The Proposal
He was sucked into a whirlpool once, he intentionally got himself into prison and he always possessed an intense dislike of totalitarianism. Some might recognise this person as George Orwell, who was actually Eric Arthur Blair when not writing under his pseudonymous name. Orwell is now a historical figure, best known for his two political masterpieces: Animal Farm and 1984.
Orwell identified himself as a democratic socialist and during his life, he was greatly concerned about Europe's political and social status. He believed that Russia's totalitarianism was taking influence on Europe and published several books regarding this topic, the most serious attempt being The Lion and the Unicorn: Socialism and the English Genius, a 1941 essay where he voiced his opinion of needing change in Europe's political ways.
When the word "superhero" is mentioned, many imagine an over-muscular character dressed in some bright suit that would look comical when fitted on most. But in my opinion, I think that Orwell was a true superhero in the subject of politics and human ideology. Through his well-known book, 1984, Orwell conveyed a terrifyingly prophetic future of oppressive ruling and dictators, with omnipresent government surveillance, perpetual war and mind control. This gave the world a glimpse of totalitarianism, as Orwell viewed it. For most of his life, he promoted democratic socialism, as he states himself," Every line of serious work that I have written since 1936 has been written, directly or indirectly, against totalitarianism and for democratic socialism, as I understand it." Through his works, Orwell opened everyone's eyes and showed us the terrifying reality if we were to turn to using the system of communism.
Orwell travelled most of his life studying sociology, especially exploring the bleak living conditions of the working class (proletariat). He went down the coal mines once, which caused him extreme discomfort. Being lanky, Orwell had to nearly double-down to walk through the tunnels but keep his head up in order to dodge the beams and girders. He visited Sheffield once, a slum that had suffered greatly from industrialism. Why did he do this? He, being a member of the 'middle class', wanted to get rid of class distinctions. He believed it was insufficient in "clapping a Proletarian on the back and telling him a good a man as I am." Orwell knew he had to make an effort.
Orwell also established the 'Orwell Prizes' and 'The Orwell Youth Prizes', which awards and congratulates those who continue on Orwell's goal - "What I have most wanted to do... is to make political writing an art. These two awards encourage people of all ages, whether young or old, to be passionate writers and to write about social and political issues that are currently arising worldwide. Currently there are four prizes: The Orwell Prize for Political Writing, The Orwell Prize for Political Fiction, The Orwell Prize for Journalism and The Orwell Prize for Exposing Britain's Social's Evils.
Orwell's 1984 may be even necessary for humanity. In Trump's election, we saw a massive rise in the purchase of Orwell's 1984. Libertarians have used 1984 in efforts to describe the curtailment of freedom in the real world by politicians and officials. Orwell's 1984 has also inspired a TV show called Room 101, a show in which celebrities name the people and things they hate most. He also has several documentaries dedicated to him, which has replicated his life by using excerpts of text from his diary entries and books. Unfortunately, this is no video recording of his actual voice.
Overall, Orwell was a massive political figure. With his words, he protested against communism and supported democratic socialism. And his words were much more powerful than any rally or protest, for they have lasted until this day and they will be forever embedded in literature and history. Orwell died while writing 1984; the book killed him. Yet, he believed that he was born as a writer and that his duty was as a writer, in which he chose to write politically. Through his works, Orwell gave us a warning. A warning of a dark future that humanity could adapt itself to. Who knows where we would be now if he hadn't existed?