Down and Out in Paris and London (Collins Classics)
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- Create Date：2021-03-29 13:11:02
- Update Date：2025-09-06
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- Author：George Orwell
- ISBN：0008442665
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Summary
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Three francs will feed you till tomorrow， and you cannot think further than that…
As a young man struggling to find his voice as a writer， George Orwell left the comfort of home to live in the impoverished working districts of Paris and London。 He would document both the chaos and boredom of destitution， the eccentric cast of characters he encountered， and the near-constant pains of hunger and discomfort。
Exposing the grim reality of a life marred by poverty， Down and Out in Paris and London， part memoir， part social commentary， would become George Orwell’s first published work。
Three francs will feed you till tomorrow， and you cannot think further than that…
As a young man struggling to find his voice as a writer， George Orwell left the comfort of home to live in the impoverished working districts of Paris and London。 He would document both the chaos and boredom of destitution， the eccentric cast of characters he encountered， and the near-constant pains of hunger and discomfort。
Exposing the grim reality of a life marred by poverty， Down and Out in Paris and London， part memoir， part social commentary， would become George Orwell’s first published work。
Reviews
Casey Toner
，
This deeply lived and reported experience of poverty， of beggar life in London and service industry culture in Paris， make for a gripping read。 Typical of Orwell， he writes with a remarkable purpose and clarity。 His searing defense of beggars （"Money has become the grand test of virtue。 By this test beggars fail， and for this they are despised。"） would undoubtedly be greeted with flame emojis on Twitter if he published in this year 2021。 Less popular， more disappointing， and clear candidates for This deeply lived and reported experience of poverty， of beggar life in London and service industry culture in Paris， make for a gripping read。 Typical of Orwell， he writes with a remarkable purpose and clarity。 His searing defense of beggars （"Money has become the grand test of virtue。 By this test beggars fail， and for this they are despised。"） would undoubtedly be greeted with flame emojis on Twitter if he published in this year 2021。 Less popular， more disappointing， and clear candidates for the dreaded Twitter ratio， would be the flashes of anti-semitism and homophobia that defile passages of "Down and Out。。。" Orwell never reckoned with the latter， but he addressed the former later in in his career， holding himself and his county to account for their bigotry。 I'd like to think that under different circumstances， in a different age， he'd address his own homophobia as well。 Orwell's writing often exemplifies the very best of the human spirit: the willingness to engage bad ideas and overcome them， the ability to change。 。。。more
Brittany （whatbritreads）
，
I actually think this started off so strong but the more I read the less impressed with it I was。 While I think there was a really good discussion of poverty from a first-hand account， this wasn’t enough to hold the book up in high esteem for me。 It was really eye opening and makes several amazing points in defence of our prejudices towards homeless people – but this exploration was only brief。 It also talked a bit about working class individuals and politics but most of it was just random tange I actually think this started off so strong but the more I read the less impressed with it I was。 While I think there was a really good discussion of poverty from a first-hand account， this wasn’t enough to hold the book up in high esteem for me。 It was really eye opening and makes several amazing points in defence of our prejudices towards homeless people – but this exploration was only brief。 It also talked a bit about working class individuals and politics but most of it was just random tangents。Other than the insight and understanding it gave me， I was just so bored。 It’s a really short book and I had every intention of reading it in one sitting， but I just didn’t want to。 I honestly didn’t really care。 Nothing much happened， and I suppose that was the point but。。。 it could’ve been written in a far more engaging manor。 It was really slow， and despite being written nicely， I just couldn’t get to grips with it。Unfortunately， it just dragged for me and the ending was really abrupt。 Think I’ll just stick to Orwell’s fiction in future。 。。。more
Winter Rose
，
The story is powerful， I like how it was presented。 Good job writer！ If you have some great stories like this one， you can publish it on NovelStar， just submit your story to hardy@novelstar。top or joye@novelstar。top
Geoff
，
