Shooting An Elephant Essay

Shooting An Elephant
The story of Shooting an Elephant is a short story that shows the internal struggle of a man who
tries to figure out for himself if he values self respect more or others respect more. The main
character is a European who works for the sub–divisional police in South East Asia. He is stationed
in Burma where, even though he hates the people, he hopes the Burmese win the war. Hatred for the
Burmese people is fueled by their mocking him and treatment towards him with absolutely no respect
and little regard. In addition, even though the man shoots the elephant, he earlier stated that he had
absolutely no resolve in him to shoot the elephant. His decision to not kill the elephant comes
crumbling down when he realizes the Burmese will take notice of him if he shoots the elephant.
Why would he care about what the Burmese thought of him if they hated him anyway? This is
because his hatred for the Burmese is little in comparison to how much he wishes for respect and
recognition. The...show more content...
In the very first paragraph of the story the character tells of his experience on a football field. He
stated that "when a nimble Burman tripped me up on the football field and the referee (another
Burman) looked the other way, the crowd yelled with hideous laughter" (Orwell 1). The character
also recounts of other experiences he has where "insults hooted after me when I was at a safe
distance" (Orwell 1). In his own words the character describes how he feels about these situations.
He states how the Burman's actions badly got on his nerves. He explains how overwhelming and
upsetting his job makes him, so much so that he wants to quit. It is important to note the characters
perception of the Burmese because it shows that his rancor towards them does not affect his longing
for respect. This is a basic point that helps set up the story to show what the characters
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Shooting an Elephant Essay
In his essay, Shooting an Elephant, George Orwell illustrates his experiences as a British police
officer, and reflects it to the nature of imperialism. He hates his job as a police officer in Moulmein
because an "anti–European feeling was very bitter" due to British Empire's dictatorship in Burma.
Therefore, Orwell, a white man is being treated disrespectfully by the Burmese which allows him to
hate his job and British Empire, the root of everything. However, the incident of shooting of an
elephant gives him a "better glimpse ... of the real nature of imperialism – the real motives for which
despotic government act" (13). In order to express the effects of imperialism, Orwell illustrates this
"enlightening" incidence by using various...show more content...
When Orwell was followed by thousands of Burmese, he says, "seemingly the leading actor of
the piece; but in reality I was only an absurd puppet pushed to and fro by the will of those yellow
faces behind" (15). He calls himself "puppet" to indicate that even an oppressor loses his freedom
and has to live under pressure when imperialism takes place in the society. Orwell also establishes
particular effects in his essay by using different sentence structures. He describes the picture of, "To
come all that way, rifle in hand, with two thousand people marching at my heels, and then to trail
feebly away, having done nothing – no, that was impossible" (15). The parallel phrases are used in
this passage to recap the whole situation but the sudden usage of anacoluthon in the end of the
link allows Orwell show how much Orwell is pressurized and indicates reads that there is no way
for Orwell to leave the elephant alive after coming to this stage of the situation. Orwell again uses
the parallel phrases to describe the effects on an elephant after the first shot: "In that instant, in too
short a time, one would have thought, even for the bullet to get there, a mysterious, terrible change
had come over the elephant" (16). This structure intensifies the shock and reaction in readers and
helps Orwell to prove what it takes for one decision. The lack of grammatical sequence is used when
Orwell goes out to kill

Shooting An Elephant Essay
In Shooting an Elephant, a short memoir written by George Orwell about his time in the British
Burmese Police, Orwell uses the phrase "stuck between" to describe his innermost and obvious
disdain for empire and inequity. At the crux of Orwell's quandary, he feels "stuck between [his]
hatred of the empire [he] serve[s] and [his] rage against the evil–spirited little beasts who tr[y] to
make [his] job impossible" (Orwell 906). This foundational duality seeps into other situations that
Orwell finds himself, such as when he feels he must shoot the "mad" elephant to save face. In
Shooting an Elephant, we can identify three paradoxical bins that Orwell must reconcile: 1) himself
vs. British imperialism (the physical aspect of leaving the Empire), 2)...show more content...
Stuck between his physiological and psychological disownment from both British oppressor and
oppressed Burmese, Orwell must shoot the elephant that symbolizes both his position of power and
powerlessness against tyranny. While the pretext of European authority is well–ingrained in both the
Burmese and British minds, this veil hides a "hollow, posing dummy, the conventionalized figure
of a sahib" (Orwell 909). Orwell doesn't suffer from the moral implications of killing the
grandmotherly elephant so much as he suffers from killing his freedom and credibility. Shooting
an Elephant Reader Response As someone who relies on principle as opposed to pressure from
peers or social norms to conduct my life, I think Orwell was wrong to shoot the elephant. For what
it's worth, Orwell seems to agree that shooting the elephant was the wrong decision to make. In a
perfect world without the pressures that Orwell faces, he would not have killed the elephant as
evident from his memoir. He kills the elephant without knowing for certain whether the elephant is
still mad.

