A Summary and Analysis of George Orwell’s Shooting an Elephant
George Orwell (1903-1951)
wrote an essay in 1936 titled Shooting an Elephant about his experiences
as a young police officer in Burma, which was then a part of the British
Empire. The essay investigates the seemingly paradoxical behavior of Europeans
who are meant to be in control of their colonial subjects. Beginning with some
of his early experiences as a young police officer serving in Burma, Orwell
shares some of his memories. Although it has been questioned how much of the
essay is autobiographical, we shall refer to the narrator as Orwell himself for
convenience.
Like
other British and European citizens in imperial Burma, he was treated with
contempt by the locals, who would trip him over during games of football
between the Europeans and Burmans and would shout insults at the European
invaders in public. These encounters, according to Orwell, left him with two
things: they confirmed his already-formed belief that imperialism was bad and
they implanted contempt for the animosity that exists between European imperialists
and their local people. Of course, these two are connected, and Orwell is aware
of the Buddhist priests' resentment about being subject to European power. He
understands the point of view, but it's unpleasant to be the target of ridicule
or disgust. He is torn between love for the empire and hate for it. He worked
while furious at the cruel little monsters that attempted to make his task
difficult. The action of the tale occurs in Burma's Moulmein. A domesticated
elephant that the villagers own and utilize has been creating chaos throughout
the bazaar after giving its rider, or mahout, the slip. It has demolished huts,
butchered cows, and descended on fruit stands in search of sustenance. To see
what he can achieve, Orwell grabs his firearm and mounts his pony.
Although
he is aware that the elephant won't be killed by the rifle, he yet holds out
hope that the elephant will be startled by the gunshot. Orwell learns that the
local laborer had just been killed when the elephant trampled him to the ground.
Sending his pony away, Orwell orders the delivery of an elephant gun, which
would be more efficient against such a large animal. When Orwell goes in
pursuit of the elephant, he discovers it calmly munching on some grass and
appearing as harmless as a cow.
The
situation has since cooled down, but Burmese people have gathered and are now
closely observing Orwell. Even though he no longer believes the animal to be a
threat, he understands that the community expects him to kill it, and he will
lose face if he does not comply. He then kills the elephant from a
safe distance and is amazed at how long it takes the beast to pass away. At the
conclusion of the essay, he admits that the sole reason he shot the elephant
was to avoid appearing silly.