George Orwell's A Hanging

George Orwell was a well-known author during the mid-twentieth century whose books 1984 and Animal Farm are often studied in high school literature along with many of his short stories, including his essay called “A Hanging”. In the story, George Orwell describes an incident when he worked in Burma, India where a young and healthy Hindu prisoner was executed before him and reflects upon the meaning of this man’s death and whether or not it was right. Orwell includes many details throughout the story to explain his personal views on the subject of the death penalty and provides an argument for his stance against it. He uses things such as the prisoner’s actions before execution, his upsetting death, and a dog representing his desire to free

He subtly shows his belief that there is now justification for executing. There are some weaknesses in this argument however. It is very debatable if capital punishment is really unethical, and if there are more benefits than consequences. According to David Masci, a poll was conducted that showed that 49% of the population were in support of the death penalty, while only 42% actually opposed it (Masci). Support even goes as far back as the enlightenment. Jean-Jacques Rousseau, and French philosopher during the 1700s, wrote extensively on the idea of a “social contract” that must never be broken, and if it were punishment shall follow. Specifically, he states that “In killing the criminal, we destroy not so much a citizen but as an enemy” (“Seventy-Six Pro-Death”). There are also some fairly strong arguments against the death penalty that are not moral. For example, an article by the Huffington Post explains how executing prisoners can help with overcrowding, especially in area such as California where this is a major issue (Ridgeway & Casella). Also, in contrast to what many believe, it is very unlikely for an innocent person to be killed by the justice system as DNA testing has grown extensively in the past and can reliably prover whether or not a defendant is actually guilty of a crime such as murder (Tam). DNA evidence is accepted widely by American courts. Also, according to the FBI, “the odds of a coincidental match are 1 to 108 trillion.” All of these are facts and opinions that Orwell did not keep in mind as he wrote his famous