Burmese Days

First published in 1934, George Orwell’s first novel ‘Burmese Days,’ presents a devastating portrayal of British colonial rule, inspired by his experiences in the Indian Imperial Police in Burma. The story describes both indigenous corruption and Imperial bigotry. It is based on the writer’s own experiences as a member of the British Indian Imperial Police in the 1920s. It depicts a brutally divided society, in which racism is endemic and the natives are widely seen as inherently inferior to the white European colonizers. In this atmosphere, corruption and scheming flourish, leaving the novel’s protagonist, the timber merchant John Flory, deeply disillusioned and alienated. Burmese Days is Orwell’s earliest novel. Along with his influential later works, including 1984 and Animal Farm, it reflects an enduring preoccupation with social justice and the oppression of the powerless by world governments. It is an astonishing examination of the debasing effect of empire on occupied and occupier.