People do not always do what is right. Sometimes, they stray from the path that is laid out in front
of them. George Orwell shines light on this topic. In his story Shooting an Elephant, Orwell talks
about being a British police officer in Burma. The Burmese people really didn't like the British
people at this time. The entire time the British occupied this Island, there was a power struggle. In
George Orwell's narrative essay Shooting an Elephant, the three main messages are imperialism, peer
pressure, and fear.
The first message in George Orwell's Shooting an Elephant is imperialism. Imperialism is when a
strong country takes over a weaker country and runs it. This is what the British did to Burma.
Throughout the story there is a constant power struggle between the Burmese and the British. At
the beginning of the story it looks like the British hold all the power. But, at the end of the story the
reader realises that the Burmese people actually hold all the power. He did not want to make the
people with the power angry.
In Shooting an Elephant by George Orwell, the second message is peer pressure. Peer pressure is
often related to hormone–crazed teens who don't know how to control their emotions. This is not
always the case. The British police officer knows that he should not shoot the...show more content...
Fear can make people do things that they would not normally do. People who are driven by fear
are people who can do anything. The elephant is afraid so he tramples over houses and people.
The police officer is afraid that the Burmese will laugh at him if he does not shoot the elephant.
This fear eats him alive until he does something he knows he will regret. Orwell says on page
1324, "For at that moment, with the crowd watching me, I was not afraid in the ordinary sense, as
I would have been if I had been alone." Fear is the driving force for people to do unforgettable

Imagine being placed in a situation that holds the fate of a breathing elephant, the largest land
animal in the world. Would you spare its life or begin the end of it in a blink of an eye? In Eric
Arthur Blair's essay Shooting An Elephant, George Orwell, arguably Blair himself, was once
confronted with this very question. As an English police officer in Burma during the Age of
Imperialism, Orwell was called upon to investigate an aggressive elephant that was ravaging a local
bazaar and later discovered, even killed a man. When he finally located the mammal, "at that
distance, peacefully eating, the elephant looked no more dangerous than a cow" (Orwell 2). Orwell's
immediate thoughts were that he ought not to shoot the creature "I had no intention of shooting the
elephant––I had merely sent for the rifle to defend myself if necessary" (2). However, Orwell's
initial thoughts would not be put into action. Orwell would later go on to kill the elephant with three
shots aimed at the brain as over two thousand native people...show more content...
As Orwell glanced at the growing crowd, he instantly perceived the common desires of the people
"They were watching me as they would watch a conjurer about to perform a trick. They did not
like me, but with the magical rifle in my hands I was momentarily worth watching. And suddenly I
realized that I should have to shoot the elephant after all" (3).These people wanted revenge for the
death of the innocent man, the meat its carcass would provide, and the amusement of witnessing the
shootings "The people expected it of me and I had got to do it; I could feel their two thousand wills
pressing me forward, irresistibly" (3). Because of these collective expectations, Orwell had to appear
determined, authoritative, and decisive through shooting the elephant or else his reputation and the
rest of the British colonizers' reputation would be

