Similarities Between Shooting An Elephant And The Lottery

It is hard to take control of your life. It may be impossible to do so and be in charge of your destiny in certain parts of the world. For instance, being born into a very poor country might not give you the same opportunities to be whatever you want to be. Also, living where others are in control of your destiny also presents a challenge for you to break away and live your own life. In George Orwell’s “Shooting an Elephant,” and Shirley Jackson’s “The Lottery,” arguments could be made that these people have no control over their destiny’s. They are forced to live their lives according to someone else’s control. To a certain extent, circumstances like where you are born, the society and religion to which you are exposed to play roles in our

lives and identity, and affect their outcomes and our free choices as to who we become.
George Orwell was a white policeman in Burma who did not like his job, stereotypes, and the expectations that went with it.

“Shooting an Elephant” focuses on society by pressure. In “Shooting an Elephant,” Orwell is pressured by the native people to shoot and kill the elephant, even though the elephant is no longer harmless. In the beginning of the essay, the natives repeatedly attack Orwell every day. When the elephant goes insane, the natives go to Orwell for help. The natives were constantly pressuring Orwell as he said, “For it is the condition of his rule that he shall spend his life in trying to impress the “natives,” and so in every crisis he has got to do what the “natives” expect of him” (Orwell par. 7). Orwell is pressured by society to do the opposite of what he feels is morally

right.
Orwell shot the elephant for no reason but to not be made fun of by the natives anymore. Orwell did not want to kill the elephant at all as he said, “But I did not want to shoot the elephant. I watched him beating his bunch of grass against his knees, with that preoccupied grandmotherly air that elephants have. It seemed to me that it would be murder to shoot him” (Orwell par. 8). The natives hated Orwell so Orwell did not want to be hated or bantered anymore. Sadly, Orwell decided to kill the poor elephant.
Everyone who lived in “The Lottery’s” village had the possibility of facing a terrible destiny of being stoned to death by a random drawing held once a year.

“The Lottery” focuses on society by tradition. In “The Lottery,” the townspeople participate in the lottery because it is a tradition and they have done it their whole lives. Tradition played a role in this essay by stating, “Mr. Summers spoke frequently to the villagers about making a new box, but no one liked to upset even as much tradition as was represented by the black box” (Jackson par. 5). They have been doing this tradition since the town has been built. People voice their own opinion on how they should get rid of the lottery by saying, “Some places have already quit lotteries.” Mrs. Adams said (Jackson web). They start having the lottery more than once a year and the people are altered by the rest of the town into keeping the tradition. Everyone in “The Lottery” is pressured by society to do the opposite of what they feel is honestly

right.
Tessie was the one who met her fate this year for apparently no reason. If the town had stopped the lottery, none of this would have happened. Even though Tessie was being rude to Mr. Summers that is no reason to be killed. Tessie was anxious and irritated by saying, “You didn’t give him time enough to take any paper he wanted. I saw you. It wasn’t fair!” (Jackson web). Tessie got on everyone’s nerves at some point in the story, but there was no reason to even hurt or kill her. Before Tessie died she said, “It isn’t fair,” she said. A stone hit her on the side of the head. Old Man Warner was saying, “Come on, come on, everyone…”It isn’t fair, it isn’t right,” Mrs. Hutchinson screamed, and then they were upon her” (Jackson web). Dismally, Tessie dies.
Therefore, it can be argued regardless of free will, fate plays a large role in one’s destiny. George Orwell chose not to harm the elephant, but society’s pressures made him do it anyway. The people of the village all blindly followed an old tradition they knew was cruel and unfair, just because they were supposed to do it. To stand up for what you believe against society’s control would be an extremely difficult if not impossible battle. You can fight it, to form your own identity, but in the end, fate eventually wins.