Bob Smillie Character Analysis in Homage to Catalonia

A fellow Englishman in the POUM militia. Orwell considers twenty-two-year-old Smillie one of the strongest, most talented fighters he has met in the war. Arrested in Valencia on spurious charges, he is kept incommunicado and, ultimately, dies in prison from appendicitis, an ordinary illness left untreated. Orwell is outraged at the senselessness of this death. To him, Smillie becomes a symbol of the cruelty of political persecution.

Bob Smillie Quotes in Homage to Catalonia

The Homage to Catalonia quotes below are all either spoken by Bob Smillie or refer to Bob Smillie. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:

The Possibility of Revolution Theme Icon

). Note: all page numbers and citation info for the quotes below refer to the Penguin Books edition of Homage to Catalonia published in 1938.

Smillie’s death is not a thing I can easily forgive. Here was this brave and gifted boy, who had thrown up his career at Glasgow University in order to come and fight against Fascism, and who, as I saw for myself had done his job at the front with faultless courage and willingness; and all they could find to do with him was to fling him into jail and let him die like a neglected animal.

Related Characters: (speaker),

Page Number and Citation: 179

Explanation and Analysis:

Bob Smillie Character Timeline in Homage to Catalonia

The timeline below shows where the character Bob Smillie appears in Homage to Catalonia. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.

...and mental excellence of the British soldiers, and particularly that of a young man named Bob Smillie . He also applauds the Spanish for being so friendly to the English despite the... (full context)

When he returns to the front, Orwell learns that his friend and fellow militiaman Bob Smillie has been thrown into prison. Orwell discovers that Smillie was arrested on the spurious charge... (full context)

...left with no possibility to communicate with the outside world. This is the case of Bob Smillie , who is still in prison. Imprisoned men are neither tried nor charged. They are... (full context)

There, his friends tell him that Bob Smillie has died. While they initially believe he has been shot, Orwell later discovers that he... (full context)