Shoot An Elephant
In the story "Shoot an Elephant", the author, George Orwell, reiterates the governmental clashes
between imperialism vs. communism using a symbolic figure to convey the meaning of true justice.
The story starts off with the narrator working as a militant police officer of Moulmein, a town in the
British colony of Burma. Since he works for the military, he is hated by vast amounts of people
throughout the village. Whenever the narrator, George Orwell, patrols a vicinity, citizens of Burmese
vocalize insults at him as he walks down the street. The narrator may have an utmost authority and
military power over the Burmese people, he is still powerless to stop the insults and abuse he
receives from the oppressed Burmese. Although he still hates...show more content...
The anticipation in the air began to make the narrator feel too nervous to completely handle this
matter. Overwhelmed by the peer pressure, the narrator feels that he has to shoot the elephant. The
narrator hesitantly aims at the elephant's head leaving all that is humane and righteous discarded. As
the crowd roars, the narrator shoots the elephant. The elephant then falls to the ground. The
description of the elephant in distress displays physical incapacity. The elephant appears to be at its
most momentous just before it plunges to the ground. This illustrates that at the elephant's final hour
of a notable defeat becomes a more influential idol of the preposterous ruthlessness of colonialism.
As the narrator came to a realization of his actions, he sees that the people that were verbally
harassing him became a fan of him. The narrator hoped no one exposes his skepticism of not
killing the elephant to "avoid looking like a fool" which I believe is completely absurd. The
narrator already played the role of being fooled by giving into the humility from the Burmese people
rather than standing up for what he believes

George Orwell Shooting An Elephant
The short essay Shooting an elephant is based off of Orwell's personal experiences. In the essay,
Orwell starts off being quite frank with the readers by revealing some of the uglier aspects of the
British Empire. He gives visuals of the jails acting as cages trapping people. He also mentions the
anti–British feelings among the population. This is a layered essay; the first layer is Orwell's story
about his feeling of shooting an elephant during his time in Burma as an officer. The underlining
point of the essay is about imperialism itself and the brad contradictions it makes. Orwell
understands their feelings since the British invaded and destroyed their homes and life's. "In a job
like that you see the dirty work of Empire at close quarters." (Orwell, Shooting an...show more
content...
The main analysis of the elephant is that it resembles the imperialistic British Empire. "It is a serious
matter to shoot a working elephant–it is comparable to destroying a huge and costly piece of
machinery–and obviously one ought not to do it if it can possibly be avoided." (Orwell, Shooting
an elephant, Par 6). When Orwell shoots the elephant and when the elephant dies, it symbolizes
Orwell's belief that the fall of the empire will be due to the hands of its own officials. When the
elephant kills a man, destroys a hut and is then stripped of its flesh and husks. Just as Great
Britain came into India, ruined lives, destroyed tows and stripped the people of their resources.
Orwell at a point in the essay even states that imperialism is slowly dying. This acts as evidence in
regards to the elephant's symbolic nature. The death of the elephant represents the loss of power
and control in India. You see, much like Orwell's famous dystopian novel Animal Farm; Orwell uses
animalism to convey his political allegory. This premise of writing makes the idea that the
government needs less control of populations easier to

Shooting an Elephant Essays
In the essay, Shooting an Elephant, George Orwell illustrates his experiences as a British police
officer in Lower Burma, and reflects it to the nature of imperialism. Since "anti–European feeling
was very bitter" due to the British Empire's dictatorship in Burma, Orwell is being treated
disrespectfully by the Burmese (12). This allows him to hate his job and the British Empire.
However, the incident of shooting of an elephant gives him a "better glimpse ... of the real nature of
imperialism – the real motives for which despotic government act" (13). Through his life experiences
as a British man, Orwell efficiently demonstrates the negative effects of imperialism on individuals
and society. With the usage of effective diction in his...show more content...
He calls himself a "puppet" to prove and emphasize the fact that even the oppressors lose their
freedom and have to live under the pressure of the people they oppress when an imperialist system
takes place in the society. Also, Orwell establishes particular effects in his essay by using different
sentence structures. As Orwell comes to the decision of shooting the elephant, he states, "To come
all that way, rifle in hand, with two thousand people marching at my heels, and then to trail feebly
away, having done nothing – no, that was impossible" (15). The parallel phrases used in this
passage recaps the whole situation but the usage of anacoluthon in the end of the link allows
Orwell to show how much he is pressurized. In addition, it indicates the readers that there is no way
for him to leave the elephant alive after coming to this stage of the situation. Orwell again uses
parallel phrases to describe the effects on the elephant after the first shot: "He looked suddenly
stricken, shrunken, immensely old, as though the frightful impact of the bullet had paralyzed him
without knocking him down" (16). This structure helps Orwell to intensify the shock and the
reaction in the readers as the elephant starts dying. Lack of a grammatical sequence is used when
Orwell goes out to kill an elephant and says, "I had no intention of shooting the elephant – I had
merely sent for the rifle

