The English Language

English language FAQ for teachers & students

George Orwell

George Orwell (1903 - 1950) is one of the most important writers of the 2oth Century. Born Eric Blair, he was from what he later described as an 'impoverished middle-class' home.

After attending Eton school. he went to serve the British Empire as a policeman in
Burma during the 1920s.

He later said, '
In Burma I was hated by large numbers of people – the only time in my life that I have been important enough for this to happen to me.'

Orwell's Burmese experience was the subject of his first novel 'Burmese Days' and some of his most famous essays including:
Shooting an Elephant. Simplified version of the complete text (pdf) here:

You can read a simplified and shortened extract of
Shooting an Elephant here.

For a simplified version of the complete text (pdf)
here.

You can read the complete unabridged, unsimplified text here.



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