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A review by natemarcusen
Keep the Aspidistra Flying by George Orwell
5.0
One of Orwell’s least known books, and yet I found myself reading it two times over wondering why. The main character struggles against middle class mediocrity and unattainable upper class success. He decides to try to descend beneath it all by choosing poverty. He fails at this too. It’s a dark humored funny reflection of ourselves and what we value in life. One which transcends the setting and time it was written in and which I highly recommend.
As far as the symbolism of the Aspidistra (Cast Iron Plant) goes, it was a symbol of middle class respectability during Victorian times. The plant was a colonial import from Asian conquests and was previously out of the price range for the common citizen to purchase until the rise of the middle class that coincided during these times. It became popular to display it (fly it) in the front window as a sort of point of family pride.
As far as the symbolism of the Aspidistra (Cast Iron Plant) goes, it was a symbol of middle class respectability during Victorian times. The plant was a colonial import from Asian conquests and was previously out of the price range for the common citizen to purchase until the rise of the middle class that coincided during these times. It became popular to display it (fly it) in the front window as a sort of point of family pride.