Why Orwell Matters
by Christopher Hitchens
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Book Summary Information
Author: Christopher HitchensEdition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2003-09-11
ISBN: 0465030505
Number of pages: 224
Publisher: Basic Books
Book Reviews of Why Orwell Matters
Book Review: A different perspective of Orwell
Summary: 4 Stars
As a christian, I have not read many of Christopher Hitchens book due to some his viewpoints; I have however read most of his brother's books (The Broken Compass, The Abolition of Britain and A Brief History of Crime). I have decided to take one of Christopher's books for a spin and found it to be a refreshing, well balanced essay of the life of Orwell and the meaning of his works. At 211 pages, the author goes through various perspectives of Orwell including his experiences of the British Empire, America (never came to these shores despite several abortive attempts), his views of feminism and the author's explanation of Orwell's advocates on the left and right. The main point that I got from this book is that Orwell was very faithful to idea of words and language and his disdain from disingenuous sloganeering that form some of the background for his novel 1984. Hitchens stated in his conclusion that a man like Orwell could live by "supposedly" Christian virtues without holding to any belief or piety. However, that begs the question of what constitutes virtue. Does it change over time? Pilate stated in his famous quote to Jesus "What is truth?" Truth and virtue must hold constant over time or we will be lost in the millieu of poltical correctness forever.
A great effort by Mr. Hitchens, but course my ideoolgy leans more toward his brother Peter.
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