Why do Burmese people not like the narrator?
Why don’t the Burmese people like the narrator? He has put many of them in jail. He is an unfair officer of the law. The narrator is not convinced there is an elephant loose until he…
What power does the narrator have over the people of Moulmein What power do the people of Moulmein have over the narrator?
The narrator has power over the people because they could have died if it wasn’t for him shooting the elephant. The people weren’t happy since the British wanted to take over their country. Orwell was the only white person, therefore, they always judged him because he was ‘on the other side’.
How does George Orwell feel about imperialism?
Imperialism. An anti-imperialist writer, Orwell promotes the idea that through imperialism, both conqueror and conquered are destroyed. Orwell clearly states his displeasure with colonial Britain: “I had already made up my mind that imperialism was an evil thing….
Why does Orwell shoot the elephant?
Orwell abandons his morals and kills the elephant to garner the approval of the Burmese. Orwell speaks of himself when he says, “it is the condition of 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.
What does the elephant’s slow death symbolize in shooting an elephant?
The fact that the elephant does not immediately die but remains paralyzed after being shot could symbolically represent the oppressed nature of the native Burmese citizens. Either way, the elephant’s slow, agonizing death symbolically represents the destructive, debilitating nature of colonialism.
Why is Orwell conflicted about imperialism?
Why is Orwell conflicted about imperialism? Orwell admits that he “[t]heoretically” is on the side of the Burmese people, but that their hatred of him held him back from embracing the cause of independence from the British Empire—and indeed drove him to hatred of them himself.
What is the irony in shooting an elephant?
George Orwell’s “Shooting an Elephant” features the ironic theme that, as Orwell writes, “when the white man turns tyrant, it is his own freedom that he destroys.” This is situational irony, which occurs when an action has unintended consequences that are the opposite of what was expected or desired.
What makes the narrator change his mind about shooting the elephant?
The narrator hesitates to kill the elephant because by the time he arrives at the place where the elephant has been on a rampage, the elephant is peaceful. The narrator realizes the animal no longer poses any threat.
Is shooting an elephant a narrative?
“Shooting an Elephant” by George Orwell is a narrative essay about Orwell’s time as a police officer for the British Raj in colonial Burma. The essay delves into an inner conflict that Orwell experiences in his role of representing the British Empire and upholding the law.
Did George Orwell actually shoot an elephant?
In 1936 these were followed by what he called a “sketch” describing how, and more importantly why, he had killed a runaway elephant during his time in Moulmein, today known as Mawlamyine. By this time Orwell was highly regarded, and many were reluctant to accept that he had indeed killed an elephant.
What is the value of the elephant in shooting an elephant?
The elephant is the central symbol of the story. Orwell uses it to represent the effect of colonialism on both the colonizer and the colonized. The elephant, like a colonized populace, has its liberty restricted, and it becomes violently rebellious only as a response to being shackled.
What is the elephant death scene in shooting an elephant most likely a metaphor for?
The elephant death scene in Shooting an Elephant is most likely a metaphor for the ineffectiveness of imperialism. The imperialists carried out a poor governance of a colonized country and this scene may be a metaphor for the imperialists’ misguided understanding of how their own system works.
What does Orwell learn about himself in shooting an elephant?
What did Orwell learn about himself and about imperialism through the incident in “Shooting an Elephant”? Orwell learns that imperialism forces individuals to act against their conscience in order to maintain the resolute, aggressive disposition necessary to impress the Natives.
How does shooting an elephant relate to imperialism?
In George Orwell’s “Shooting an Elephant,” deals with the evil side of imperialism. The British officer, acts as a symbol of the imperial country and the elephant is the victim of imperialism. Together, the solider and the elephant turns this into an attack on the evils of imperialism.
What makes shooting an elephant a narrative?
Hover for more information. In “Shooting an Elephant,” Orwell uses the first-person point of view. The story is told completely from his memory and perspective. This gives the reader a very one-sided view of events but enables Orwell to write candidly and frankly about this particular memory of his time in Burma.
What does the narrator in Shooting an Elephant by George Orwell think of the elephant when he finds it?
The narrator, George Orwell, thought that “it would be murder to shoot an elephant.” When he found the elephant, he did not want to kill it because he thought that it was no longer dangerous. But he still kills it because of the want to be a part or liked by the society. In short, he was “peer-pressured” by the people.
What does the elephant symbolize?
Elephants are revered as a symbol of good luck, prosperity, destroyer of evil, remover of obstacles, as well as strength, power, wisdom, memory, and vitality. In India, there are millions of temples dedicated to the Elephant God, who has the head of an elephant and the body of a young boy.
What rhetorical devices are used in shooting an elephant?
Rhetorical devices used in “Shooting an Elephant” include imagery, simile, and irony, all of which emphasize the many injustices done by the British Empire. For example, Orwell uses powerful similes to describe the prolonged death of the elephant, likening its trunk to a tree, before it trumpets for the last time.
Who is the antagonist in shooting an elephant?
The ostensible and immediate antagonist in “Shooting an Elephant” is the Burmese crowd. However, their hostility is caused by a less tangible antagonist, that of the imperial system which has made Orwell the enemy of the crowd.
What is the main theme of shooting an elephant?
The main themes of “Shooting an Elephant” include conscience, culture clash, and order and disorder. Conscience: In the essay, colonial law contrasts with the conscience of the narrator both in his killing of the elephant and his treatment of the Burmese.
Why does the narrator not want to shoot the elephant 3 reasons?
George Orwell does not want to shoot the elephant that has gone rogue for these reasons: A working elephant is valuable and since the elephant seems to have calmed down, it does not appear to have anything really wrong with it. It is a very serious act to shoot such an elephant; therefore, doing so should be avoided.
What is the principal cultural conflict in shooting an elephant?
The principal cultural conflict in “Shooting an Elephant” is between the colonized Burmese people and their British colonizers. At the time the story is set, the 1920s, Burma was a part of India, the British colony considered the jewel in the crown of the British empire.
Who is the main character in shooting an elephant?
The main character in “Shooting an Elephant,” is George Orwell, the author of the story.
How does the act of killing the elephant in George Orwell’s essay Shooting an Elephant reflect George Orwell’s attitude toward British imperialism?
HIs attitude is that imperialism destroys both the nation colonized and the colonizer. In the text the man tasked with killing the elephant (for the metaphore, the colonizer) doesn’t want to, but every one of the locals expects him to (they’re the colonized), so he does and he feels awful about it.
What annoyed the narrator Shooting an Elephant?
In the end, the Burmese hate the British because they want to be independent from the Empire, and the narrator hates the Burmese because he is part of the Empire (if not exactly an imperialist).
What damage does the elephant cause in the town?
1 Answer. The elephant caused a lot of destruction in the town. He broke branches, fences and smashed stalls. He entered a school play ground and broke a brick wall, pulled out a football goal post, tore down a volleyball net and flattened a water drum.