Themes: Colonial Guilt and Tyranny

Orwell is known as a democratic socialist who hated imperialism, and by the time he came to write “Shooting an Elephant,” he had reached this mature perspective. The young man he describes in this incident a decade ago, however, was a less systematic thinker, uncomfortable and confused in his role as a low-level official doing “the dirty work of empire.” He also believes that his own attitude was approximately typical of Anglo-Indian officials,...

Themes: Moral Cowardice

In the first paragraph of “Shooting an Elephant,” Orwell remarks that none of the Burmese people in Moulmein “had the guts to raise a riot.” They showed their hatred of him in various petty and cowardly ways and only had a little temporary respect for him when he was killing a harmless elephant. Orwell clearly depicts his shooting of the elephant as an act of moral cowardice. He did not want to kill the elephant, and he only did so because he...

Themes: Crowds and Power

Orwell is in Burma as a representative of the British Raj, the oppressive colonial power. On the surface, the story told in the essay is about the exercise of that power, as the imperial officer kills a large, powerful, valuable animal. The fact that the elephant is placid and harmless, no longer posing any threat to anybody, only underlines the tyranny of the act. However, Orwell repeatedly makes it clear that he shot the elephant against his...

Themes: The Theater of Empire

As the crowd watches him take aim at the elephant, Orwell describes himself as a performer in front of an audience. The people, he says, are staring at him “as they would watch a conjurer about to perform a trick.” Despite their personal dislike, and their readiness to laugh if Orwell is humiliated, they find him “momentarily worth watching” because he wields a “magic rifle.” He appears to be “the leading actor of the piece” but is really the...

Themes: Imperialism

"Shooting an Elephant" by George Orwell explores the theme of imperialism, highlighting its oppressive and dehumanizing effects on both the colonizers and the colonized. Through the narrative of a British officer in Burma, Orwell illustrates the moral conflict and societal pressures that accompany imperial rule. The story reveals how imperialism forces individuals to act against their own judgment to maintain authority, ultimately exposing the...

Themes: Colonialism

"Shooting an Elephant" by George Orwell explores the theme of colonialism, highlighting its dehumanizing effects on both the colonizers and the colonized. The narrative illustrates the moral conflict faced by Orwell, a British officer in Burma, who is pressured into shooting an elephant to maintain authority, despite his personal reluctance. This act symbolizes the oppressive nature of imperialism, which forces individuals to conform to societal...