Shooting an Elephant In life we as humans often make decisions that we would not have made on
our own if we would not have been influenced by someone else. As humans others' opinions mean a
great deal to us, and in "Shooting an Elephant", Orwell shows how true this idea is by the tone of
the story. "Shooting an Elephant" is the story of a British policeman in Moulmein, a city in Burma,
that is torn between shooting or not shooting an elephant that has gone ramped. The native people
did not like him much, but when the elephant went on its rampage they were quick to call on him.
What seemed like is should have been an easy task for the officer to do was harder than he ever
could have imagined when he can face to face with it. When the...show more content...
In the opening sentence the officer says "В…I was hated by large numbers of people В–the only
time in my life that I have been important enough for this to happen to me." Here he is being very
open, and letting the reader know that he was just doing his job and the people hated him. It was
not all his fault, they hated him more for who he was than what he was doing or standing for. He
later goes on to say how he would like to stab a Buddhist priest, but then justifies his words by
saying, "Feelings like these are normal byproducts of imperialismВ…" As the story goes on the
officer says, "The crowd would laugh at me. And my whole life, every white man's life in the
East, was one long struggle not to be laughed at." In this one statement he shows just how rational
he was being. He was honestly trying to decide what to do. His very lovable, likable tone is
working for him. This is a very important move because before the reader really knows what's
going on the reader already hopes the situation works out in the officers favor. One would almost
feel bad for him when the pressure from the crowd starts to get to him and he say, "It made me
vaguely uneasy." He was honestly torn between what he felt he should do and what the crowd
wanted him to do. He later goes on to say "В…but in reality I was only an absurd puppet pushed

Well known author and journalist, George Orwell, in his essay, Shooting an Elephant, describes his
experiences as a Policeman in Moulmein, Burma during European Imperialism. Orwell's purpose
is to convey the ideal that what is right and what is accepted don't always align. He adopts a
remorseful tone in order to convey to the reader the weight of his actions. By looking at George
Orwell's use of imagery and figurative language, one can see his strongly conflicting opinions on
Imperialism.
Orwell begins his essay, Shooting an Elephant, by explaining the actions of the Burmese people and
by expressing his contempt for imperialism. He appeals to the empathy of the audience by stating
the actions of the Burmese people: "if a European woman went...show more content...
Orwell writes, "If the elephant charged and I missed him, I should have about as much chance as a
toad under a steam–roller." (3). Orwell's use of the phrase adds to the dramatic humor of the
situation, and creates a better understanding of his conflicting opinions on his situation. Preceding
this statement is an internal argument within which Orwell debates whether he should shoot the
elephant or not. To connect this statement back to the symbol of the elephant representing
imperialism it shows that if he were to go against the European imperialist he would surely lose
everything he had and possibly his life depending on the person, but right after the quote above
Orwell writes about not thinking particularly of his own skin but of the natives behind him.
Meaning he wasn't thinking so much about saving himself but rather saving those around him. "He
was breathing very rhythmically with long rattling gasps, his great mound of a side painfully rising
and falling" (4), this quote within it's self is a metaphor as well as imagery. It is a metaphor for how
imperialists may be overthrown but influences can never be forgotten, through this it gives us a
better understanding a picture of the scene and Orwell's feelings during this

both "back to my own country" and "shooting an elephant" demonstrates a theme of people's
different backgrounds of culture and society. Both passages relate to people's own opinion of
"home". However, Orwell's essay represents the differences between law and moral beliefs,
demonstrating no moral freedom whereas in Levy's essay she discusses her experience of freedom
through learning and self discovery. In "Back to my own country," Levy claims that today in
modern society everybody is used to a mixture of cultures. She supports her claim by using allusion
to tell black history and self experiences. Through her curiosity and experiences of racism, she grew
passion towards the issue and chose to speak her mind through literature, resulting in

