George Orwell, whose real name was Eric Arthur Blair, was a renowned British writer, essayist, journalist, and critic. He was born on June 25, 1903, in Motihari, British India (now in Bihar, India), and passed away on January 21, 1950, in London, England.
Orwell is best known for his literary works that explore themes of social injustice, totalitarianism, and the dangers of authoritarianism.
“Nineteen Eighty-Four” (1984) – A dystopian novel set in a totalitarian society, where the government, led by the oppressive figure of Big Brother, exercises total control over its citizens, including monitoring their every move. The novel introduced concepts like thoughtcrime, doublethink, and Newspeak, and has become a symbol of the dangers of a surveillance state.
George Orwell Quotes
1. “Happiness can exist only in acceptance.”
2. “The most effective way to destroy people is to deny and obliterate their own understanding of their history.”
3. “Political language… is designed to make lies sound truthful and murder respectable, and to give an appearance of solidity to pure wind.”
4. “Big Brother is watching you.” (From “Nineteen Eighty-Four”)
5. “War is peace. Freedom is slavery. Ignorance is strength.” (From “Nineteen Eighty-Four”)
6. “Freedom is the freedom to say that two plus two make four. If that is granted, all else follows.”
7. “The great enemy of clear language is insincerity.”
8. “To see what is in front of one’s nose needs a constant struggle.”
9. “We sleep safe in our beds because rough men stand ready in the night to visit violence on those who would do us harm.”
10. “All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others.” (From “Animal Farm”)
11. “The further a society drifts from the truth, the more it will hate those that speak it.”
12. “If you want a picture of the future, imagine a boot stamping on a human face—forever.” (From “Nineteen Eighty-Four”)
13. “The most saintly soul becomes wicked when it sees evil done without punishment.”
14. “The essence of being human is that one does not seek perfection.”
15. “Freedom is the right to tell people what they do not want to hear.”
16. “To see what is in front of one’s nose needs a constant struggle.”
17. “All the war-propaganda, all the screaming and lies and hatred, comes invariably from people who are not fighting.”
18. “Doublethink means the power of holding two contradictory beliefs in one’s mind simultaneously, and accepting both of them.”
19. “Nationalism is power-hunger tempered by self-deception.”
20. “In our age, there is no such thing as ‘keeping out of politics.’ All issues are political issues.”
21. “The quickest way to end a war is to lose it.”
22. “Each generation imagines itself to be more intelligent than the one that went before it and wiser than the one that comes after it.”
23. “A people that elect corrupt politicians, imposters, thieves, and traitors are not victims, but accomplices.”
24. “If liberty means anything at all, it means the right to tell people what they do not want to hear.”
25. “In a time of universal deceit, telling the truth is a revolutionary act.”
26. “No advance in wealth, no softening of manners, no reform or revolution has ever brought human equality a millimeter nearer.”
27. “So much of left-wing thought is a kind of playing with fire by people who don’t even know that fire is hot.”
28. “Man is the only creature that consumes without producing.”
29. “No one can look back on his schooldays and say with truth that they were altogether unhappy.”
30. “If you kept the small rules, you could break the big ones.”
31. “Enlightened people seldom or never possess a sense of responsibility.”
32. “The best books… are those that tell you what you know already.”
33. “The choice for mankind lies between freedom and happiness and for the great bulk of mankind, happiness is better.”
34. “Serious sport has nothing to do with fair play. It is bound up with hatred, jealousy, boastfulness, disregard of all rules, and sadistic pleasure in witnessing violence.”
35. “The past was erased, the erasure was forgotten, the lie became the truth.” (From “Nineteen Eighty-Four”)
These quotes demonstrate Orwell’s keen observations on politics, society, human nature, and the dangers of totalitarianism. His words continue to resonate with readers and remain relevant in today’s world.
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