Down and Out in London and Paris

5 Pages 1252 Words

Orwell, George. Down And Out In Paris And London. 1933
Harmondsworth, Middlesex, England. 1989.
Number of pages: 216



The commentary, “ Down And Out In Paris And London” by George Orwell is quite interesting. In this commentary, Orwell explores the life of the disenfranchised poor, the underemployed, and the flat broke. Orwell not only wrote about this lifestyle, he explored and spent quite some time living amongst the poor. He spent some time working as a plongeur in the hotels of Paris. He also spent time living amongst the tramps and the poor in London. Throughout the book, Orwell explores in detail the life of the poor through the people he met along the way; of course, changing their names to keep their identity. Orwell explores what goes on behind the scenes. He also gives the readers a detailed look at both the poor side and the common wealth side. He is able to do this because he has lived both sides of life. Therefore, Orwell has the qualifications to inform the reader about poverty, without looking down on it. “Poverty is what I’m writing about,”(p.5), is Orwell’s thesis, which is relevant throughout the book. What makes this commentary fascinating is that Orwell does not offer a solution for poverty, in fact he offers insight for poverty. Orwell’s explorations amongst the poor, has influenced the intended audience he is writing for, the major theme he is writing about, and the purpose in writing “Down And Out In Paris And London”.

Orwell’s explorations amongst the poor have influenced who his intended audience is. His book was written in the first person narrative, which is powerful at getting a message across. “Down And Out In Paris And London” was intended for a specific audience, an audience who does not know about poverty. Orwell’s first encounter with poverty is the same typical encounter that people who do not know what poverty is like might expect. Orwell pla...