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J.L. Sutton's Reviews > Down and Out in Paris and London
Down and Out in Paris and London
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“It is a feeling of relief, almost of pleasure, at knowing yourself at last genuinely down and out. You have talked so often of going to the dogs � and well, here are the dogs, and you have reached them, and you can stand it.�
While best known for 1984 and Animal Farm, George Orwell is a fantastic essayist. In Down and Out in Paris and London, he chronicles the struggles of those barely getting enough to survive. At the time, that included our narrator/a fictional version of George Orwell. The narrator details his own trajectory as he slides into near starvation. Orwell approaches this slide from a psychological perspective that was both fascinating and a punch in the gut. In the last section of the book, Orwell discusses his ideas for alleviating this extreme poverty.
“If you set yourself to it, you can live the same life, rich or poor. You can keep on with your books and your ideas. You just got to say to yourself, "I'm a free man in here" - he tapped his forehead - "and you're all right.�
While best known for 1984 and Animal Farm, George Orwell is a fantastic essayist. In Down and Out in Paris and London, he chronicles the struggles of those barely getting enough to survive. At the time, that included our narrator/a fictional version of George Orwell. The narrator details his own trajectory as he slides into near starvation. Orwell approaches this slide from a psychological perspective that was both fascinating and a punch in the gut. In the last section of the book, Orwell discusses his ideas for alleviating this extreme poverty.
“If you set yourself to it, you can live the same life, rich or poor. You can keep on with your books and your ideas. You just got to say to yourself, "I'm a free man in here" - he tapped his forehead - "and you're all right.�
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Reading Progress
February 26, 2020
– Shelved
February 26, 2020
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November 10, 2022
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January 3, 2023
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Dec 04, 2022 05:40PM
Thanks for the reminder of a book that I so enjoyed. Shall see if my local library has a copy. Hope so !
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Caroline wrote: "Thanks for the reminder of a book that I so enjoyed. Shall see if my local library has a copy. Hope so !"I've read several Orwell books, but this is one that I haven't read before. Hope your library has a copy for me!
The poverty in this one is brutal (try not to dwell on it next time you eat lunch in a Paris restaurant�), but have you also read his other famous sociological essay ‘The Road to Wigan Pier�? That is an even tougher read IMHO simply because you empathise with the people being described (especially the children) in a way that you don’t in ‘Down and Out..�. I believe / hope it had a real impact in bringing the plight of the working classes to the attention of the middle classes in England (before television gave us ‘kitchen sink� dramas in the 1960’s). Sadly WWII arrived before anything could be done to improve matters, and things went from bad to worse for a while.
Cliff wrote: "The poverty in this one is brutal (try not to dwell on it next time you eat lunch in a Paris restaurant�), but have you also read his other famous sociological essay ‘The Road to Wigan Pier�? That ..."Thanks so much for your comment, Cliff! I felt there was brutality in the details of this one, but I haven't read 'The Road to Wigan Pier.' I might have to give it a read. And try not to think about either one as I eat my way through Thailand! Thank you!!
