George Orwell was seldom in the best of health. Despite his often vigorous writing style and the copious amount of books and articles he wrote, he himself had a rather weak constitution, which only makes his achievements as an author all the more remarkable.
In 1947, Orwell had the gross misfortune to be diagnosed with tuberculosis, or T. B. In those days, there was no vaccine for the disease as there is today, and a vaccine wouldn't become widely available until a few years after Orwell's death. In a large number of cases, therefore, tuberculosis was a fatal disease, and unfortunately, that turned out to be the case for George Orwell.
As with many tuberculosis patients, the diagnosis of Orwell's illness precipitated a rapid decline in health. Tuberculosis attacks the lungs, making it very hard to breathe. And as breathing is essential for the proper functioning of the human body,...
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one can see how many other health problems it would cause.
Orwell sensed that the didn't have long to live, so he began putting his affairs in order. He also married Sonia Brownell—in the hospital—making her his second wife. Sadly, their marriage was to last a little over three months, as Orwell passed away on January 21, 1950 at the age of just forty-six. He died of a burst artery in his lung caused by his tuberculosis.
When did George Orwell die?
Eric Arthur Blair, most commonly known as George Orwell, was an British novelist, essayist, and journalist whose writings made a tremendous impact on modern and post-modern literature. He was born in Motihari, India, on June 25, 1903; his mother took him and his sisters to England when Orwell was a baby, and he grew up in the company of women. He graduated from Eton and left England to join the Imperial Police in Burma (Myanmar), India. After that, he decided to become a full-time writer.
Orwell also worked as a journalist for quite some time; he was employed by the BBC, he wrote for TheObserver, and he worked as a literary editor for the Tribune. He wrote several meaningful essays and articles and attracted a decent audience. His journalistic work helped him master the language and improve his prose as well as become a better writer in general.
However, it also allowed him to explore various ideas and concepts. Thus, after a short amount of time, Orwell became an avid supporter of socialism and a vocal opponent of totalitarianism. Inspired by the sociopolitical climate of the world, Orwell wrote two of the most influential novels in the twentieth century—his 1945 allegorical novella Animal Farm and his 1949 sociopolitical science fiction novel 1984.
Orwell died of tuberculosis on January 21, 1950.