A graphic description of his penniless early days in Paris and London and the appalling conditions。His feelings and sympathy for the downtrodden shine through。He has easy to read flowing writing with crisp descriptions and no unnecessary words。“It is an instructive sight to see a waiter going into a hotel dining room。 As he passes the door a sudden change comes over him。 The set of his shoulders alters; all the dirt and hurry and irritation have dropped off and an instant。 He glides over the car A graphic description of his penniless early days in Paris and London and the appalling conditions。His feelings and sympathy for the downtrodden shine through。He has easy to read flowing writing with crisp descriptions and no unnecessary words。“It is an instructive sight to see a waiter going into a hotel dining room。 As he passes the door a sudden change comes over him。 The set of his shoulders alters; all the dirt and hurry and irritation have dropped off and an instant。 He glides over the carpet with a solemn priest like air。” p90。Proverb: 'Trust a snake before Jew and a Jew before a Greek， but don't trust an Armenian。' p96。“I could have saved an hour a day by taking a room near the restaurant， but it seemed impossible to find time to change lodgings—or， for that matter to get my hair cut， look at a newspaper， or even undress completely。” p150。 。。。more
Mark
，
Orwell does a deep， sympathetic dive into poverty and homelessness in two Western cities。 But， his casual antisemitism and racism has not aged well。
Govind Pilla
，
George Orwell was a critic of world governance and governments， this early work of his clearly illustrates his sense of idology and his view on poverty and capitalism。 His first stint in this books deals in to the life of a kitchen worker is a couple of restaurants in Paris， the management their make him work and work and pays just enough to live day by day so the poor don't think beyond the next day，Not everyone sees thing a Mr Orwell sees and interprets them， he say for example low workers are George Orwell was a critic of world governance and governments， this early work of his clearly illustrates his sense of idology and his view on poverty and capitalism。 His first stint in this books deals in to the life of a kitchen worker is a couple of restaurants in Paris， the management their make him work and work and pays just enough to live day by day so the poor don't think beyond the next day，Not everyone sees thing a Mr Orwell sees and interprets them， he say for example low workers are paid less delebratly so they have no chance to move higher up the ladder ， not because the management can't pay them ， its just because they want them to be where they are forever。Next comes being a tramp in and around London， hear the author seldom works but gets insights into the penny-less world。He classifies tramps as two， The old types who hate to work and begs and Second the jobless and illiterate who dispire for a job， he says that the people were pushed to being tramps can't climb back because they suffer form malnutrition and mental issue 。it's a very interesting elaborate theory ， which I feel is mostly true ， read to get more insights 。This travel diary is written really 100 years ago， but it still echos today in most of the phycological aspects， the poor and lower working class and the view of governments on them is still the same to this day and It will be so in days to come to。as other George Orwell works this is immortal preservation of poverty and capitalism。 。。。more
Nenia ✨️ I yeet my books back and forth ✨️ Campbell
，
The first half is definitely more enjoyable than the second but I still liked it。GR review to come， or read it early HERE。 The first half is definitely more enjoyable than the second but I still liked it。GR review to come， or read it early HERE。 。。。more
Berkay Ozcan
，
Zevkli ve Akıcı olmasına rağmen derin bir konusu yok 1984 ve Hayvan çitliği gibi。 Onun haricinde 2-3 günde çok rahat bitecek bir kitap。
Claire O'Brien
，
This book begins with a description of some of the people who live in Orwell's neighbourhood in Paris， including Charlie， who one night steals a large sum of money from his brother and spends it in a brothel where he is allowed to rape a young woman for this payment。 It is a horrific scene and I nearly stopped reading at that stage， but I continued and am glad I did， as the rest of the book is very different。 However， I cannot divide this opening， and Orwell's casual retelling of it， from the re This book begins with a description of some of the people who live in Orwell's neighbourhood in Paris， including Charlie， who one night steals a large sum of money from his brother and spends it in a brothel where he is allowed to rape a young woman for this payment。 It is a horrific scene and I nearly stopped reading at that stage， but I continued and am glad I did， as the rest of the book is very different。 