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Tuesday, January 13, 2009







I’ve recently read this book and thought that it would be of some interest to other RSP students. ‘Finding George Orwell In Burma’ is an account of a journalist’s stay in Myanmar and her thoughts of the political situation of the nation. It is a political and thought-provoking book. Given that it is based in Myanmar (One of the countries in SEA that we will be studying this year), it holds relevance with what we are currently learning.


The book is a mixture of politics and history. George Orwell lived in Myanmar when he was young and worked there as a colonial police officer. He came to resent the system of monarchy and the British presence in Myanmar. It is there that he found his inspiration for his book ‘Burmese Days’, and quite possibly Animal Farm and 1984. The books reflect the effects of a totalitarian society and the pressed masses of Myanmar.


The author takes us deep into the heart of what society is like in such a totalitarian nation. There are many interviews of locals who hide under pseudonyms but who are eager to express their views to the world. It also tells of the oppression of monasteries and schools run by them who are being shut down or kept under close watch. Leaving a gap in a fundamental education system which has given Myanmar the highest rates of literacy in the world. However, with the implementation of government schools which don’t teach students anything else other than to be loyal to the regime, that rate will fall.


In Myanmar, the regime sees all. Fear keeps citizens in line. Harsh penalties are imposed on political prisoners and the media is technically government-run. Names of old places are changed, buildings torn down, heritage lost, memories erased. The citizens of Myanmar have become faceless, standing in the aisles, every face is the same. The tired face, the sunken eyes and finally, the broken spirit. Some stand with hope, others in pain.


I strongly suggest that you read this book.


Get Inspired!
Daniel Kong



[9:16 PM]


Posted at 9:16 PM, 0 Comment(s)


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