Before he was George Orwell, he was Eric Blair, police officer
1–10 of 73 posts
Re: Before he was George Orwell, he was Eric Blair, police officer
#2I haven't read the novel, and yes, Theroux is generally a good writer, but I'm not really seeing the point of writing a novel about Orwell's time in Burma. It's not like Orwell hid this part of his past -- he wrote a novel of his own (Burmese Days) influenced by his time there, and some of his more famous essays e.g. Shooting an Elephant deal with his time as a colonial police officer.
Re: Before he was George Orwell, he was Eric Blair, police officer
#3I haven't read the novel, and yes, Theroux is generally a good writer, but I'm not really seeing the point of writing a novel about Orwell's time in Burma. It's not like Orwell hid this part of his past -- he wrote a novel of his own ( Burmese Days ) influenced by his time there, and some of his more famous essays e.g. Shooting an Elephant deal with his time as a colonial police officer.
I came here to write precisely this! You're not alone in your thoughts.
Re: Before he was George Orwell, he was Eric Blair, police officer
#4I haven't read the novel, and yes, Theroux is generally a good writer, but I'm not really seeing the point of writing a novel about Orwell's time in Burma. It's not like Orwell hid this part of his past -- he wrote a novel of his own ( Burmese Days ) influenced by his time there, and some of his more famous essays e.g. Shooting an Elephant deal with his time as a colonial police officer.
The purpose of propaganda is to create an alternate truth.
Orwell is a good target because of its writings.
Re: Before he was George Orwell, he was Eric Blair, police officer
#5I highly recommend Orwell's Roses by Rebecca Solnit for a broad view of Orwell's life, and a really enjoyable read in general.
Re: Before he was George Orwell, he was Eric Blair, police officer
#6If George Owell was alive today, he'd be very old.
Re: Before he was George Orwell, he was Eric Blair, police officer
#7I haven't read the novel, and yes, Theroux is generally a good writer, but I'm not really seeing the point of writing a novel about Orwell's time in Burma. It's not like Orwell hid this part of his past -- he wrote a novel of his own ( Burmese Days ) influenced by his time there, and some of his more famous essays e.g. Shooting an Elephant deal with his time as a colonial police officer.
The purpose of propaganda is to create an alternate truth. Orwell is a good target because of its writings.
Propaganda in whose favor though?
Re: Before he was George Orwell, he was Eric Blair, police officer
#8I haven't read the novel, and yes, Theroux is generally a good writer, but I'm not really seeing the point of writing a novel about Orwell's time in Burma. It's not like Orwell hid this part of his past -- he wrote a novel of his own ( Burmese Days ) influenced by his time there, and some of his more famous essays e.g. Shooting an Elephant deal with his time as a colonial police officer.
Fantastic book. Enjoyed it more than his more famous ones.
Re: Before he was George Orwell, he was Eric Blair, police officer
#9Literature's power lies in it's low cost and broad viewpoints. And whatever topic became popular because they reflect the times.
We must be in trouble, given Orwell became so popular. Extra so if powers that be deemed worthwhile to character assassinate someone who writes "All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others". It should have never gotten as popular as it did.
Re: Before he was George Orwell, he was Eric Blair, police officer
#10I haven't read the novel, and yes, Theroux is generally a good writer, but I'm not really seeing the point of writing a novel about Orwell's time in Burma. It's not like Orwell hid this part of his past -- he wrote a novel of his own ( Burmese Days ) influenced by his time there, and some of his more famous essays e.g. Shooting an Elephant deal with his time as a colonial police officer.
The purpose of propaganda is to create an alternate truth. Orwell is a good target because of its writings.
Nah, the purpose of propaganda is to control which subset of infinitely complex reality will get remembered.
Make enough people associate Orwell's works with the dark pages of his past, and the focus will shift from the ideas of the works to the identity of the writer. Then use it to attack those who still dare to bring up those ideas, and you have driven them off the public's attention span for good.