by Hayley Charlesworth Born on this day in 1903, George Orwell is still considered one of Britain's finest writers, with his greatest work Nineteen Eighty Four perhaps being more influential and important in this modern era than in the time it was published. Now 64 years after his death, I'm With Geek briefly profiles this great man. |
In 1945, Orwell published Animal Farm, one of his two most famous and popular novels. Animal Farm is a dystopian fable of Stalin's abandonment of Bolshevik ideas and betrayal of the Russian Revolution, through pigs representing Bolshevik leader Lenin as well as Stalin and Trotsky, and humans symbolising other key figures of the period such as Tsar Nicholas II and Adolf Hitler. Animal Farm made Orwell's name as a writer, and was followed four years later by possibly his most influential work, Nineteen Eighty Four.
Another dystopic novel, Nineteen Eighty Four is the origin of the idea of Big Brother, of a society constantly watched, monitored, and controlled by a sinister state. This imaginary totalitarian future may not have come to pass in 1984 itself, but there is no denying that much of what Orwell warned about in his novel is present in today's society, and as such, it is one of the most enduring and important pieces of fiction for both socialists, and those studying or involved in politics and philosophy. Nineteen Eighty Four has also been the inspiration for a number of other works, including a film adaptation starring John Hurt, and an unproduced musical version written by David Bowie, which was eventually incorporated into his Diamond Dogs album.
Orwell passed away from tuberculosis in 1950, but his legacy still endures. Nineteen Eighty Four and Animal Farm remain important texts for study or just personal enjoyment, and his ideas and influence are still keenly felt (even if for some people it's only in the presence of reality show Big Brother). It is for this and for so much more that we wish George Orwell a happy birthday.