Hung By Oppression

Hung by Oppression In the short essay “A Hanging” written by George Orwell, he discusses an instance where an Indian man is hung, Orwell recalls this experience as an eye opener, something that showed him the ‘wrongness in cutting a life short’ (Orwell, page 2). Orwell paints a picture of British Colonization in India, the power the British Empire held, and it’s impact on the Burmese population; showing the reader that the minority in Burma- the British, still played the oppressive role in the lives of the majority- the Burmese.
Brent Staples also published an essay titled “Just Walk On By: Black Men in Public Space”, he discussed the prejudice and stereotyping he faced over something he could not control- his skin. He writes about how he is viewed in society, and though he never directly references oppression, it is evident that Staples faced it in his daily life, on multiple occasions.
On the surface, these two essays seem to have more apparent differences than similarities- one was written by a white man in 1931, the other by a black man in 1986. One about corporal punishment, the other

Staples writes, “My first victim was a white woman, well dressed, probably in her early twenties.” (Staples, 1). The author’s despair is evident through the assumption of him being a perpetrator of violence by his use of the word ‘victim’ - one becomes a victim at the hand of a perpetrator or force of nature - Staples applies this to himself due to the ideologies of the street walkers. The word choice itself has a negative connotation, opening a margin for readers to presume that the rest of the essay is also in an unfavorable and gloomy tone. It is important for both essays to convey tone through diction to cement the true nature of each essay. The important messages displayed in both essays cannot be thoroughly conveyed if the tone is not set for