George Orwell is often accused of "telling us not to use the passive and then using it all the time". I asked @Grok to highlight all uses of the passive in his essay Politics and the English Language. @Grok speaking:
Here are notable examples of passive voice from George Orwell's essay "Politics and the English Language" (1946). (orwellfoundation.com)
Orwell criticizes the passive voice as a tool that obscures agency and promotes vagueness (e.g., in his discussion of "Operators or verbal false limbs," where he notes: "the passive voice is wherever possible used in preference to the active"). Yet he uses it himself for stylistic reasons, generality, or emphasis—highlighting the nuance in his own advice.
(en.wikipedia.org)
Early in the essay (opening paragraphs) "it is generally assumed that we cannot by conscious action do anything about it." (Passive: the assumption's source is vague.) Me: How would you recast this in the active voice? Many assume?
"It is not due simply to the bad influence of this or that individual writer."
Me: "It is" is in the active voice.
"A man may take to drink because he feels himself to be a failure..." (though "to be" here is more linking, the construction echoes passive patterns). Me: He feels himself to be... is in the active voice.
"I hope that by that time the meaning of what I have said here will have become clearer." (Future perfect passive-like.) Me: None of this is in the passive voice.
In descriptions of bad writing habits "the passive voice is wherever possible used in preference to the active..." (He explicitly calls this out while using similar constructions elsewhere.) Me: He is condemning the exclusive use of the passive voice. "The passive voice is used" is in the passive. How to fix? "Bad writers use the passive voice..."?
"banal statements are given an appearance of profundity by means of the not un- formation." Me: How to fix? "Bad writers give banal statements an appearance of profundity..."?
"Simple conjunctions and prepositions are replaced by such phrases as..." Me: Again, replacing with the active is awkward. You'd have to keep using "bad writers" as the actors.
"the ends of sentences are saved from anticlimax by such resounding commonplaces as..." Me: Replacing with the active would be awkward. You might use the generic "you". An editor once warned me against this because, he asked, "Who are you?".
Other examples throughout "These five passages have not been picked out because they are especially bad..." Me: You'd have to make the actor "I" in this case.
"They are a little below the average, but are fairly representative examples." (Copular, but part of passive-like generality.) Me: Not even "passive-like". "They are" is in the active voice.
"prose consists less and less of words chosen for the sake of their meaning, and more and more of phrases tacked together like the sections of a prefabricated hen-house." Me: "Prose consists" is in the active voice.
"Bad writers... are nearly always haunted by the notion that Latin or Greek words are grander than Saxon ones." Me: "Bad writers are..." is in the active voice.
"unnecessary words like expedite, ameliorate, predict, extraneous, deracinated, clandestine, sub-aqueous and hundreds of others constantly gain ground from their Anglo-Saxon opposite numbers." (Mixed, but "gain ground" follows passive tendencies in context.) Me: "gain ground" is in the active voice.
In the Ecclesiastes translation parody: "success or failure in competitive activities exhibits no tendency to be commensurate..." and "a considerable element of the unpredictable must invariably be taken into account." (He uses this to mock inflated passive-heavy style.) Me: But none of what you've quoted is in the passive voice.
Later sections (on political language and rules)"political language has to consist largely of euphemism..." (Some linking passives.) Me: Really? Let's hear them. "Has to consist" is in the active voice.
"Defenceless villages are bombarded from the air, the inhabitants driven out... the cattle machine-gunned, the huts set on fire..." (Classic passive examples in his discussion of euphemism, where agency is hidden.) Me: Isn't he pointing out that this passage avoids blaming the perpetrators? How can he point out where it is deceptive to use the passive without giving examples?
"All these [dying metaphors, etc.] are used without knowledge of their meaning..." Me: Again, you'd have to use "bad writers" as the actors - you couldn't keep on repeating them.
Orwell's essay contains roughly 20% passive constructions (higher than some averages), which shows he applies his rules flexibly rather than rigidly. (en.wikipedia.org)
Passive voice isn't inherently "bad"—it's a tool, and Orwell uses it effectively for objectivity or to mirror the vagueness he critiques. Me: Thanks, Grok, for agreeing with me!
Here are Orwell's bullet points, and I recommend reading them ALL. Especially the one about clichés.
Avoid cliches: Never use a familiar metaphor, simile, or figure of speech.
Keep it simple: Never use a long word where a short one will do.
Edit ruthlessly: If a word can be cut, cut it.
Use action words: Prefer the active voice over the passive.
Speak plainly: Avoid foreign phrases, scientific terms, and jargon for common English words.
Stay flexible: Break any of these rules before saying something "outright barbarous".
If you like clichés there are more here, and links to the rest.
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