George Orwell’s “Shooting an Elephant”
George Orwell’s use of narration in his piece “Shooting an Elephant” works really well to depict the events that take place in the story, by allowing us to hear all of his thoughts and reasons to his actions, as his experiences as sub-divisional officer take place. Orwell allows us to fully understand the situation between Burma and British empire in a personal level by narrating daily events that helps us readers understand how life was, when this life changing experience took place. How both the Burmese and the British citizens acted towards each other. Throughout the narration he uses symbolism, instead of descriptions to help us visualize and understand better the situation that he found himself in. …show more content…
Stuck between two opposing sides to kill the elephant or to wait and watch. When the elephant was found, it was peacefully eating ignoring the people around him. Orwell thought he ought not kill the elephant as its considered more valuable alive than dead. Opposing that behind him, a crowd who was waiting for him to kill the mighty beast and enjoy the unusual distraction. In this situation the civilians around him are like the empire who he serves but deeply hates and disagrees with, and the elephant who killed a man is like the Burmese. It made his job difficult just like the Burmese do, but he feels guilty …show more content…
In both scenarios the bigger force tramples the smaller or weaker one. “The elephant had come suddenly upon him round the corner of hut, caught him with its trunk, put its foot on his back and ground him into the earth” (4). That same way the British empire took Burma. The empire struck when they were not expecting it. After they took their land the British empire came in to rule over their people. Which they did not do such a good job, the empire’s representatives mistreated the native people and surely earned their hatred. “The wretched prisoners huddling in the stinking cages of lock-ups, the grey, cowed face of long-term convicts, the scarred buttocks of the men who had been Bogged with Bamboos” The Burmese were locked up for absurdly long times until they grew old, and were punished throughout their sentence. It shows us how many times when a country takes over another, the natives are often mistreated and looked down on by the people who are taking their homes and sometimes
George Orwell’s use of narration in his piece “Shooting an Elephant” works really well to depict the events that take place in the story, by allowing us to hear all of his thoughts and reasons to his actions, as his experiences as sub-divisional officer take place. Orwell allows us to fully understand the situation between Burma and British empire in a personal level by narrating daily events that helps us readers understand how life was, when this life changing experience took place. How both the Burmese and the British citizens acted towards each other. Throughout the narration he uses symbolism, instead of descriptions to help us visualize and understand better the situation that he found himself in. …show more content…
Stuck between two opposing sides to kill the elephant or to wait and watch. When the elephant was found, it was peacefully eating ignoring the people around him. Orwell thought he ought not kill the elephant as its considered more valuable alive than dead. Opposing that behind him, a crowd who was waiting for him to kill the mighty beast and enjoy the unusual distraction. In this situation the civilians around him are like the empire who he serves but deeply hates and disagrees with, and the elephant who killed a man is like the Burmese. It made his job difficult just like the Burmese do, but he feels guilty …show more content…
In both scenarios the bigger force tramples the smaller or weaker one. “The elephant had come suddenly upon him round the corner of hut, caught him with its trunk, put its foot on his back and ground him into the earth” (4). That same way the British empire took Burma. The empire struck when they were not expecting it. After they took their land the British empire came in to rule over their people. Which they did not do such a good job, the empire’s representatives mistreated the native people and surely earned their hatred. “The wretched prisoners huddling in the stinking cages of lock-ups, the grey, cowed face of long-term convicts, the scarred buttocks of the men who had been Bogged with Bamboos” The Burmese were locked up for absurdly long times until they grew old, and were punished throughout their sentence. It shows us how many times when a country takes over another, the natives are often mistreated and looked down on by the people who are taking their homes and sometimes