George Orwell and Russia

For those living in the Soviet Union, Orwell’s masterpieces, Animal Farm and Nineteen Eighty-Four, were not dystopias, but accurate depictions of reality. Here, the Orwell scholar and expert on Russian politics, Masha Karp – Russian Features Editor at the BBC World Service for over a decade – explores how Orwell’s work was received in Russia, when it percolated into the country even under censorship. Suggesting a new approach to the controversial ‘Orwell’s list’ of 1949, Karp puts into context the articles and letters written by Orwell at the time. She sheds light on how the ideas of totalitarianism exposed in Orwell’s writing took root in Russia and, in doing so, helps us to understand the contemporary political reality. As Vladimir Putin’s actions continue to shock the West, it is clear we are witnessing the next transformation of totalitarianism, as predicted and described by Orwell. Now, over 70 years after Orwell’s death, his writing, at least as far as Russia is concerned, remains as timely and urgent as it has ever been.

Author Biography

Masha Karp is a political journalist and a leading scholar on the work of George Orwell. She worked for the BBC Russian Service between 1991 and 2009, first as producer and then as Features editor. A member of the St. Petersburg Writers’ Union and the Literary Translators Guild in Russia, she translated Animal Farm and its original preface ‘The Freedom of the Press’ into Russian. Her biography of Orwell, the first to be published in Russia, was a finalist for the ABS Literary Prize. She is a member of the board of the Orwell Society and the editor of its journal.