Keep the Aspidistra Flying (Masterplots II: British and Commonwealth Fiction Series)
At a glance:
- Author: George Orwell
- First Published: 1936
- Type of Work: Social realism
- Time of Work: The 1930’s
- Setting: London
- Principal Characters: Gordon Comstock, Rosemary Waterlow, Philip Ravelston
- Genres: Long fiction, Social realism
- Subjects: Culture, Values, Self-discovery, Middle classes, Poetry or poets, 1930’s, Poverty or poor people, Pregnancy, England or English people, London, Money, Plants
- Locales: London, England
The Novel
In Keep the Aspidistra Flying, a discontented and embittered young man, who believes that “all modern commerce is a swindle,” attempts to drop out of the monetary system altogether. He refuses to advance himself in life, obstinately defying pressure from family and friends. He falls willingly into the mire of poverty and self-neglect, until he is trapped by circumstances into embracing the very values that he formerly despised.
Gordon Comstock is twenty-nine years old, is well educated, and comes from a middle-class background. As the novel opens, he...
[The entire page is 2166 words long]
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