The Peter Davison Award
The Peter Davison Award
The Peter Davison Award is a recognition of outstanding ability and contribution to the study of George Orwell, his life and his work. The prize is given by The Orwell Society only when its trustees endorse a work of intellectual value comparable to that of Professor Davidson, which as been recently produced or published.
History
Professor Peter Davison (1926 – 2022) was an academic specialising in Renaissance studies, when he applied his transcription skills to the manuscript of George Orwell’s Nineteen Eighty-Four. This culminated in the publication of Nineteen Eighty-Four: The Facsimile Edition in 1984. Professor Davison was then retained to edit a proposed updating of the Collected Essays, Journalism and Letters of George Orwell, first published in 1968. Professor Davison divided his task into two: producing definitive editions of Orwell’s nine published books, and collecting his other writings. The consequence in 1998 was the Complete Works of George Orwell, in which the nine volumes were followed by eleven in which Orwell’s known and re-discovered writings were collected. Professor Davison did not stop there: finding more material, and organising the publication of The Lost Orwell in 2007: in effect, a twenty-first volume.
Purpose
Professor Davison set a high standard in Orwell studies. The Orwell Society believes that just as Professor Davison found additional material, which shed a new lights on Orwell’s life, first in the Complete Works, then when he published The Lost Orwell, so scholars (whether in or out of the academic mainstream) can continue his work, and find and disseminate work of a similar significance. The judges will take into account the duration and persistence of the nominees in their work on Orwell studies.
Judgement
The trustees of the Orwell Society will appoint a panel of judges, who will meet or correspond or both, to judge the worthiness of nominees introduced to them, or of whom they are aware. The judges will minute their considerations. The judges will pay no attention to the affiliations or employment of the nominees – they will not distinguish between professionals and amateurs, but judge only on the work.
The trustees of the Orwell Society or the judges may announce that the Award is open for a given year and invite nominations: not works, but names of individuals worthy to be considered for the prize, along with details of why such work is worthy of consideration.
Other Points
The Peter Davison Aware will consist of a cash prize of a nominal amount, and a certificate or trophy recording the winner’s name and year of success. It will be presented in a public event, and the winner will be encouraged to speak about their work. The details are to be published and recorded in the Society’s Journal.