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How is the elephant a symbol in shooting an elephant
Ethical dilemma in shooting an elephant
George orwells 1984 analysis
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Throughout Orwell’s literary career, he avidly stood against totalitarian and imperialistic forms of government. His two most famous works (1984 and Animal Farm) both exemplify this point, but at the same time weaken it. These two works were written in protest of those governments, but in a fictional back ground. In Orwell’s essay Shooting an Elephant, he uses a personal experience to more clearly emphasize the impact of imperialism at the sociological and psychological level, in conjunction with other literary elements. This symposium of devices help drive the purpose of his paper and ultimately creates a more substantial impact on any reader.
The most obvious is his choice to illustrate his point through a very real and personal experience of his own. By doing so, it rendered an almost real and more tangible world for the audience to interact with. Orwell, being an Englishmen, was in a position to see both sides of imperialism’s harms to society, and present both to his audience. He told how both abused the other either physically or verbally, and how they ran each other’s actions. While it is possible to explain this by other means, the direct experience with it testified much stronger.
In addition, this form of writing allowed Orwell’s voice to come more clearly to the reader. He was able to directly express his thoughts and views at the time. Weather they were a loathing toward h...
In Orwell’s reflective narrative, “Shooting an Elephant”, he reveals the truth on imperialism. Through the utilization of irony and the method of appeals, Orwell shows the reader that imperialism is just a definition because the people are in control, not Britain.
1) The device Orwell uses to introduce his thesis are chiasmi. The first chiasmus is “A man may take to drink because he feels himself to be a failure, and then fail all the more completely because he drinks” and the second chiasmus is “It becomes ugly and inaccurate because our thoughts are foolish, but the slovenliness of our language makes it easier for us to have foolish thoughts.” Both sentences are examples of chiasmus since they reverse key terms in their clauses, the key terms being “drinking” and “failure” in the first, and the state of the language and “foolish thoughts” in the second sentence.
This is an important example of the foolishness of writers that do not understand the metaphors, similes, and symbolic expressions to help the reader understand their ideas in the writing. I also agree that writers do not use words “precisely”, which can confuse the reader. Many writers are not fully aware of the meaning of the words they choose, which Orwell breaks down in the writings he is analyzing. Clarity in the writing process is conveyed with great accuracy by Orwell to make this second point.
Every day, each individual will look back on decisions he or she have made and mature from those experiences. Though it takes time to realize these choices, the morals and knowledge obtained from them are priceless. In George Orwell’s nonfictional essay, “Shooting an Elephant”, a young Orwell was stationed in Burma for the British imperial forces, tasked to deal with an elephant who destroyed various parts of the village Moulmein while its owner was away. Backed by second thoughts and a crowd of thousands, he finds himself shooting the elephant and reflecting that it was not justified; however, it was a choice pushed by his duty and the people. Written with a fusion of his young and old self’s outlook on shooting the elephant, Orwell’s essay is a sensational read that captivates his audience and leaves them questioning his decision.
Howe, Tom. "George Orwell." British Writers Volume VII. Ed. Ian Scott-Kilvert. New York: Scribner, 1984. 273-287.
Orwell, George. “Shooting an Elephant.” Shooting an Elephant and Other Essays. Ed. Sonia Orwell. New York: Harcourt, Brace & World, Inc., 1950. 3-12.
George Orwell’s “Shooting an Elephant” is a short story that not only shows cultural divides and how they affect our actions, but also how that cultural prejudice may also affect other parties, even if, in this story, that other party may only be an elephant. Orwell shows the play for power between the Burmese and the narrator, a white British police-officer. It shows the severe prejudice between the British who had claimed Burma, and the Burmese who held a deep resentment of the British occupation. Three messages, or three themes, from Orwell’s “Shooting an Elephant” are prejudice, cultural divide, and power.