Shooting An Elephant Analysis Essay
George Orwell, author of, "Shooting an Elephant" reveals his inner conflicts to the audience by
offering in depth description, using intensity, and symbolism through the act of shooting the
elephant. His narration helps him do so by giving descriptive scenarios in the story. Orwell's
narration can also be used to examine the role of India and Great Britain at the story's time in
history. The narration then allows Orwell to use symbolism in place of description. Orwell uses
narration to help explain his inner conflicts and to what is happening in each setting of the story.
In the story Orwell writes "I was all for the Burmese and all against their oppressors, the British"
(Orwell 3). In this story Orwell is a police officer for the British empire and he explains in his quote
he is in fact against the British. On the contrary, the Burmese people treat Orwell terribly, for the
mere reason of him being a British police officer. Orwell states "I was sub–divisional police officer
of the town, and in an aimless, petty kind of way anti–European feeling was very bitter," (Orwell 3).
This clearly states that the Burmese do not like him, whether he liked them or not. Owen then
described in the text, certain situation where they would disrespect a European "No one had the guts
...show more content...
George Orwell, author of, "Shooting an Elephant" gives detailed scenarios to help the audience
discover different interpretations of his inner conflicts. He then connects his piece to historical
events in India that involved the British empire, he does so by using symbolism in place of
description in his story. Narration is used to aid in interpreting Orwell's inner conflicts throughout
the story such as killing the elephant, his conflict with the Burmese people, and finally the
imperialism Britain had over

Thematic Interpretation of George Orwell's "Shooting and Elephant"
In George Orwell's "Shooting an Elephant", the narrator experiences three main conflicts. One
conflict being with the British Empire, due to it's unjust occupation of Burma, another with the
Burmese people because of their mockery and disrespect toward him, and finally, he is in conflict
with himself due to his struggle with his conscience and self–image. All three conflicts complicate
his ability to make objective, clear–headed decisions. There are multiple themes in this story but I
believe the theme that suits the story best is the evil and disfunction in Imperialism. It is the main
cause of all of the narrators conflicts. Just one of the many things imperialism does is it humiliates
the occupied people. It then provokes the occupiers into making immoral decisions. Imperialists also
colonize countries and in doing so, it restricts the freedom of the natives....show more content...
Through–out the entire time that Imperialism existed, imperialists have changed their grounds and
strategies in imperialistic rules, but the ultimate objective has remained the same; to rule and
exploit the natives. Imperialism is a state of mind, fueled by the arrogance of superiority that could
be adopted by any nation irrespective of it's geographical location in the world. "Shooting an
Elephant," is of importance because in it, lies how the incident depicts the different aspects of
imperialism. In the essay the elephant and Orwell help to prove that Imperialism is a double edged
knife, so to speak. The killing of the elephant is the incident that reveals that Imperialism inflicts
damage on both parties in imperialistic relationships. The British officer, Orwell displays many
aspects of being the ridiculous puppet under the institution of

In George Orwell's short story, "Shooting an Elephant", it follows a man that is being bombarded by
the pressure of the situation that has been presented upon him. In 1936 Moulmein, Burma, a man is
sent there as a sub–divisional policeman to be the officer of the town, but he being the only man
of European decent in a town full of "yellow faces", it isn't surprising that he is being picked on
by them. As we dive into the story, we can feel the slow burn of hatred in Orwell's tone as the
character describes the people he works for and for the people he works with. One day the
unnamed man would be confronted by the issue of an elephant on the loose going around the town
destroying people's homes, livestock, and vegetation and it is asked of him...show more content...
The man says he has no intention of killing the elephant and only brought the gun to defend
himself but as the crowd grew, so did his nerves. Now this is the most emotional part of the story
that can be overlooked because we all knew he was going to shoot the elephant, hence the title.
But the man did not want to, Orwell uses gentle tones as he describes the elephant and adds
character to it rather than leaving it as a bland animal, giving the reader a wider perspective on
the peaceful elephant. The man decided to just watch the elephant to see if it would turn savage
again before finally making his choice, but as he looked around him, he felt the eyes of two
thousand people eagerly waiting for him to perform the task at hand. Orwell describes the crowd
as if they were at a circus waiting for the finale, the details he uses makes you feel like the people
are the actual beast rather than the humans. The only white man was pressured to kill the elephant
as an attempt to fit in and be legally in the right, not only did the man do it for the happiness of the
crowd, he did it for his own selfish need to be accepted and not being treated like a

