George Orwell (English 246: Fall 2011)

Just this evening, famed author, noted atheist, and literary critic Christopher Hitchens passed away after a long struggled with esophageal cancer. Over the past twenty years, Hitchens has been one of the more vocal and well known literary thinkers on Orwell. Below, I attached a link to a 2002 BBC interview that focused on Hitchens’ view of Orwell. Much of it focuses on issues we have discussed in class, e.g. the name change, perceived homophobia, his struggle to be published, amongst other issues. Its an interesting interview that offers another shade into this very complicated literary figure. If you have a moment between exams, I’d recommend giving it a read through.

http://www.netcharles.com/orwell/articles/col-hitchens.htm