preview

Keep the Aspidistra Flying, by George Orwell

Open Document
Keep the Aspidistra Flying is one of George Orwell’s lesser known novels, but no less powerful. The most telling aspect of this novel is the characterization it provides. Keep the Aspidistra Flying is a novel about wealth and money. The main character, Gordon Comstock, has a constant struggle with money. Whether it is the possession or the absence of income, Gordon always struggles with money and its position in his life. The ultimate goal of the novel is presenting both the character’s philosophies on wealth, and also where they lie in the possession of it.

Gordon Comstock is a character that is deeply despises money. This is expressed well in his resenting opinion of it. When first thinking of his girlfriend, Rosemary, he abhors the fact that she does not sleep with him. He blames this problem on his monetary position, and that if he were wealthy enough, she would be much more willing. Gordon believes money dominates all of society’s connections. “All human relationships must be purchased with money. If you have no money, men won't care for you, women won't love you” (“Keep the Aspidistra Flying”, Chapter 1). Gordon decided against money, and capitalism itself, at the age of sixteen. In fact, most of the story’s perspective is told through Gordon’s eyes, and he even views initial impression of people by the monetary worth he thinks they are. “He (Orwell) uses satire in the first chapter, when describing how Gordon Comstock interacts with customers in the bookshop.” (“Literary Analysis: Keep the Aspidistra Flying”) In the book store he works in, his impression of a customer is “A youth of twenty, cherry-lipped, with gilded hair, tripped Nancifully in. Moneyed, obviously. He had the golden aura of money.” (“Keep...

... middle of paper ...

... feeds the cautious nature of all those who value freedom, and he urges the reader to stop corruption before it has become too powerful.

Works Cited

C.D. Merriman. “George Orwell.” The Literature Network. Jalic Inc. 2006. Web. 19 Mar. 2011

“Animal Farm.” The Complete Works of George Orwell. n.p. n.d. 2005. Web. 17 Mar. 2011

“1984.” The Complete Works of George Orwell. n.p. n.d. 2005. Web. 17 Mar. 2011

“Keep the Aspidistra Flying.” The Complete Works of George Orwell. n.p. n.d. 2005. Web.

17. Mar. 2011

“Animal Farm Symbolism, Imagery, and Allegory.” Shmoop.com Study Guides and Teacher

Guides. n.p. n.d. Web. 19. Mar. 2011

“1984 Theme Analysis” Novelguide.com n.p. n.d. Web. 21. Mar. 2011

“Literary Analysis: Keep the Aspidistra Flying” Helium-Where Knowledge Rules. n.p. 1 June

2007. Web. 23. Mar. 2011
Get Access
Related

  • Animal Farm Analysis

    599 Words  | 3 Pages

    10 Mar. 2014. "Quizlet." Facts about Animal Farm and George Orwell Flashcards. N.p., n.d.

    Read More

  • Animal Farm

    1137 Words  | 5 Pages

    SparkNote on Animal Farm. Retrieved October 30, 2013, from http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/animalfarm/ The Kiev Times (2013, November 11). Северная Корея устраивает публичные массовые казни | За рубежом | The Kiev Times. Retrieved from http://thekievtimes.ua/foreign/273464-severnaya-koreya-ustraivaet-publichnye-massovye-kazni.html

    Read More

  • Captive Animals

    901 Words  | 4 Pages

    ProQuest, 7 Jan. 2005. Web. 31 Oct. 2011. "Zoo." Compton's by Britannica.

    Read More

  • Is it Ethical to Use Growth Hormones on Cattle?

    2433 Words  | 10 Pages

    N.p., May 2007. Web. 09 Oct. 2013. . Taylor, Robert E., and Thomas G. Fields. Scientific Farm Animal Production in Introduction to Animal Science.

    Read More

  • Animal Welfare

    1665 Words  | 7 Pages

    5 Oct. 2011. Sikes, Roberts. and William L. Gannon. "Guidelines of the American Society of Mammalogists for the Use of Wild Mammals in Research." Journal of Mammalogy 92.1 (Feb. 2011): 235-253.

    Read More

  • On Animal experiments

    665 Words  | 3 Pages

    1--18. HOPES. 2010. Animal Research: The Ethics of Animal Experimentation. [online] Available at: http://www.stanford.edu/group/hopes/cgi-bin/wordpress/2010/07/animal-research/ [Accessed: 18 Nov 2013].

    Read More

  • A Critical Review of Animal Farm

    1646 Words  | 7 Pages

    Animal Farm, George Orwell. n.p. 13 Dec 2008. Web. 17 February 2010.

    Read More

  • Animal Farm

    1566 Words  | 7 Pages

    Orlando: Harcourt, 2003. Print. Pearce, Robert. “ANIMAL FARM.” History Today 55.8 (2005): 47

    Read More

  • Mash Up Critique

    1261 Words  | 6 Pages

    Jeff Wall Photographs 1978-2004. Available: http://www.tate.org.uk/modern/exhibitions/jeffwall/infocus/section3/img1.shtm. Last accessed 13th Sept 2011.

    Read More

  • Animal Testing Proposal

    1547 Words  | 7 Pages

    Murnaghan, Ian. "Animal Testing Timeline." Animal Testing Timeline. N.p., 21 July 2010. Web.

    Read More

More about Keep the Aspidistra Flying, by George Orwell

Get Access