Examples Of Imperialism In Shooting An Elephant
"Shooting an Elephant" by George Orwell is a short story set in Burma, at the time when it was
conquered by the British. The narrator, a British imperial police officer, tells in the first–person point
of view his experience with the Indian Imperial Police while showing the trouble he gets into
because of his position of power. Based on the narrator's experience, Orwell attacks imperialism and
creates a negative outlook on it , "when the white man turns tyrant it is his own freedom that he
destroys."( Orwell, page 1322). Indeed, Orwell not only believes that imperialism causes
self–destruction ; he also thinks that when the colonizer becomes a tyrant his personal freedom is
taken away. The English were among the most important...show more content...
In reality, he does not act to protect the Burmese, but because he wants to save his own face, "It
was a tiny incident in itself, but it gave me a better glimpse than I had before of the real nature of
imperialism– the real motives for which despotic governments act "( Orwell, page 1320). This
way, the narrator realizes what the ridiculous motive of imperialism is. As a matter of fact, the
incident that occurs in " Shooting an Elephant" shows that imperialism takes freedom away both
from the colonized and the colonizer. Because the narrator is dependent on the Empire, he has to
sacrifice his moral values. Thus, he limits his freedom , he cannot make his own decisions and he
has to abandon his free will, too. The narrator has no choice but conforming to the role of the
colonial ruler. " Shooting of an Elephant" conveys the idea that where the system of imperialism
takes place, the power of tyranny is also present. Orwell considers imperialism as the worst and
most harmful type of government in a society. The experience inBurma proves that in a country
based on imperialism, even though officers are forced to act like tyrants, all individuals are slaves
of each other and no one can dominate. Whenever there is an imperialist government, not only
natives, but also colonists lose their freedom because they must live under the pressure of

In "Shooting an Elephant," George Orwell achieves two achievements : he shows us his personal
experience and his expression while he was in Burma; he use the metaphor of the elephant to
explain to describe what Burma looked like when it was under the British Imperialism. The special
about this essay is that Orwell tells us a story not only to see the experience that he had in Burma; he
also perfectly uses the metaphor of the elephant to give us deep information about the Imperialism.
By going through this essay, we can deeply understand what he thinks in his head. He successfully
uses the word choices and the sentences to express his feeling. By reading this essay, Orwell
succeeds us with his mesmerizing sentences and shows us the...show more content...
Orwell uses this metaphor of an elephant's rage and destruction of homes, theft of food shelves, and
even killings as an example to the inner working of imperialism. Metaphorically, Orwell expands his
argument about how imperialism is tyrannical towards to the Burmese people by comparing an
elephant's rage to the British Empire's invasion of Burma and its destruction of the native life.
Similarly, the elephant's theft of food represents the oppressed of the British Empire's imperialism
has brought upon the Burmese people. They try to implement their aim of domination upon Burma
without any care upon the Burmese way of life. This event not only makes the oppressed country
become the victims of the imperialism, but it also is the foundation of Orwell's dilemma regarding
the killing of an elephant or the peer pressure he feels towards killing. In short, the use of
metaphorical devices found throughout Orwell's narrative help emphasizing the similarities of
imperialism to that of an elephant ravaging through a town, illustrating the true effects it has upon
the Burmese people.
Beyond the use of metaphorical techniques, Orwell also uses vivid imagery to the strongest extent,
to further his stand against the imperial forces. Under the oppression of British imperialism, the
Burmese people become "wretched prisoners huddling in the stinking cages of the lock–ups, the
grey, cowed faces of the long–term convicts" (Orwell 285). Orwell applies

Rhetorical Devices In Shooting An Elephant
Muhammad Moiz Khan
2018–11–0165
WnC – Section 5
Raazia Waseem
13th November 2014
Rhetorical Analysis of "Shooting an Elephant" by George Orwell
"Shooting an Elephant" is an essay written by George Orwell, who was an Assistant Superintendent
in the British Indian Imperial Police in Burma from 1922 to 1927. The essay was published in 1936.
Burma was occupied by the British over a period of 62 years (1823–1886) and it was directed as a
province of India until it became a separate colony in 1937. In the essay, Orwell narrates the scene
of the killing of an elephant in Burma and expresses the feelings that he goes through during the
event. The writer's theme is that imperialism is not an effective way of governing. It can be decoded
through his...show more content...
He uses imagery to help the readers picture the situation. Imagery is best used when he describes
the moments he shot the elephant. He describes the Burmese very clearly, and stresses on how
the animal reacted to the gunshots. He chronologically describes the scene after every gunshot
that was fired. "And then down he came, his belly towards me, with a crash that shook the
ground." "The thick blood came out of him like red velvet" are examples of imagery used by the
writer. He describes the huge crowd before him as a "sea of yellow faces." He also uses similes in
various parts of his essay, for instance when he talked about the crowd that followed him he says,
"They were watching me as they would watch a conjurer about to perform a trick". The reader can
also infer from the essay Orwell's racism. He repeatedly uses "yellow faces" and "white man" to
differentiate the Burmese from the

