The Road to Wigan Pier

he Road to Wigan Pier is a historical autobiography by George Orwell, published in 1937. Orwell had been commissioned to write about the economic and social struggles of northern England by publisher and socialist Victor Gollancz, and spent three months living in the area as research for the book.The book opens with Orwell describing the lodgings he's obtained in the home of the Brooker family, slightly affluent members of the community. He shares a room with two other lodgers and must sleep with his legs curled up or else he kicks one of the other occupants. One of his roommates works at the local coal pit, and the other was injured on the job and is living off a small pension he was awarded as a result. He describes this depressing scene as very common for the area. Orwell then examines the lives of the coal miners who dominate the area. Orwell visits a working mine in order to examine the working conditions personally, and offers an in-depth account of how the mine works and the dangerous and unhealthy conditions the miners experience. Orwell examines the earnings of the miners, which is assumed to be quite high by much of English society; Orwell explains that while their base pay may seem generous there are many ways the mine charges back on that pay, so that the money they actually receive for their labor is actually quite small.