George Orwell and Ernst Toller: The Dilemma of The Politically Committed writer

Abstract

Though worlds apart in style and tone, the English novelist, George Orwell, and the German dramatist, Ernst Toller, were alike in that both defended the right of the artist or writer not only to take an active part in the major political struggles of their period but to seek to give artistic expression to these struggles in their creative works. They rejected the idea that the true artist should stand above the political fray, yet at the same time strove hard to ensure that their work was free of party labels, did not descend, that is, to the level of mere political propaganda. This paper asks to what extent Orwell and Toller were able to uphold these views in the face of the rise of Fascism, with particular emphasis given to their relationship towards the Spanish Civil War, a conflict in which both were involved and which became something of a watershed for the Left in the years leading up to the Second World War.