Englishness in a Time of Crisis: George Orwell, John Betjeman, and the Second World War

It sometimes takes a particular set of circumstances to reveal the complexities of a writer's views on a particular issue. For both Orwell and Betjeman those circumstances came in the early years of World War Two, and both men's reactions to the possibility that England would be invaded reveal much about their own beliefs and anxieties. In their writing and broadcasting from this period we may discern the real measure of their relationship with 'England' and find that, for all their' contradictions, they actually had a great deal in common. This essay explores the material on offer and sheds light on the extent to which the fear of loss prompted a revision in both men's understanding of exactly what 'England' was, and what made it worth defending.