Why I Write by George Orwell is an expository essay which tries and explains the reasons that Orwell is an author or why generally individuals tend to write. This essay lists four main reasons which include, Sheer Egoism, Aesthetic Enthusiasm, Historical Impulse, and Political Purpose. He begins by explaining the reason he wanted to become a writer: he was lonely as a child and therefore created stories and imaginary worlds. Personally, most of Orwell's reasons are understandable and I can see writers writing for these specific reasons. For egoism, I believe that egoism comes from a really deep wish or desire to be liked by the world and to be accepted for what one represents. If one writes and that piece of writing gains popularity, the …show more content…
Writers naturally have a love for words and want to express themselves in their own way. I agree with Orwell that each writer has his or her own phrases or words that they use most often or a way of writing that they enjoy the most. If one reads any two essays written by different authors on the same topic, they will each have their own diction and tone used which creates a uniqueness for each writer. For historical impulse, this is a desire to record events and facts for them to be preserved throughout decades and centuries. This is simply a wish to note down events as they occur for future generations to use and preserve. It allows knowledge to be passed down from time to time and allows readers to understand what had occurred before. This plays a role in history as historians can also be writers as they both write and store information to be used. For political purpose, this is a desire to influences individuals thoughts and ideas. In this case, the writer is trying to serve an individual ideology or philosophy. This writer is trying to influence individuals or society and this writing can be political or even not. I also think that propaganda is a part of this motive as that is writing that tries to change one's thoughts or influence them to follow a certain …show more content…
I think that it is important to acknowledge that writer are different individuals and that their minds work in different ways. For example, good writers are generally very in-tune with themselves and they are aware of what they know and how to express their knowledge. It is important to acknowledge Orwell when he says "As a very small child I used to...picture myself as the hero of thrilling adventures" and his stories were "mere descriptions...of the things I saw". This shows that age can also influence your writing as a child, one is not very aware of worldly matters and is more aware of his or herself. As one ages, they become more aware of their surroundings and what is occurring in the world. This influences their stories as they know what is happening in their minds and their state of minds represents
Orwell himself is the one who coined the term of political purpose, and because of this, he seems to be the best person to compare other writers to when discussing political purpose. Orwell defined political purpose as, “Desire to push the world in a certain direction,” and he writes, “…no book is genuinely free from political bias. The opinion that art should have nothing to do with politics is itself a political attitude” (3). Orwell, therefore, believes that art is ultimately political in purpose whether that was the intention or not. He believes that no work can be “free from political bias.” He seems to be of the opinion that art must have political purpose or else it will be “lifeless,” much like his earlier writing. Alternately,
People write without even realizing. Every step a person takes is another step towards securing a future. When the pen meets the paper a writer is making history, it just depends on how they want to tell the world. By analyzing author's style and purpose, the reader can make a deeper connection with the author. George Orwell, James Baldwin, and Joan Didion are perfect examples of writers that can move a country with just a word, their use of imagery and personal examples are truly masterpieces. But when compared to each other… A whole new world is imaginable.
Every person wants to become successful, or grow older, and admittedly, with those wants, your writings grow. In this composition, Orwell states that there are four great motives for writing, which are: sheer egoism, the desire to remembered; aesthetic enthusiasm, to gain pleasure; historical impulse, to find the hidden truth; and finally, political purpose, to persuade people's thoughts. These motives are proof of Orwell's wants in life, he indulges in swaying people's minds and getting them to think in a predetermined
The first, and most important, way in which these essays differ is that each one gives a different motivation for writing. George Orwell states that every author has 4 motives for writing: sheer egoism, aesthetic
for, the ability for the reader to imagine and visualize the story, allowing the reader to
“One of the things Orwell bequeathed us was the adjective ‘Orwellian’…. It is a frightening word, generally applied to a society organized to crush and dehumanize the individual, sometimes signifying the alienation of that individual if he dares to rebel” (Lewis 13). George Orwell, the pseudonym for Eric Arthur Blair, depicted the importance of the individual in society and the danger of too much community in his literature. Through his personal experiences, however, he explored the ideas of socialism and was torn between the individual and community ideals. In his literature and his past, Orwell spoke against movements that remove the individual, but still emphasized the importance of community. Thus, he advocated a need for balance between the two concepts.
