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George Orwell

Down and Out in Paris and London

“Down and Out in Paris and London” is a memoir in two parts on the theme of poverty in the two cities. The first part is an account of living in near-destitution in Paris and the experience of casual labour in restaurant kitchens. The second part is a travelogue of life on the road in and around London from the tramp's perspective, with descriptions of the types of hostel accommodation available and some of the characters to be found living on the margins.
233 printed pages
Copyright owner
Arcturus Digital
Original publication
2021
Publication year
2020
Have you already read it? How did you like it?
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Impressions

  • Frenchegirlshared an impression4 years ago

    The first part of the book(about Paris) is vivid and funny sometimes. It's full of energy and hope. On the contrary, the second part seems to be difficult to read because of its melancholy and despair. Sometimes it looks like the book has been written by two different authors but, after all, it's worth reading as it gives a lot of historical facts and people life stories connected with the first three decades of the 20th century.

Quotes

  • Lemanhas quoted8 years ago
    The question is, why does this slavery continue?
    People have a way of taking it for granted that all work
    is done for a sound purpose. They see somebody else
    doing a disagreeable job, and think that they have
    solved things by saying that the job is necessary. Coal-
    mining, for example, is hard work, but it is necessary-we
    must have coal. Working in the sewers is unpleasant,
    but somebody must work in the sewers. And similarly
    with a
    plongeur's work. Some people must feed in
    restaurants, and so other people must swab dishes for
    eighty hours a week. It is the work of civilisation,
    therefore unquestionable. This point is worth
    considering.
  • МИХАИЛhas quoted3 years ago
    Never worry, mon ami. Nothing is easier to get than money.’
  • Tadeusz Wojciekhas quoted9 months ago
    At the beginning of ‘Why I Write’ (1947), he explains that from the age of five or six he knew he would be – must be–a writer.

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