Why I Write, Orwell vs. Didion

Both George Orwell's and Joan Didion's essays entitled "Why I Write" share the same name, (or rather, Didion "stole" it from Orwell), and both describe the path that they followed to become writers from youth to adulthood. Beyond that, however, there is very little similarity. Besides the fact that our class read more out of Orwell's essay than Didion's, Orwell's essay is also more descriptive and thorough, and addresses not only himself as a writer, but writers as a whole. He discusses the main motivations of writers, and also includes specific examples of his work like "Animal Farm" and "Homage to Catalonia"

Didion's essay is much more centered on her life and her experiences, and unlike Orwell who describes four motivations of writers, she emphasizes just one, what Orwell would have described as the "political", persuasive motive. However, she does describe her personal life and experiences in much greater detail than Orwell, giving her essay a more personal, and at times aesthetic feel.

While both styles and both approaches in the writing of these same-title essays are pervasive and convey what the authors want to say in a clear and precise manner, it is my personal opinion that Orwell's essay gets the job done better than Didion's. His work, to me, resonates more and leaves more of an impact in my mind than Didion's. By taking a more general approach and discussing writers as a whole rather than just himself, I think he makes his essay more academic and interesting. In addition, I think that Orwell's language itself is far more sophisticated than what Didion's essay has to offer. Orwell's four motives of writers, Orwell's poem reflecting his own personal life at the time of writing, and his claim that all books are "failures" all outshine Didion's most interesting word choices, such as "I, I, I", and writing is "an aggressive, even a hostile act," to name just a few excerpts from both essays. While Didion's essay was certainly very interesting to read and definitely well-written, Orwell's version of "Why I Write" simply stirs up my thoughts and makes me wonder a bit more.

Mohamad Akef