The subject of this thesis is the influence of George Orwell's experience as a war-time BBC radio broadcaster on the author as he created the world of NINETEEN EIGHTY-FOUR. In 1985 W. J. West published the transcripts of Orwell's wartime broadcasts. West suggested in his introductory preface that Orwell's NINETEEN EIGHTY-FOUR was based directly on his BBC experience and problems encountered with the Ministry of Information at that time. This thesis argues that, though Orwell probably drew on his BBC experience for the psychological content of NINETEEN EIGHTY-FOUR, Winston's treatment at the hands of Big Brother is not based on anything the author endured during his tenure at the BBC. To this end Orwell's personal and political reasons for both joining and leaving the BBC are discussed. The connection between reality and fiction in Orwell's works, both documentary and fictional, is examined, and the literary nature of all of Orwell's writing taken into consideration in an exploration of the creative dynamic shaping Orwell's expression.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:LACETR/oai:collectionscanada.gc.ca:QMM.56915 |
| Date | January 1992 |
| Creators | Sallans, Bonnie Jean |
| Contributors | Vogel, Robert (advisor) |
| Publisher | McGill University |
| Source Sets | Library and Archives Canada ETDs Repository / Centre d'archives des thèses électroniques de Bibliothèque et Archives Canada |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Electronic Thesis or Dissertation |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Coverage | Master of Arts (Department of History.) |
| Rights | All items in eScholarship@McGill are protected by copyright with all rights reserved unless otherwise indicated. |
| Relation | alephsysno: 001326002, proquestno: AAIMM87624, Theses scanned by UMI/ProQuest. |
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