However， I cannot divide this opening， and Orwell's casual retelling of it， from the rest of the book， and therefore I cannot love this book as so many others do。Once we move past that， and into Orwell's life of poverty in Paris （once the last of his money is stolen）， and London， there is very strong reportage on the difficulties of this life and a great deal of sympathy towards those who are stuck in it。 It is a very non-sentimental telling and all the stronger for that， and I admire both his empathy and attempts to suggest ways to solve it。 This poverty is of its time， but poverty remains in different forms， and many of the points he makes about attitudes to the poor are still very relevant - if only his own attitudes to others， especially Jews， were not so stereotyping and racist。 This is an insightful look at the reality of poverty and the laws and attitudes that ensure it continues。 。。。more
Vioo
，
Le livre parle du régime économique et social dans lequel le capitalisme et socialisme
Shona
，
Very easy to read （with the slight help from a translate app for the French） and surprisingly modern with liberal perceptions for the time。 My first Orwell book and I will definitely read more。 The French chapters were less grey than the London ones， but knowing both cities， he’s captured them well。I’d sum it up as the most depressing travel guide you’ve ever read。
Sarah
，
Too narcissistic， but I might read this again out of curiosity。
Gokhan
，
1984， Hayvan Çiftliği’nden sonra yazarın merak edilen bir diğer kitabı。 Sefalet， yoksulluk ve düşük hayat standartlarında yaşamaya çalışan bir insanın başına gelebileceklere ilişkin bir simülasyon， deneme veya hikayeler bütünü diyebiliriz kitap için。 Bu hikayeler birbirinden kopuk ve bu bakımdan okuyucuya， tam olarak hissetmesi gerekeni veremiyor。 Kitap， içine girmekte， kişiselleştirmekte ve anlatılanları yaşatmakta biraz zorlayıcı gelebilir。 Yazarın ara bölümlerde yaptığı sosyolojik tespitler v 1984， Hayvan Çiftliği’nden sonra yazarın merak edilen bir diğer kitabı。 Sefalet， yoksulluk ve düşük hayat standartlarında yaşamaya çalışan bir insanın başına gelebileceklere ilişkin bir simülasyon， deneme veya hikayeler bütünü diyebiliriz kitap için。 Bu hikayeler birbirinden kopuk ve bu bakımdan okuyucuya， tam olarak hissetmesi gerekeni veremiyor。 Kitap， içine girmekte， kişiselleştirmekte ve anlatılanları yaşatmakta biraz zorlayıcı gelebilir。 Yazarın ara bölümlerde yaptığı sosyolojik tespitler ve durum değerlendirmeleri ile önerileri， kitabın geri kalanından daha keyifli。 Daha az hikaye ve karakterin yanında， daha fazla analize yer verilmesi daha iyi olabilirdi。 Anlatılan berduşluk kalıbının yanında， farklı bir fikir， düşünce yada ilişki inşa edilseydi kitap daha çok romana benzeyebilirdi。 Bu şekliyle biraz sığ kalmış ve bittikten sonra okuyucuda， “ee ne okudum ben şimdi” hissi yaratabilir。 。。。more
Maisie
，
Horribly depressing but a must read。
The miscellaneous reader
，
It’s an enjoyable read。 Interesting to delve into the life of someone who’s hard up back then and compare them to contemporary ones。 Although there great differences， many of the deep rooted misconceptions he mentions at the end of the book lives on sadly。
Joseph Gardiner
，
An interesting insight into western poverty。
Mike Stopka
，
A good book from a poor person's point of view。 A good book from a poor person's point of view。 。。。more
Tasneem Mohamed
，
جورج اورويل يبدع كالعادة。。 اهتم بمن لا يهتم احد بهم。 اظهر حياة المتشرد بدقة عالية فعلا。
Espen。 L
，
Very nice， enjoyed it very much so。 Very excellent book， you would enjoy it the most my main man， who ever is reading this review。 The impact this book has left me with - it fills my soul with a vigorous and ever changing desire to dab on the haters。 -The Trampers lurking the streets at night， desperately looking for dull cigarettbudds， and the artists， the lowest form of a begger， drawing picture on the asfalt streets。 I got the feeling of them being very cool people， terribly nice when not hat Very nice， enjoyed it very much so。 Very excellent book， you would enjoy it the most my main man， who ever is reading this review。 The impact this book has left me with - it fills my soul with a vigorous and ever changing desire to dab on the haters。 -The Trampers lurking the streets at night， desperately looking for dull cigarettbudds， and the artists， the lowest form of a begger， drawing picture on the asfalt streets。 I got the feeling of them being very cool people， terribly nice when not hating on jewish people， which happened a lot trough the book， that aint of the term "vibe"， that is to say it did not pass the vibecheck。 They sure walked a lot in the second half of the book tho， visiting the same kinds of inns ext， kinda got a bit dull， you feel me？ Sorry to say， but not a vibe。 Kinda a vibe， but not really， did feel like I was walking that tiresome road alongside them （made me feel Orwell）， but "Bruh"。 I loved the first half of the book， the description of the guys working in the kitchen， that Russian guy， of which I can't recall the name， he was cool。 