Anoop Mahal Dr. Gavin Paul English 1100‚ Section 15 29 June 2013 Critical Analysis #2 George Orwell’s essay‚ “Shooting an Elephant” details one of the most unforgettable moments in his life. He relives the period in his youth where he was stationed in Moulmein‚ Burma as a “sub-divisional police officer of the town” (472) Orwell explains how he was tasked with subduing a runaway elephant‚ which was rampaging through the town; Orwell ultimately found himself going against his will and having to
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Shooting an Elephant In life‚ everyone has their own choices to make. Most of the time‚ the side that one has to choose is not what they want but what they need. Just one wrong decision can even cost a life. Hence many choices are immensely difficult. A significant one could be choosing to follow one own heart or to surrender under the pressure of the society they live in. This is the one that occur in Orwell situation. In his essay‚ Orwell writes about the one who has the responsibility of managing
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NOTES ON SHOOTING AN ELEPHANT 1) colonialism in "Shooting an Elephant." * George Orwell wrote this essay when England ruled Burma as a colony---much like it had ruled America during the colonial period. Colonialism occurred when many European nations simply took over countries because they believed their culture was superior to the native culture. The ideas of social darwinism‚ or survival of the strongest nations and/or people‚ played a large role in the domination and subjection of countries
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In the reading‚ Shooting an Elephant‚ George Orwell is narrating about his feeling and pressure shooting an elephant. A little about the writer‚ Orwell‚ is a British police officer who was born in India. He was hated by large numbers of people in Moulmein‚ in Lower Burma as the British had colonized Burma. One day he was notified that there was an elephant roaming around the street. The elephant was however not wild but everyone were frightened since it was enormous and disrupting. It made people
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In the essay Shooting an Elephant George Orwell writes about two major subjects imperialism and despotism. According to the New Oxford American Dictionary the meaning of imperialism is “a policy of extending a country’s power and influence diplomacy or military force”‚ and the meaning of despotism is “the exercise of absolute power‚ especially in a cruel and oppressive way.” Even though Orwell does not dwell on the subjects in writing‚ in depth his essay revolves around imperialistic views and despotism
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Cheslar UC Expo Period 4 5 March 2013 Student Dialogue: Shooting an Elephant One of the biggest issues in governments is corruption. Corruption however‚ is an issue created by the individuals through how they choose to use their power‚ whether it is for the good of everyone or not. The struggle with doing what is right‚ and what people in power tell you to do‚ is one of the biggest elements in George Orwell’s “Shooting an Elephant.” The true story tells about George’s experiences policing during
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Shooting an elephant Author: George Orwell BIOGRAPHY OF GEORGE ORWELL George Orwell ’s three major books of travel writing--Down and Out in Paris and London (1933)‚ The Road to Wigan Pier (1937)‚ and Homage to Catalonia (1938)--revived the tradition of excursionary literature as social and political analysis. "Into Unknown England" books were initiated by reform-minded Victorian and Edwardian authors. In his three travel books Orwell‚ who casts himself as a representative of English "lower-upper-middle-class"
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“Shooting an Elephant” By: George Orwell In the essay “Shooting an Elephant” George Orwell argues that‚ “when the white man turns tyrant it is his own freedom that he destroys.” Free will is indestructible; an example of Orwell’s destruction of freedom but preservation of free will is given in his essay. Humans can always exercise their free will when making decisions. However‚ when their decisions come in conflict with the laws set by a higher power‚ they might face consequences based on how
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Lower Burma‚ also known as Myanmar‚ was a country in Asia‚ that at the moment was being taken over by the mean‚ powerful‚ cruel‚ British Empire. George Orwell‚ the writer of Shooting and Elephant‚ was a “sub-divisional police officer of the town”(1). Being an authority of the town‚ Moulmein‚ ment “[he] was an obvious target” (1). The narrator was often jeered at‚ due to the fact he was a European. He often faced many difficult tasks that he was obligated to perform‚ despite his beliefs. He was “hated
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“Shooting an Elephant” Response Orwell did not get along with the Burmese‚ nor did he like them because they would make fun of him and enjoyed insulting him while on duty. As for the British Raj‚ he felt as if the Raj was a cruel and aggressive government ruler and that his hatred towards him was so great that he would “drive a bayonet into a Buddhist priest’s guts.” (pg.3). Therefore Orwell being a white man has a great conflict with the Burmese. In paragraph 2‚ he began to talk about how
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