Down and Out in Paris and London

The title says it all.

George Orwell lays it out bare in an unpretentious and clear style as he tells it as it is.

Published in 1933, his first novel, this is an autobiography of sorts rather than a plot-driven thriller, and although similar in reach and urban grime to Dostoevsky, Dickens - this not A Tale of Two Cities - or even Victor Hugo, it’s not exactly thrilling, but still accessible and surprisingly relevant, alive and very informative and interesting.

I’m a big fan of Animal Farm and 1984 and this was my third foray into the mind of George Orwell. It’s great if you’re looking for a fact-driven insight into the slums and poverty of two of the world’s greatest capitals.

The book consists of two distinct sections, about 60% of it in Paris, mostly focused on the hotel industry while working as a plongeur (dishwasher) for 17 hours a day with no time off, and then as a tramp or hermit in London.

A plongeur is a slave of a slave at the lowest rung of the hotel business, responsible for washing and cleaning, serving employee meals and being a general dogsbody. It’s impossible to save money or think about investments or relationships.

The only real luxuries are food because of the restaurant work and the satisfaction of having employment over unemployment and poverty.

Poverty itself isn’t the problem, but the fear of it happening and the downward slide into the lowest depths. Once you hit rock bottom, you get on with the real process of living and surviving as the fear stops and life becomes more straightforward. The only way is up.

Poverty is juxtaposed by the paying patrons of the hotel industry who pay a fortune for services in contrast to the grime and filth of the workers, to emphasize how unfair life can be.

The rest of the book is on the other side of the English channel in London where Orwell becomes a penniless tramp for a couple of months before accepting full-time work, literally surviving on a diet of tea and two slices of bread and margarine, tramping each day between workhouses, spikes and charitable accommodations.

The caveat is that his circumstances are only temporary, which detracts from the harshness, but even for a short period of time, living at the truly lowest level of society is scary, full of diseases, demoralisation, crime and grotesque habits picked up along the way.

This tramping experience was undoubtedly the bleak dystopian cornerstone of Orwell’s most famous and amazing novels and I totally respect him for it!

This is an eye-opening and relevant book at how bad things can get because of back luck, ill health and lack of personal care. Some people live in relative poverty their entire lives with no way of getting out of it.

A much more exciting and heartwarming tale than it has any right to be, it rarely feels dour, biting or sanctimonious.

Its biggest fault is a continuously negative attitude towards the church and a rather preachy call to pay no attention to any of that, which feels old fashioned. Charities exist to help poor people, through commitment, prayer, hymns, etc., as a tradeoff for receiving help. They are essentially good.

The book also gets a little bit stiff in places as it recounts the stark facts, but it's still a recommended read due to the grimy realism and startling insight into how it is at rock bottom.