The way Orwell was able to let you in on that kind of universe， I could feel the damp and sweatiness of the backroom， the dirtiness hiding beneath the "beautiful" and "luxurious" restaurants， I loved that very much。 I could almost feel the pain， and the everlasting melancholy of his life。 But damn， the second half really sunk this masterpiece down， it was pretty boring/ got worse after a while， and the comments on politics of the time ext， I like it， but "bruh"， to much and not at all what I wanted （lost my focus on this part）。 This is a masterpiece like Orwell himself， it lives up to his name， and is just as worthy of being read as Orwells other books， like Animal Farm and 1984。 This book would be a 5， it would be the best， but my god why did I not enjoy the ending， or the later half of the book。 I am going to quote myself once more ， "bruh"。 Orwell you know how to write， and this book has that same old writing style like the other books have， it is the purest enjoyment to read the words and sentences you write。 But， what happened my guy， why did you have to move the main character to London， you could have just as much shot him where he stood。 I just don't see the appeal， why my main man。 The vibe of Paris was so good， everything worked， the London vibe was ok in the beginning， even at times very good， but damn it died， hard， very hard， it just died， fell right down on the asphalt。 -"Ellow mate， you're in England mate， lets GOOOO"。 No， lets not "go" Orwell， this was not enjoyable， I did not have a good time or feel like this part lead anywhere。 I hope to read this book again in the future and think back on this review like "haha bro tf you talking about， this shit slaps"。 I hope so， my god I hope so。 。。。more
Dee
，
Amazing
Andreas
，
Down and Out in Paris and London is an interesting book about poverty in the early 20th century， specifically how it was in Paris and London。 While the things that happened were a long time ago， many of its lessons about how hard it is to be poor can easily be applied to the modern day， especially as Orwell manages to fill this book with interesting observations and people to illustrate his points。 That being said， I think this book may make those less aware of modern poverty think that poverty Down and Out in Paris and London is an interesting book about poverty in the early 20th century， specifically how it was in Paris and London。 While the things that happened were a long time ago， many of its lessons about how hard it is to be poor can easily be applied to the modern day， especially as Orwell manages to fill this book with interesting observations and people to illustrate his points。 That being said， I think this book may make those less aware of modern poverty think that poverty isn't as bad in the modern-day， which it is， just in different ways than when the book was written。 I should say that the one point that has clearly gotten a lot better based on this book is that we're not as discriminating as people were back in the day。 This book is full of sexism， racism， and antisemitism that may make some readers uncomfortable。 It's an interesting time capsule and I do recommend it to those who are interested in poverty but are also well aware that the world still faces problems with poverty and know that sexism， racism， and antisemitism were far more common back in the day and can handle that。 。。。more
Athesos
，
3，5
Liva
，
Klasika ir klasika， tai ne ko pielikt， ne atņemt。 Salīdzinot ar nesen lasīto Čaterlejas mīļāko， šī klasika ir mazāk naiva， skarbāka， vienlaikus arī modernāka， gluži vai pārlaicīga。 Mācība: neēdiet dārgos restorānos :D Plašāk blogā:http://lalksne。blogspot。com/2021/03/d。。。 Klasika ir klasika， tai ne ko pielikt， ne atņemt。 Salīdzinot ar nesen lasīto Čaterlejas mīļāko， šī klasika ir mazāk naiva， skarbāka， vienlaikus arī modernāka， gluži vai pārlaicīga。 Mācība: neēdiet dārgos restorānos :D Plašāk blogā:http://lalksne。blogspot。com/2021/03/d。。。 。。。more
Corey D Harrill
，
This book reminds me of countless times spent in cheap hostels， backpacking， taking greyhound cross-country， hitchhiking， etc。Awesome book！
Christopher Jeppesen
，
The author breaks down capitalism and gives his own opinion on it - having once been the “wasted slave doing stupid and largely unnecessary work。”， also known as a plongeur / dishwasher。 Besides， he is homeless。 I really liked the first half。 It was entertaining， descriptive and informative。 However， as he gets to London in the second half， it becomes a lot of repetition - half of the book being about him going from lodging house to lodging house。 Was that really necessary？ We got the point。 The The author breaks down capitalism and gives his own opinion on it - having once been the “wasted slave doing stupid and largely unnecessary work。”， also known as a plongeur / dishwasher。 Besides， he is homeless。 I really liked the first half。 