preview

The Need for Simplification of the English Language as Explained in Politics And The English Language” by George Orwell

Decent Essays

In his piece “Politics And The English Language”, George Orwell, best known for his allegorical satire Animal Farm and dystopian novel 1984 (Orwell), makes his case that modern day English is “ugly and inaccurate”, and must be simplified in order to be perceived as necessary dialect. He also adds that many modern day pieces have two commonalities, one being the staleness of imagery and the second being the lack of precision. Next, he gives examples of how writers, especially when dealing with politics, have a variety of the same tactics and have lead to “having a meaning and cannot express it”. These tricks include dying metaphors, operators or verbal false limbs, pretentious diction and meaningless words. The abuse of these tactics has …show more content…

Orwell goes on to mention language in politics and how it is a “mass of lies” (p.786). He establishes that his concern with the language in politics is most alarming to him and states “This mixture of vagueness and sheer incompetence is the most marked characteristic of modern English prose, and especially of any kind of political writing” (p.779). A trend that is noticed throughout his piece is the social conditions and how it can affect ones language. Our surroundings, if negative, will have an effect on the way language is used. He makes the case that it becomes ugly and inaccurate because out thoughts are foolish, but the slovenliness of our language makes it easier for us to have foolish thoughts (p.788). His logical explanation centers on the five passages that were presented in the beginning of his piece, and he continues to reflect upon it throughout with the most significant issue being the author’s lack of meaning. His logical argument seems to be his strongest point. It is apparent that Orwell’s pathos argument is not as strong as his logos argument. However, he does use stories and testimonials to support his case. For instance, he gives an example from the book of Ecclesiastes and translates a passage of good English into modern English of the worst sort (p. 783). We see here the type of English that Orwell has an issue with. The effect of modern day English leads Orwell to believe that is piece

Get Access