There are many aspects for my mind to conceive while reading the articles why I write by George Orwell and Joan Didion. There are many different factors in triggering an author’s imagination to come up with what they want to write, and why they want to write it. In most writings a purpose is not found before the writer writes, but often found after they decide to start writing.
1. Orwell’s thesis is that cause and effect are closely related, which is implied and stated.
People write for many reasons. They write to educate, , and to entertain to express
The Life and Works of George Orwell Eric Authur Blair, better known by his pen name, George Orwell, was born on January 23, 1903 at Motihari in Bengal. Orwell was brought up in what he considered a less fortunate family when it came to money. Only a few days after his only son's birth, Orwell's father, Richard Blair, retired from his position as a minor official in the Indian Customs with a small pension. The lack of wealth in his family growing up caused Orwell to see the world in different class distinctions. Everyone and everything Orwell faced in the earlier stages of his life, he immediately judged based on its place in the different financial levels of society.
Bernard Malamud once said, “The purpose of the writer is to keep civilization from destroying itself.” This quote means that the purpose of the author is to bring awareness to the issues in society. This quote is shown to be true in Animal Farm by George Orwell and Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare. In these two pieces of literature, the authors expose the issues in society that can lead to destruction and the character’s demise.
Orwell’s writing showed he practiced what he preached. His use of metaphors created a picture in the reader’s mind. His essay stated clearly and concisely what is wrong with English writers and what is needed to be done to repair it.
For example, in John F. Kennedy’s “Ich bin ein Berliner,” he uses words purposefully, claiming, “When all are free, then we look -- can look forward to that day when this city will be joined as one and this country and this great Continent of Europe in a peaceful and hopeful globe” (Kennedy). By stating that not everyone has freedom under communism, he intends to convince the world that communism negatively affects the population in order to motivate his audience to escape from their comfort zones and feel obligated to help make a change. Without people who created speeches like Kennedy’s, citizens would not feel very determined and succeed in overcoming global issues. Kennedy made this speech during the same time period as Faulkner’s—the Cold War era. Although Faulkner’s speech was not actually focused on worldwide issues, his hints toward encouraging the anti-Communist side of the world to stand up for themselves reveal his underlying intentions. While simultaneously describing “the writer’s duty,” he fulfills what he believes to be his own duty by implementing references to the state of the world into his speech. Writers and speakers spread information to a vast number of people without even meeting their audience face-to-face, therefore it is their responsibility to take on a bigger role than simply writing about small, less meaningful topics. Instead, they should write in order to promote motivation in their audience as much in addition to expressing their own ideas. In a world where not many humans earn the opportunity to express their thoughts and beliefs on such an immense scale, writers must use their abilities to spread information that benefits the
Based on the two essays, George Orwell is a vivid writer who uses a unique point of view and strong themes of pride and role playing to convey his messages. His writings are easy to pick out because of the strengths of these messages. Just like politicians in government, people with power turn corrupt to stay in power and keep their reputations. Anyone who takes on power must be prepared to live with the consequences of his actions. Orwell knows this challenge well and conveys this principle in his writing. After all, his narration is based on real life experiences and not fictional fantasies.
Culture and history are the defining aspects of literary history. Each event throughout history has played a major role in the history of literature and writers today. Each writer throughout history has been influenced either through personal experiences, beliefs, and America’s history. Events such as the Civil War brought about several changes that led to the introduction of new literary genres and styles. Many of these writers wanted to break away from tradition whiles others wanted to write about their beliefs such as religion.