Writers and Leviathan by George Orwell is the thirty eighth and the one before last of The Essays - you find this collection in the 917th place on The Greatest Books of All Time site, nevertheless, the algorithm changes the places in the hierarchy, ergo you could see a different structure, I don’t know what data is used, however, if it takes into account the ‘reading public’, then the chefs d’oeuvre will descend from the top spots, and the likes of The Da Vinci Code will dominate the front rows, and they will become the “GOAT” – that notwithstanding, you have more than five thousand reviews on books from the aforementioned site and others, with notes on films from The New York Times’ Best 1,000 Movies Ever Made and other lists waiting for you on my blog and YouTube channel https://realinibarzoi.blogspot.com/2025/09/do-you-have-any-feedback.html if you are interested, why plug this, I don’t know

 

Writers and Leviathan by George Orwell is the thirty eighth and the one before last of The Essays - you find this collection in the 917th place on The Greatest Books of All Time site, nevertheless, the algorithm changes the places in the hierarchy, ergo you could see a different structure, I don’t know what data is used, however, if it takes into account the ‘reading public’, then the chefs d’oeuvre will descend from the top spots, and the likes of The Da Vinci Code will dominate the front rows, and they will become the “GOAT” – that notwithstanding, you have more than five thousand reviews on books from the aforementioned site and others, with notes on films from The New York Times’ Best 1,000 Movies Ever Made and other lists waiting for you on my blog and YouTube channel https://realinibarzoi.blogspot.com/2025/09/do-you-have-any-feedback.html if you are interested, why plug this, I don’t know

 

 

10 out of 10

 

‘It must have been love/but it’s over now’ well, these famous lines came to my mind just now, as I am about to say goodbye to The Essays https://realinibarzoi.blogspot.com/2025/10/lear-tolstoy-and-fool-by-george-orwell.html because there is only Reflections on Gandhi – the much expected note on this will be posted tomorrow, I am only joking evidently – left and then something completely different- I was looking at Karl Popper

 

Let me just say that this is another fabulous essay, just like the rest, and then you can move on, assuming that you have been interested at all, The Rest Is Politics – the name of a podcast I enjoy very much, it is in fact in the background right now, so any mistakes are due to those two people – adapted for here, the ‘rest is silence’ https://realinibarzoi.blogspot.com/2025/07/hamlet-by-william-shakespeare.html Hamlet, William Shakespeare

Actually, in his essay Lear, Tolstoy and The Fool, George Orwell defends William Shakespeare, who is despised by Tolstoy, but I was astounded to see that ‘we do not know if he wrote the plays’, and the essayist takes a few more shots, Lear could have done with quite a few changes, Shakespeare seemed to worry about the high and mighty

 

“In "Writers and Leviathan," George Orwell explores the complex relationship between writers and the political environment, emphasizing the impact of state control on literature and the responsibilities of writers in society…Orwell discusses the challenges faced by writers in a world increasingly dominated by totalitarian ideologies. He reflects on how the political climate influences literary expression and the role of writers in maintaining a spirit of liberalism. Orwell argues that the prevailing intellectual atmosphere is shaped by the attitudes of writers and artists, who must navigate the pressures of political loyalty and public opinion.”

 

The above was offered by the Copilot created by Microsoft and I am afraid it is better than anything I could create – we are approaching the moment of Singularity, explained brilliantly in Why The West Rules For Now https://realinibarzoi.blogspot.com/2025/03/why-west-rules-for-now-by-ian-morris.html by magnificent Ian Morris

let me move out of the subject – cleared by the Copilot – and muse on what happens now in the world, the free part of it – sounds amusing, in a dark way, because it looks like freedoms might go away – America used to be the beacon, model, inspiration, and now, Oh My God, they have chosen this terrible monkey

 

every single day, he produces some contemptible sea of shit – he shared this video in which he has a crown – maybe they will anoint him king, extending his absolute reign outside the MAGA swamp – he pilots a jet fighter and he drops tons of…excrement on the NOKINGS protests, in which about seven million ‘radical left lunatics’ participated

There is a huge problem here, because if it were just this idiot, the world has an infinite number – I am offline, though I was tempted to conclude that we are so much better than the US, and on politics, I think it is true – of fools, but to have one ‘represent’ what was once such a great place is abominable and it shows were we are, yes, a lot of progress in science and all, but what is the good, when you have anti vaxxers in charge and a litany of Australopithecus

 

Now for my standard closing of the note with a question, and invitation – I am on Goodreads as Realini Ionescu, at least for the moment, if I keep on expressing my views on Orange Woland aka TACO, it may be a short-lived presence

Also, maybe you have a good idea on how we could make more than a million dollars with this https://realinibarzoi.blogspot.com/2025/09/do-you-have-any-feedback.html – as it is, this is a unique technique, which we could promote, sell, open the Oscars show with or something and then make lots of money together, if you have the how, I have the product, I just do not know how to get the benefits from it, other than the exercise per se

 

 There is also the small matter of working for AT&T – this huge company asked me to be its Representative for Romania and Bulgaria, on the Calling Card side, which meant sailing into the Black Sea wo meet the US Navy ships, travelling to Sofia, a lot of activity, using my mother’s two bedrooms flat as office and warehouse, all for the grand total of $250, raised after a lot of persuasion to the staggering $400…with retirement ahead, there are no benefits, nothing…it is a longer story, but if you can help get the mastodont to pay some dues, or have an idea how it can happen, let me know

 

As for my role in the Revolution that killed Ceausescu, a smaller Mao, there it is http://realini.blogspot.com/2022/03/realini-in-newsweek-participant-in.html

 

Some favorite quotes from To The Hermitage and other works

 

‘Fiction is infinitely preferable to real life...As long as you avoid the books of Kafka or Beckett, the everlasting plot of fiction has fewer futile experiences than the careless plot of reality...Fiction's people are fuller, deeper, cleverer, more moving than those in real life…Its actions are more intricate, illuminating, noble, profound…There are many more dramas, climaxes, romantic fulfillment, twists, turns, gratified resolutions…Unlike reality, all of this you can experience without leaving the house or even getting out of bed…What's more, books are a form of intelligent human greatness, as stories are a higher order of sense…As random life is to destiny, so stories are to great authors, who provided us with some of the highest pleasures and the most wonderful mystifications we can find…Few stories are greater than Anna Karenina, that wise epic by an often foolish author…’