George Woodcock facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
George Woodcock
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| Born | May 8, 1912 Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada |
| Died | January 28, 1995 (aged 82) Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada |
| Language | English |
| Nationality | Canadian |
| Genre | Political biography, critical essays |
| Subject | Anarchism |
| Parents | Arthur Woodcock (father) Margaret Gertrude Lewis (mother) |
George Woodcock (May 8, 1912 – January 28, 1995) was a Canadian writer. He wrote many books about history and the lives of important political figures. He was also a philosopher, an essayist (someone who writes short articles), and a literary critic (someone who reviews books).
Woodcock was also a poet and wrote several books about his travels. In 1959, he helped start the journal Canadian Literature. This was the first academic magazine focused only on Canadian writing. He is best known for his book Anarchism: A History of Libertarian Ideas and Movements (1962). This book explores the idea of anarchism, which is a belief in self-governed societies without a ruling government.
Life of George Woodcock
Woodcock was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. When he was young, his family moved to England. He went to Sir William Borlase's Grammar School and Morley College. Even though his family was not rich, his grandfather offered to pay for him to go to Cambridge University. However, George turned down the offer. This was because he would have had to train to become a priest in the Anglican church.
Instead, he got a job as a clerk at the Great Western Railway. It was there that he first became interested in anarchism. He believed in anarchism for his whole life. He wrote many books on the topic, including Anarchism and The Anarchist Reader. He also wrote about famous thinkers like Pierre-Joseph Proudhon and Peter Kropotkin. During these years, he met famous writers like T. S. Eliot and Aldous Huxley. He became very close friends with the art theorist Herbert Read. Woodcock's first published book was The White Island, a collection of poetry, in 1940.
During World War II, Woodcock was a conscientious objector. This means he refused to fight in the war because of his beliefs. He worked on a farm in Essex, England. In 1949, he moved to British Columbia, Canada.
At Camp Angel in Oregon, a camp for conscientious objectors, he helped start the Untide Press. This press aimed to make poetry available to everyone in a simple and nice way. After the war, he returned to Canada and settled in Vancouver, British Columbia. In 1955, he started teaching English at the University of British Columbia. He stayed there until the 1970s. Around this time, he began to write a lot more. He wrote travel books, poetry, and his famous books on anarchism.
Later in his life, Woodcock became very interested in the problems faced by people in Tibet. He traveled to India and studied Buddhism. He became friends with the 14th Dalai Lama, the spiritual leader of Tibet. Woodcock also started the Tibetan Refugee Aid Society. With his wife, Inge, he created Canada India Village Aid. This group helps people in rural India with projects that allow them to help themselves. Both of these groups showed Woodcock's idea of people working together voluntarily across different countries.
George and Inge also created a program to help Canadian writers. The Woodcock Fund started in 1989. It gives money to writers who are working on a book but face unexpected money problems. This help allows them to finish their books. The fund supports writers of fiction, non-fiction, plays, and poetry. The Woodcocks helped raise over two million dollars for this program. The Writers' Trust of Canada manages the Woodcock Fund. By March 2012, it had given $887,273 to 180 Canadian writers.
George Woodcock passed away at his home in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, on January 28, 1995.
George Woodcock and George Orwell
Woodcock first met the famous writer George Orwell after they had a public disagreement. This happened in a magazine called Partisan Review. In 1942, Orwell wrote that during a war against fascism, being a pacifist (someone who believes in peace and opposes war) was "objectively pro-fascist."
Woodcock was the editor of Now, an "anti-war paper" that Orwell had mentioned. Woodcock disagreed with Orwell's statement. He felt that the magazine was no longer an independent place for ideas. Despite this difference, the two writers became good friends. They wrote letters to each other until Orwell died. Woodcock's magazine Now even published Orwell's article "How the Poor Die" in 1946.
Woodcock and Orwell were both active members of the Freedom Defence Committee. This group worked to protect civil liberties.
Later, Woodcock wrote a book called The Crystal Spirit (1966). This book was a study of Orwell and his writings. It won a Governor General's Award, which is a major Canadian literary prize. The title of the book comes from the last line of a poem written by Orwell. This poem was in memory of an Italian soldier he met during the Spanish Civil War.
Recognition and Awards
Woodcock received many awards for his work. In 1968, he became a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada. This is an honor given to top Canadian scholars. He also won the UBC Medal for Popular Biography in 1973 and 1976. In 1973, he received the Molson Prize.
In 1970, he was given an honorary doctorate from Sir George Williams University (now Concordia University). However, Woodcock only accepted awards given by his fellow writers and thinkers. He refused several awards from the Canadian government, including the Order of Canada. This was because of his anarchist beliefs, which meant he did not want to be honored by the state. The only exception was the Freedom of the City of Vancouver award, which he accepted in 1994.
A biography about him, The Gentle Anarchist: A Life of George Woodcock (1998) by George Fetherling, has been written. There is also a documentary film about him called George Woodcock: Anarchist of Cherry Street.
See also
In Spanish: George Woodcock para niños
