George Orwell: Productive Profit
on Sunday, January 7, 2024Meaning of George Orwell Money Quote: saying Practically, nobody cares if a profession is useful, only that it is profitable to a business or individual. George Orwell said:
“In practice nobody cares if work is useful or useless, productive or parasitic; the sole thing demanded is that it shall be profitable” — George Orwell
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In this quote, George Orwell is criticizing how usefulness or social benefit are often not the primary considerations in determining what types of work are valued or encouraged economically.
When Orwell states that “in practice nobody cares if work is useful or useless, productive or parasitic”, he means that what really matters most is whether the work can turn a profit, not whether it creates meaningful value or positively contributes to society and productivity.
His view suggests that profitability alone, above other factors, tends to dictate what labor is deemed acceptable or worthwhile in practice.
The quote conveys Orwell’s perspective that economic systems function in a way that prioritizes financial returns over other outcomes, to the point where profit has become the sole metric of what qualifies as justifiable work.
Birthday: June 25, 1903 – Death: January 25, 1950