In “Shooting an Elephant” by George Orwell, the author explores his feelings and blameworthiness towards a tamed yet potentially dangerous frenzied elephant whom he shot in Moulmein, Burma. In this situation, Orwell deplores his actions and elicits his depth of regret towards murdering the elephant, of which he later justifies as, in short, preserving the legacy of British power and authority in front of the Burmese natives (through irony and narration). Although confession does not justify most actions, confession may ease the guilt. Taking responsibility for his own actions, Orwell may be able to lift the guilt from his conscious; nonetheless, just spouting a few words about taking responsibility does not justify Orwell’s pretentious action.
…show more content…
Furthermore, taking responsibility for shooting the elephant and being honest with himself about his intentions is a good thing because this acceptance will ease Orwell’s guilty conscious. In general, most people who are able to be honest with themselves about an action that they are not proud of lifts that guilty weight off of their conscious ("The Truth About Intentions”), but is that enough to not be responsible for that action? As demonstrated in Orwell’s essay, Orwell contains military supremacy (which transgresses to a symbolic authority) but he is unable to control the jestering tactics of the Burmese. Although Orwell despises imperialism and the British, Orwell is unable to put aside the indignities he is afflicted with from the Burmese. This resentment toward humiliation (along with the idea that the Burmese should see him as a superior), causes Orwell to be confused and to give in to those underlying yet supportive principles of colonialism. This confusion comes from the fact that “the insults [from the Burmese] hooted after [Orwell]...[and] got badly on [his] nerves” (paragraph 1), despite the fact that Orwell is “all for the Burmese and all against their oppressors” (paragraph 2); so why did the Burmese continue to jest at him? This “conspiracy” of some sort contributes to Orwell’s contradictory thinking and contradicts his principles against each other. However, because of his encounter with the elephant, Orwell is better able to understand imperialism due to the creature being a symbol for colonialism – for instance, the elephant demonstrates aggressive behavior due to oppression, similarly to the colonized Burmese who humiliate Orwell; but because Orwell empathizes with the Burmese, he
Furthermore, taking responsibility for shooting the elephant and being honest with himself about his intentions is a good thing because this acceptance will ease Orwell’s guilty conscious. In general, most people who are able to be honest with themselves about an action that they are not proud of lifts that guilty weight off of their conscious ("The Truth About Intentions”), but is that enough to not be responsible for that action? As demonstrated in Orwell’s essay, Orwell contains military supremacy (which transgresses to a symbolic authority) but he is unable to control the jestering tactics of the Burmese. Although Orwell despises imperialism and the British, Orwell is unable to put aside the indignities he is afflicted with from the Burmese. This resentment toward humiliation (along with the idea that the Burmese should see him as a superior), causes Orwell to be confused and to give in to those underlying yet supportive principles of colonialism. This confusion comes from the fact that “the insults [from the Burmese] hooted after [Orwell]...[and] got badly on [his] nerves” (paragraph 1), despite the fact that Orwell is “all for the Burmese and all against their oppressors” (paragraph 2); so why did the Burmese continue to jest at him? This “conspiracy” of some sort contributes to Orwell’s contradictory thinking and contradicts his principles against each other. However, because of his encounter with the elephant, Orwell is better able to understand imperialism due to the creature being a symbol for colonialism – for instance, the elephant demonstrates aggressive behavior due to oppression, similarly to the colonized Burmese who humiliate Orwell; but because Orwell empathizes with the Burmese, he