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Lesson 1 (from Chapter 1)

Objective

Chapter 1

George Orwell was commissioned to write his book about the unemployed and their living conditions in Northern England in 1937. The object of the lesson is to examine what the commission was about, who commissioned Orwell to write this book and their response to his work.

Lesson

1) Class discussion: What does it mean to commission a book? How is a writer chosen for a commission? In this case, what was Orwell's relationship to his subject? Did he complete his assignment?

2) Group discussion: In small groups, examine the Left Book Club. Who ran the Club? What was the political affiliation of the group? Who were the editors? What exactly was Orwell asked to write for the Club? Then examine the Club's response to Orwell's book. Why did they feel it necessary to add a foreword to the book? What were the concerns the editor had about publishing...

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