‘In Moulmein, in Lower Burma,’ wrote Orwell at the opening of his essay ‘Shooting an Elephant’, ‘I was hated by large numbers of people — the only time in my life that I have been important enough for this to happen to me. I was sub-divisional police officer of the town…’
Entries from June 30th, 2011
“Why Orwell Matters” – Christopher Hitchens
June 30th, 2011 · Comments Off on “Why Orwell Matters” – Christopher Hitchens · Power, Uncategorized
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Heart on Fire and Brain on Ice – “Why Orwell Matters” – Christopher Hitchens
June 30th, 2011 · Comments Off on Heart on Fire and Brain on Ice – “Why Orwell Matters” – Christopher Hitchens · Communism, Description, Socialism
If Lenin had not uttered the maxim ‘the heart on fire and the brain on ice’, it might have suited Orwell, whose passion and generosity were rivalled only by his detachment and reserve.
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Orwell and the Man on the Street – “The Same Man: George Orwell and Evelyn Waugh in Love and War” – David Lebedoff
June 30th, 2011 · Comments Off on Orwell and the Man on the Street – “The Same Man: George Orwell and Evelyn Waugh in Love and War” – David Lebedoff · Electoralism, Elitism, Humanism, Philosophy
When asked his opinion of “the man on the street,” (Orwell) said, “I have never encountered such a person.” He added, “There are individual men and women, each one of whom has an individual and immortal soul, and such beings need to use the street from time to time.
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Orwell’s Death – “The Same Man: George Orwell and Evelyn Waugh in Love and War” – David Lebedoff
June 29th, 2011 · Comments Off on Orwell’s Death – “The Same Man: George Orwell and Evelyn Waugh in Love and War” – David Lebedoff · History
In announcing his death to the world, the BBC broadcast a clock striking thirteen.
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Definitely Lord Copper – “Scoop”, Evelyn Waugh
June 29th, 2011 · Comments Off on Definitely Lord Copper – “Scoop”, Evelyn Waugh · Journalism, The Media
Mr. Salter’s side of the conversation was limited to expressions of assent. When Lord Copper was right he said, “Definitely, Lord Copper” when he was wrong “Up to a point.” “Let me see, what’s the name of the place I mean? Capital of Japan? Yokohama, isn’t it?” “Up to a point, Lord Copper.” “And Hong […]
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Absolute Good and Evil – “The Same Man: George Orwell and Evelyn Waugh in Love and War” – David Lebedoff
June 29th, 2011 · Comments Off on Absolute Good and Evil – “The Same Man: George Orwell and Evelyn Waugh in Love and War” – David Lebedoff · Humanism, Morality, Philosophy
The common people,” Orwell wrote, “are still living in the world of absolute good and evil from which the intellectuals have long since escaped.
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Orwell and Ideological Isolation – “The Same Man: George Orwell and Evelyn Waugh in Love and War” – David Lebedoff
June 28th, 2011 · Comments Off on Orwell and Ideological Isolation – “The Same Man: George Orwell and Evelyn Waugh in Love and War” – David Lebedoff · Extremism, Ideology, Means and Ends, Politics, Socialism
He wrote relatively few articles before the war partly because no one would publish them. Magazines and journals rejected his nonfiction because he was known to be fiercely anticommunist. If he had been a conservative, then some (mostly small) publications might have been available. But he was a man of the Left—a socialist, on the […]
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Orwell’s Rules for Writing – “The Same Man: George Orwell and Evelyn Waugh in Love and War” – David Lebedoff
June 28th, 2011 · Comments Off on Orwell’s Rules for Writing – “The Same Man: George Orwell and Evelyn Waugh in Love and War” – David Lebedoff · Writing
Orwell’s first rule of effective writing was to follow every general statement with a specific example from real life. Animal Farm and 1984 are the examples, as well as the distillate, of Orwell’s nonfiction, his great body of immortal essays and reviews, one of the treasures of our culture.
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The Two Evelyn Waughs – “The Same Man: George Orwell and Evelyn Waugh in Love and War” – David Lebedoff
June 28th, 2011 · Comments Off on The Two Evelyn Waughs – “The Same Man: George Orwell and Evelyn Waugh in Love and War” – David Lebedoff · Literature, Marriage
And marry her he did, without her mother’s knowledge. At noon on June 27, 1928, in an unfashionable church in Portman Square, with a woman typing away on the altar, a cockney curate performed the ceremony from which emerged two Evelyn Waughs, man and wife.
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Sensitive – “The Same Man: George Orwell and Evelyn Waugh in Love and War” – David Lebedoff
June 27th, 2011 · Comments Off on Sensitive – “The Same Man: George Orwell and Evelyn Waugh in Love and War” – David Lebedoff · Description, Writing
There are two meanings to the word “sensitive”: “highly perceptive” and “easily hurt.” In human nature these tend to be a package deal, and in both meanings of the word Waugh was astonishingly sensitive.
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