Orwell's family background—his father made a living selling Indian opium under British imperial auspices to a China compelled to buy it—and his hatred of imperialism, class snobbery, and suburban hypocrisy meant he had no choice but to move left toward the underdogs; the conspicuous absence of any father figure in his works (and 'Big Brother' rather than a literal eternal father) reflects this distraught attitude to family.