Analysis Of The Road To Wigan Pier

The Road to Wigan Pier by George Orwell gives an in-depth look at the lives of working class families and the fight for Socialism. While the book is separated into two parts, Orwell uses the conditions given in the first part of the book to make his points in the second part. Hamish Miles wrote that the book "is a living and lively book from start to finish. The honest Tory [Conservative] must face what he tells and implies, and the honest Socialist must face him, too.” Miles statement is a reference to the way that Orwell gives examples for and against Socialism that everyone including non-Socialist can gain knowledge from reading. While Orwell does give examples of the reasons Socialism is almost doomed to fail, he uses his own life experiences

The point Orwell is trying to get across is that this mistreatment of the working class is not tolerable and must be disbanded (121). His solution to the problem is Socialism. He wants to show that a Socialist society can be implemented globally and benefit especially the lower classes. The problem he faces is that Socialism is quickly being phased out of the conversation and being replaced by the likes of Fascism (171). He is convinced that a Socialist movement is inevitable and a “historic necessity” (172). One problem he addresses is the correlation in the minds of the people to Socialism and Communism (175). While Communism is about control over the people, states Socialism is about justice, liberty, and receiving better wages for fewer hours while having no one bossing you around (176). Orwell even goes to the extent of saying that Fascism is a product of Communism (187). The biggest point Orwell attempts to give in my opinion is that there is no way the ideals he seeks (mentioned before as justice, liberty, etc.) cannot be achieved without a Socialist movements he calls “progress” (214). The “progress” he speaks of includes the de-centralization of power in the class system and the progression of machines and other means

I also believe that he wanted the working class and other Socialist who were driving these people off the fence away to stop and think about what they were doing and how it was hurting the Socialist movement (182). Orwell proceeds to give explanations to why these citizens on the fence are running away from Socialism. The strongest explanation he gives is the prejudice the middle class feels toward the working class that most bring to their grave (137). This prejudice is burned into the brains of the middle class children in school and even applies to the lower-middle class kids (123). These lower-middle class people they feel superior over those in a lower class may even be worse off economically then those they discriminate against due to the way the middle class is structured. The English middle class was constructed on the basis of traditions and the mannerisms of the people in that class and not their income like in many social systems (123). This English social system allows these lower-middle class to pick the side of the upper-middle class even if they have the same beliefs as the working class on the sole basis that the lower class are smelly and not as worthy as them (127). A smaller explanation