Inside The Myth: Orwell: Views From The Left

Has too much homage and too little critical attention been paid to George Orwell? This collection of essays on Orwell's life and writing provides a compelling critique of the Orwell myth and argues for a more sceptical - if heretical - approach to the man and his work. A critical spotlight falls on his attitude to women in both fiction and documentary writing, his view of the state and his involvement in the Spanish Civil War. Orwell's sacred place in the school curriculum and media reaction in 1984 are also dissected. The literary antecedents to Nineteen Eighty-Four are examined and his ambiguous place within British socialism assessed. A psychoanalytic examination of Orwell's writing and a lively, personalised look at his traumatised school-days round off a book which will not leave the Orwell industry undisturbed.