His 3110, Orwell Paper (6-7 page, 25%); 6 pages; due: 20 April [NOTE: Absolutely due Mon., 24 April before noon; 1/3 grade deduction for every half day thereafter; e.g., if turned after noon 25th a "B" would be downgraded 3/3 or "C", by 28th a "B" would be downgraded 8/3 or "F".]
How valuable is Orwell as a source and as a social historian? Choose a subject or problem and compare its treatment in The Road to Wigan Pier (1937) with its treatment in The Times (London) during a single year in the 1930s. Compare and contrast how they explain the causes of the problem as well as how they explain its effects. Account for differences, or similarities.
Broad subjects that Orwell discusses include: socialism, class, religion, unemployment. Specific subjects include: the "dole," Punch, public schools, radio, Fascism, Wigan itself. To discover what the Times writes about these subjects use the Index to the Times. Each volume of the Index covers a four-month period and is divided into two indices. Note that some creative researching is required. Orwell discusses "tramps," while the Times might discuss "vagrancy." Also, we are interested in unearthing reasons why Orwell and the Times write what they do. To discover what the Times thinks about the subjects, you might look at the editorials, indexed as "leading articles."
PRE-PAPER ASSIGNMENT
(due 6 April): Look
up microfilm the Times for your birthday, 1930, 1931, 1932, 1933,
1934, 1935, 1936, or 1937; photocopy one leading article (editorial) for
that date, not page #. And type one paragraph summarizing what editorial
is about, and where the Times stands.
Key events during the 1930s