Example Of Essay On Shooting Elephants

In the short story “Shooting an Elephant” author, George Orwell tells of a British police officer in Lower Burma. The narrator begins by depicting how much prejudice is found in British Burma and how he endures jeers from the crowd on several occasions. Strangely, he does not blame the Burmese for the hatred they show towards the British. The story begins when one morning; an elephant shows up in the town and ravages a bazaar in a poor section of the town. He is called upon by a Burmese sub-inspector to go and remedy the situation, which meant that he had to kill the elephant before it did any more damage. He rides on his pony to the scene and arrives to find a crowd waiting for him. He sends for a rifle and together with the crowds, they set off to kill the elephant that they find peacefully eating grass. Despite not wanting to shoot the elephant, he finds himself giving into the crowd’s demands and decides to kill the animal, which makes him feel like an English puppet. He lowers himself to the ground to steady his aim and takes three shots at the elephant that eventually falls to its knees. This story relates to our daily lives where most of us often struggle to be accepted in society despite our difference. Orwell finds himself shooting the elephant despite not wanting to kill the animal relates to our daily life struggles of right and wrong. Doing what is morally right comes at a price is today’s society and is more often not accepted or is depicted as being cowardly. What the policeman did was right because of the circumstance he found himself in the crowd of yellow-faced Burmese natives.