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It's the world's most useless and overrated cautionary tale about the future of Stalinist absurdism Orwell saw in the UK's future if Labour stayed in power. The

It's the world's most useless and overrated cautionary tale about the future of Stalinist absurdism Orwell saw in the UK's future if Labour stayed in power. The man could write, that I grant you, but beyond a skillful prose style he's little of use to offer in general and especially here; Nineteen Eighty-four is not at all ahead of its time, but rather quite a bit behind it. That said, it makes sense a Stalinist regime would permit its ordinary subjects neither the private ownership of property nor the liberty of physical movement embodied in having a car. As in the USSR, the nomenklatura would have limousines and drivers, and everyone else would take the train or walk.

vba616 4y ago
>the future of Stalinist absurdism Orwell saw in the UK's future if Labour stayed in power Are you sure? I thought Labour came to power right after the war, Churchill was famously kicked to the curb, and Orwell anticipated and wrote about why it was necessary and political upheaval was only temporarily delayed during the external threat. I know everything changed quickly after the war, but Orwell died before long anyway.
- ggm 4y ago
  "George Orwell a life" by Bernard Crick isn't bad (that said, he was a rude prick to my mother about some of the CP (UK) history, so I have reasons to dislike him at a personal level)
  - vba616 4y ago
    I have a series of volumes with Orwell's collected writings, including before, through, and after WWII, so while I'm a bit vague, I am going on my memory of primary sources.
dudul 4y ago
Dystopian stories rarely attempt to accurately predict the future. They usually grossly exaggerate it to make a point about the present. It's funny because contrary to you I don't find Orwell's style very compelling but the content of his writing is brilliant.
plsbenice34 4y ago
>It's the world's most useless and overrated cautionary tale Seems very obvious to me that it is ubiquitously used as a symbol to refer to particular aspects of dystopia/society. So I cannot see how anyone would claim it is useless. >not at all ahead of its time, but rather quite a bit behind it. What literature do you think is older, better and/or more effectively communicates the same ideas?

vba616 4y ago

>the future of Stalinist absurdism Orwell saw in the UK's future if Labour stayed in power Are you sure? I thought Labour came to power right after the war, Churchill was famously kicked to the curb, and Orwell anticipated and wrote about why it was necessary and political upheaval was only temporarily delayed during the external threat. I know everything changed quickly after the war, but Orwell died before long anyway.

ggm 4y ago
"George Orwell a life" by Bernard Crick isn't bad (that said, he was a rude prick to my mother about some of the CP (UK) history, so I have reasons to dislike him at a personal level)
- vba616 4y ago
  I have a series of volumes with Orwell's collected writings, including before, through, and after WWII, so while I'm a bit vague, I am going on my memory of primary sources.

dudul 4y ago

Dystopian stories rarely attempt to accurately predict the future. They usually grossly exaggerate it to make a point about the present. It's funny because contrary to you I don't find Orwell's style very compelling but the content of his writing is brilliant.

plsbenice34 4y ago

>It's the world's most useless and overrated cautionary tale Seems very obvious to me that it is ubiquitously used as a symbol to refer to particular aspects of dystopia/society. So I cannot see how anyone would claim it is useless. >not at all ahead of its time, but rather quite a bit behind it. What literature do you think is older, better and/or more effectively communicates the same ideas?