It was entertaining， descriptive and informative。 However， as he gets to London in the second half， it becomes a lot of repetition - half of the book being about him going from lodging house to lodging house。 Was that really necessary？ We got the point。 The book should’ve been shorter in my opinion。 In fact， the last few chapters became unbearable for me to read as it was just literally so repetitive。 It drove me mad。 One interesting thing though is the way he described homelessness as a social construct at the very end of the book。 It seemed as though he disassociated himself from the tramps / homeless people throughout the book。 A general example is the use of “they / them” rather than “we / us”。 I struggle to understand why。 The most exciting thing for me was the LGBTQ representation as homosexuality was a big part of it。 Described as a result of being homeless and poor， homosexual men were everywhere - and were often referred to as nancy boys。 No women would approach them， and as time went on， they started to miss that human intimacy。 A shame， as I really liked the first half of the book， I wouldn’t recommend it to anyone。 The last half was such a bore。 。。。more
Veronika
，
Fascinating， just like anything else Orwell wrote。 He can disappoint and impress in a flip of a single page。 I've not ever been homeless but there's a phrase stuck in my mind ever since I heard my friend say it - "Homelessness transforms your thinking" or something along those lines。 The passages on poverty hit so hard and so real。 And oh man， has nothing changed from 1930s？ If you google the word "plongeur" you'll get this definition: 'a person employed to wash dishes and carry out other menial Fascinating， just like anything else Orwell wrote。 He can disappoint and impress in a flip of a single page。 I've not ever been homeless but there's a phrase stuck in my mind ever since I heard my friend say it - "Homelessness transforms your thinking" or something along those lines。 The passages on poverty hit so hard and so real。 And oh man， has nothing changed from 1930s？ If you google the word "plongeur" you'll get this definition: 'a person employed to wash dishes and carry out other menial tasks in a restaurant or hotel' and this example "Orwell worked in Paris as a plongeur。" I have worked a miserable job at a hotel before and reading Orwell's reports on the lowness and weariness of a hotel work gave me giggles and evoked memories of those dreary days。 I feel like we'd make great friends， even disagreeing ones。 Read this if you happen to have any prejudice （or not） towards low-incomes or homeless。 And then read everything else from Eric Arthur Blair， a great friend of mine。 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _"You discover， for instance， the secrecy attaching to poverty。 At a sudden stroke you have been reduced to an income of six francs a day。 But of course you dare not admit it - you have got to pretend that you are living quite as usual。 From the start it tangles you in a net of lies， and even with the lies you can hardly manage it。 You stop sending clothes to the laundry， and the laundress catches you in the street and asks you why; you mumble something， and she， thinking you are sending the clothes elsewhere， is your enemy for life。 The tobacconist keeps asking why you have cut down your smoking。 There are letters you want to answer， and cannot， because stamps are too expensive。 And then there are your meals - meals are the worst difficulty of all。。。You discover the boredom which is inseparable from poverty; the times when you have nothing to do and， being underfed， can interest yourself in nothing。" 。。。more
Hannah
，
I forgot how much I enjoyed his writing， his humour & humbling observations。
Fabiola
，
The Paris part was a lot better than the London one。
Zana
，
dude had a very interesting life which i never would have guessed。 boris from paris and the "skeevers" from london。 there seemed to be a certain dignity in these rock bottom positions， and although this form of poverty seems like another world， its still a world nonetheless with people living inside it， friendships， communities， philosophies， wants and needs。 there seemed to be little anxiety about tomorrow because the only thing that mattered was today， what are you going to eat today， where ar dude had a very interesting life which i never would have guessed。 boris from paris and the "skeevers" from london。 there seemed to be a certain dignity in these rock bottom positions， and although this form of poverty seems like another world， its still a world nonetheless with people living inside it， friendships， communities， philosophies， wants and needs。 there seemed to be little anxiety about tomorrow because the only thing that mattered was today， what are you going to eat today， where are you going to lay your head at night？ tomorrow is tomorrows problem， we could all stand to learn a little from this book。 。。。more
jenni ridolfo
，