twentieth-Century Literature. Ed. Jenny Stringer. New York: Oxford University Press, 1996.
George Orwell,' St. Martin's Anthologies of English Literature. Ed. Neil McEwan. 5 ed. New York: St. Martin's Press, 1989.
Wadsworth, Frank W. 'Orwell, George. ' World Book. 1990 ed.