Keep the Aspidistra Flying
Keep the Aspidistra Flying is a novel by George Orwell. It was published in 1936 and it was Orwell's third book. It tells the story of a man who does not want to focus on money and tries to live a different life.
Background
Like the character in the book, Orwell spent some time working in a book shop. He used some of these experiences of living in poverty to give him ideas for the book.[1]
George Orwell said afterwards that he did not like this book. He said that it should not be published again until after he had died.[2]
Plot
The main character is a man called Gordon Comstock. He had a well paid job until he gave it up for a part time job in a book shop so he could spend more time writing poetry. He does not have much money and he struggles to pay for the basic things he needs like food and a place to live.
Keep The Aspidistra Flying Media
Book cover of a Penguin Books edition.
Two aspidistra plants – "The types he saw all round him, especially the older men, made him squirm. That was what it meant to worship the money-god! To settle down, to Make Good, to sell your soul for a villa and an aspidistra! To turn into the typical bowler-hatted sneak – Strube's 'little man' [–] What a fate!" (Ch. III)
References
- ↑ "Keep the Aspidistra Flying". The Orwell Prize.
- ↑ "Defeat into victory". www.newstatesman.com. Archived from the original on 2016-05-31. Retrieved 2018-08-05.
