Customer Reviews

George Orwell: A Political Life (Lives of the Left)

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Ingle's book is valuable for its insight into how Orwell was wont to exaggerate his hardships early in life as well as his attempts to record it as it *felt*. As a feminist I of course deplore Orwell's lack of sensitivity to Women and their struggles for suffrage, for political rights, and the right to own their own bodies. Nowhere does Orwell make clear that he is fighting for the rights of women, and this cannot be forgotten. We must also note that he continues to enjoy popularity among conservatives, a fact lost upon no self-respecting radical. I suppose that while the rest of us are challenging the assumptions of the colonialist mindset, white male writers of the past such as Orwell (who once slapped 'coolies' when losing his temper) are no longer useful in our examiniation of imperialist paradigms. For a contemporary perspective of the incredible variety and richness of post-colonial discourse, we need to turn to more radical and transgressive writers, such as Mary Daly, bell hooks, Ishmael Reed, and others. Orwell continues to accumulate dust and conservative praise, though we should continue to mine his works for their telling inconsistencies.