Hunger, A.J. SR"Shooting an Elephant"
Background George Orwell is the author of the selection, "Shooting an Elephant." George Orwell
fought in the Spanish Civil War. The Spanish Civil War was fought between two parties for control
of the country. One was the ruling party, known as the Republicans. The usurpers were the
conquering party, known as the Nationalists. The Nationalists were lead by the reluctant leader,
General Franco. He had been stiffed by the government and sent to a military base to basically stay
away and twiddle his thumbs. The role that soldiers like George Orwell would have played was
putting boots on the ground for Republicans. They were used especially in defense of the city of
Madrid. On the other hand, The Fascists...show more content...
The officer then is walking around town one day when he hears that there is an elephant running
rampant in the town. "It had already destroyed somebody's bamboo ht, killed a cow and raided some
fruit–stalls and devoured the stock; also it had met the municipal rubbish van and, when the driver
jumped out and took to his heels had turned the van over and inflicted violence upon it" (3). The
author then preceded to where the reports of the elephant had been. The peoples reports had the
elephant running in all different directions. Then the officer discovered something. "I rounded the
hut and saw a man's dead body sprawling in the mud. He was an Indian, a black Dravidian coolie,
almost naked, and he could not have been dead many minutes" (4). The author then sends an
orderly to get an elephant rifle for him. He then proceeds to look for the elephant and find him in
the rice paddies. They entire neighborhood follows him with apprehension. They are looking forward
to all the meat they will get from the dead elephant. The author then comes to a realization when he
gets to the

George Orwell Shooting An Elephant Summary
In the excerpt " Shooting an Elephant" by George Orwell he writes about being succumbed to
pressure and obedience from a higher power, he even experienced this kind of pressure from the
native people. This is seen in his word choice in this section pulled from the writing, he
manipulates the words to express his inner emotions about the overwhelming pressure put upon
him to take the giant beasts life. Although the elephant had gone into a fit called a "must", he had
also killed a man the author called a "coolie" which is slang for a bad man, and rampaged through a
fruit stand. Not only did the natives believe he was going to shoot the elephant, but he himself began
to believe that taking the animal's life was his primary goal. The the author

Have you ever been pressured into doing something you didn't want to, but felt like you had no
other option? The narrator in Orwell's, "Shooting an Elephant" had a very similar experience. He
was pressed by the Burmese into committing a senseless killing that he did not deem necessary.
This transformation of the main characters mentality and morals gives the audience a terrific
example of characterization, which would not be possible without the effective use of point of
view in Orwell's story. In this novel Orwell effectively uses 1st person point of view to show the
mental change the narrator underwent throughout the course of the story. By the reader having
such an in depth point of view in this novel, you are able to see the reasoning and logic that leads
to this change in the narrator's ideology. In the beginning when the narrator went to get his rifle
he states, " I took my rifle, an old 44 Winchester and much too small to kill an elephant, but I
thought the noise might be useful in terrorem"(Orwell 571). By the narrator stating this in the
beginning, it shows he truly did not want to harm the elephant. Also from the statements, " I had
no intention of shooting the elephant, I had merely sent for the rifle to defend myself if
necessary"(Orwell 573) and, "As soon as I saw the elephant I knew with perfect certainty that I
ought not to shoot him"(Orwell 573), the reader is able to tell initially he had no intention of
harming the animal, but was overcame by peer pressure. The point of view is effective in showing
this, because in first Inman 2 person the narrator expresses his own emotions, rather than a third
person point of view where an outside source writes about his feelings rather than it coming from
himself. As the story progresses the audience still gets an indepth view on the narrator's mental
state, and is effectively able to see the change in him. The statement, " I had got to shoot the
elephant. I had committed myself to doing it when I sent for the rifle" (Orwell 574) shows the
finalization in the change of the narrators mentality. The reader is able to see the fluent switch in his
mindset throughout the novel, and it is done as effectively as possible due to the exceptional use of
point

Shooting An Elephant Essay

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Shooting An Elephant Essay