The collection of Orwell’s essays remain my favorite text we have studied this year. Orwell’s level of self-awareness and knowledge, coupled with his unwavering honesty, create a tone that exemplifies his distain for injustice. His works are exemplars that all writers wish to emulate. His awareness and honesty are to be admired, and his writing is to be envied. These traits create a model of writing that I strive to follow. The traits that make Orwell the writer he is manifest themselves as awareness and reflection of his shortcomings, in both life and writing. An example of his brutal honesty can be found on page 3 of Marrakech,
“What does Morocco mean to a Frenchman? An orange-grove or a job in government service. Or to an Englishman? Camels, castles, palm-trees, Foreign Legionnaires, brass trays and bandits. One could probably live here for years without noticing that for nine-tenths of the people the reality of life is an endless, back-breaking struggle to wring a little food out of an eroded soil.”(pg. 3).
Orwell discusses the sufferings of Moroccans from the perspective of their colonial rulers. The indifference to the suffering of those who govern them exemplifies the injustice faced by Moroccan citizens. Orwell addresses this perspective, as it stems from ignorance from imperialist countries. He recognizes his inhabiting of Morocco makes him an accessory to this injustice. His honesty with both himself and the reader is admirable. This self-awareness allows for Orwell to create a tone of distain for the injustice he witnesses. By doing so, Orwell forms a model of honesty which all writers strive to emulate. By attempting to mimic Orwell’s honesty with himself and the reader, I enable myself to reinvent my writing, thus making it profoundly impactful, for myself and the reader.
An additional example of Orwell’s self-awareness can be found on page 374 of Politics and the English Language,
- Never use a metaphor, simile, or other figure of speech which you are used to seeing in print.
- Never use a long word where a short one will do.
- If it is possible to cut a word out, always cut it out.
- Never use the passive where you can use the active.
- Never use a foreign phrase, a scientific word, or a jargon word if you can think of an everyday English equivalent.
- Break any of these rules sooner than say anything outright barbarous.
The essay concludes with a brief list, which compiles the knowledge required to be an efficient and effective writer. His self-awareness is exhibited in the sixth and final rule, in which he instructs the reader to break his own rules in order to ensure clarity and simplicity in their writing. Orwell addresses his own deviations regarding clarity and simplicity. By further acknowledging his shortcomings in his field, his advice becomes profoundly impactful.
Orwell’s self-awareness and honesty, both in the content and structure of his writing, is to be desired and strived for. Further, Orwell has provided a model that enables both simplicity and clarity in writing. Moreover, Orwell has demonstrated profound, provoking, and simply put commentary on important and complex topics. These traits form the foundation of clear and sincere writing. In the future, in both academic and personal settings, I will strive to achieve accessible and effective communication with those around me, by emulating Orwell’s model of an excellent writer.