A police officer in the British Raj, the supposedly 'unbreakable'; ruling force, was afraid. With his gun aimed at a elephant's head, he was faced with the decision to pull the trigger. That officer was George Orwell, and he writes about his experience in his short story, 'Shooting an Elephant';. To save face, he shrugged it off as his desire to 'avoid looking the fool'; (George Orwell, 283). In truth, the atmosphere of fear and pressure overwhelmed him. His inner struggle over the guilt of being involved in the subjugation of a people added to this strain, and he made a decision he would later regret enough to write this story.
The Life and Works of George Orwell Zach Garrett English 12 Diane Leazer April 11, 2014. The Life and Works of George Orwell Thesis Statement: Financial struggles in the first half of George Orwell's life greatly affected how he lived and influenced his writings. l. Childhood George Orwell A. Grade School B. College ll. Life after college A. Moving away from home and joining the workforce B. Moving back home to try to find new work, lll. Literary works A. Animal Farm B. Nineteen Eighty Four.
In “Shooting an Elephant” writer George Orwell illustrates the terrible episode that explains more than just the action of “shooting an elephant.” Orwell describes the scene of the killing of an elephant in Burma and reveals a number of emotions he experienced during the short, but traumatic event. Effectively, the writer uses many literary techniques to plant emotions and create tension in this scene, leading to an ironic presentation of imperialism. With each of the realistic descriptions of the observing multitude and the concrete appeal of the narrator’s pathos, Orwell thrives in persuading the audience that imperialism not only has a destructive impact on those being governed under the imperialists’ oppressive power, but also corrupts
This paper is a discussion of George Orwell 's Homage to Catalonia (1938) and Animal Farm (1945) showing the factual and fictional obsession with revolution in both books. The two books are based on Orwell 's personal and political background. Orwell was so obsessed with the idea of revolution that he created the details of this revolution in his mind in two books: the first is factual out of his experience and the second is fictional in a symbolic narration. Orwell’s obsession with revolution consists in the images, ideas, or words that preoccupy his mind so forcefully that they become real even when they are not. These images and ideas turn to be patterns of mind.
George Orwell uses setting, characterization and symbols to show that true power come from following the dictates of one’s conscience. The state of power established through the imperialistic backdrop show that Orwell should have control over the Burmese. Also, the perspective and ideas given by Orwell show his true character and lessens the overall power set up for him. Lastly, the symbols Orwell uses show representation of traditional forms of power, but take on different implications in the story. These points come together to prove that power exists within one’s self and not through one’s position, conquests or by the items they possess. In the end, it can be said that man’s journey for power will be a continuous struggle until the end of time but that in order at attain power, one must learn to listen to one’s conscience.
Based on the two essays, George Orwell is a vivid writer who uses a unique point of view and strong themes of pride and role playing to convey his messages. His writings are easy to pick out because of the strengths of these messages. Just like politicians in government, people with power turn corrupt to stay in power and keep their reputations. Anyone who takes on power must be prepared to live with the consequences of his actions. Orwell knows this challenge well and conveys this principle in his writing. After all, his narration is based on real life experiences and not fictional fantasies.
Texts can provide a vast knowledge on subjects dependent on content, whereas novels are often seen as being purely for leisure and enjoyment. However, it can often be seen that prose consists of a wide array of factors that relate to historical events and can be used to inform and express feelings towards a topic. George Orwell stated that he would often write “because there is some lie that I want to expose” (Orwell, Why I write, 1946) and indicated this through his novels. Orwell’s characterisation connects the reader emotionally to the characters through simplistic descriptions which draw upon sympathy when labelled as “feeble” (Orwell, Animal Farm, 1945). Alongside this simplistic style, Orwell’s matter-of-face tone reflects the characters inability to respond to events and depicts the severity of the outcome.
Orwell?s extraordinary style is never displayed well than through ?Shooting an Elephant,? where he seemingly blends his style and subject into one. The story deals with a tame elephant that all of a sudden turns bad and kills a black Dravidian coolie Indian. A policeman kills this elephant through his conscience because the Indians socially pressurized him greatly. He justified himself as he had killed elephant as a revenge for coolie.