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" George Orwell, the B.B.C and India : "
Rodrigues, A. S.
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Latin Dissertation
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| Record Number
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1097333
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TLets508360
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| Main Entry
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Rodrigues, A. S.
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| Title & Author
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George Orwell, the B.B.C and India :\ Rodrigues, A. S.
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| College
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University of Edinburgh
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| Date
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1995
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| student score
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1995
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| Degree
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Ph.D.
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| Abstract
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This thesis focuses attention on the two years that George Orwell spent, between August1941 and November 1943, at the Indian Section of the B.B.C., producing propaganda talksfor listeners in India and elsewhere. It views Orwell's occupation in the context of thegrowing popularity of radio as the most successful weapon of propaganda war in the latethirties and early forties. The study looks briefly at the changing role of theintelligentsia during wartime, and examines the influence of the B. B. C. and other wartimeinstitutions on Orwell's mind and creativity. Although much of Orwell's own contributionat the B.B.C. had become available after the publication of his war broadcasts andcommentaries in 1985, this thesis incorporates fresh material and new documents from theB.B.C. Archives and the Orwell Archive, along with some other essays, journalism andletters, which have not been included in any posthumous collections of Orwell's works.The second area of investigation is Orwell's relationship with India and the East.Although his concern for India and Burma was always quite intense, his attitude towardstheir political problems underwent constant changes, thereby creating some inconsistencyin his outlook. This thesis brings to light Orwell's acquaintance with several members ofthe Indian intelligentsia residing in London during the war, and gives particular attentionto his friendship with the veteran Indian writer, Mulk Raj Anand, which hitherto hasremained largely unconsidered.Chapter I surveys the propaganda policies of the British and German broadcastingagencies and introduces readers to those factors which led to, and affected, the creationand growth of the Indian Service. An insight into Orwell's mind just before the outbreak ofthe war explains his reasons for accepting this particular post. Chapter II establishes thebiographical details of Orwell's life between 1941 and 1943, and analyses the effect of thebureaucracy of the B.B.C. and M.O.I. on his mind and behaviour. Chapter III contains ataxonomy of his wartime scripts and elaborates upon his social life during the war,including his apparent intimacy with the poet Stevie Smith. The B. B. C. presented Orwellwith many ideas and images which contributed to the imaginative setting,characterisation and content of Nineteen Eighty-Four. A discussion of these is contained inChapter IV. Chapter V -'Child of the Raj'- examines Orwell's ever-changing relationshipwith India in terms of four stages and charts the development of his political, social,economic and cultural responses to the country and its peoples. His friendship with MulkRaj Anand, and a comparison of their early lives and novels, is the subject of the concludingchapter, which also highlights their shared responses to politics and society in thethirties.The six appendices that follow substantiate the argument provided in the thesis.Particularly worthy of mention is 'Who listened-in to George Orwell? ' which surveyspatterns of listening-in to broadcasts from the B. B. C. and other radio stations in Indiaduring the war.
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University of Edinburgh
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