Peter Stansky
Emeritus Professor of History at Stanford University and longtime Orwell scholar; author of The Socialist Patriot: George Orwell and War and earlier coauthor of influential Orwell biographies.
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Jan 31, 2026 • 43min
Peter Stansky, "The Socialist Patriot: George Orwell and War" (Stanford UP, 2023)
Peter Stansky, historian and longtime Orwell scholar, discusses his new book on how four wars shaped George Orwell. He traces Orwell’s move from pacifism to democratic socialism after Spain. He explores Orwell’s tensions between patriotism and critique of totalitarianism. He considers how Animal Farm and Nineteen Eighty-Four reflect wartime convictions and retain modern relevance.
Jan 31, 2026 • 43min
Peter Stansky, "The Socialist Patriot: George Orwell and War" (Stanford UP, 2023)
Peter Stansky, Emeritus History Professor and longtime Orwell scholar, discusses his book on George Orwell and war. He traces Orwell’s shifting politics from patriotism to democratic socialism. Conversations cover Orwell’s wartime experiences, The Lion and the Unicorn, Animal Farm, Nineteen Eighty-Four, and the modern political afterlife and appropriation of Orwell’s work.
