Coming Up for Air book cover

Coming Up for Air is a novel by George Orwell, published before World War II and predicting that conflict. It is written in the first person, with George Bowling, the 45-year-old protagonist, telling the reader his life story. Image File history File linksMetadata Coming_air. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Coming_air. ... A novel (from French nouvelle Italian novella, new) is an extended, generally fictional narrative in prose. ... It has been suggested that Eileen OShaughnessy be merged into this article or section. ... This article is becoming very long. ... The protagonist or main character is the central figure of a story. ...

The social and material changes experienced by Bowling since childhood make his past seem as distant as the biblical character Og, King of Bashan, a mention of whom triggers Bowling's 'trip down memory lane'. Orwell's writing tends to show a real relish for pessimism and squalor; nevertheless, Bowling expresses a nostalgic melancholy of some tenderness. The novel presents an absorbingly realistic evocation of what we now call 'a mid-life crisis'. According to several books of the Old Testament, Og (pronounced , , or ; meaning gigantic) was an ancient Amorite king of Bashan who, along with his sons and army, was slain by Moses and his men at the battle of Edrei (probably modern day Dara, Syria). ... One may feel nostalgic for the familiar routine of school, conveniently forgetting the painful experiences such as bullying. ... A mid-life crisis is an emotional state of doubt and anxiety in which a person becomes uncomfortable with the realization that life is halfway over. ...

What is most striking is not so much that Orwell predicted the start of the Second World War, which was becoming expected, but that he foresaw the transformation of society which would follow. Indeed, just a few years after the publication of this book, pre-war England was as distant and unreachable as George Bowling's Edwardian childhood. The Edwardian period or Edwardian era in the United Kingdom is the period 1901 to 1910, the reign of King Edward VII. It is sometimes extended to include the period to the start of World War I in 1914 or even the end of the war in 1918. ...

The themes of the book are nostalgia, the folly of trying to go back and recapture past glories and the easy way the dreams and aspirations of one's youth can be smothered by the humdrum routine of work, marriage and getting older. George Bowling is not a very sympathetic character—he is a fat, middle-aged insurance salesman who dislikes his wife and children and who would betray what few principles he has for a couple of pints or a good night out with a prostitute. However, like many Orwell protagonists, his saving graces are candour and a merciless clarity of vision, especially regarding himself. Look up Career in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... A marriage is a relationship between or among individuals, usually recognized by civil authority and/or bound by the religious beliefs of the participants. ... The pint is a unit of volume or capacity. ... Prostitution is the sale of sexual services (typically manual stimulation, oral sex, sexual intercourse, or anal sex) for cash or other kind of return, generally indiscriminately with many persons. ...

Orwell wrote the novel while spending six months in Morocco.

External links

• Coming up for Air - Searchable, indexed etext.