Colonialist Oppression in "Marrakech"

573 Words2 Pages

"Marrakech," an essay by George Orwell, accomplishes a key balance by providing descriptive imagery, literal and direct views that are presented through the diction, and transitioning the narrator from one setting to the next. This balance allows the reader to fully grasp Orwell's intent of showing the reader that colonialism has corrupted the views of the white society, leading to their lack of acknowledgement of any dignity that the most unfortunate people in humanity may have.

Orwell is clearly trying to get a point across to the reader, and he wants to make a lasting impression with it. The passage begins with "As the corpse went past, flies left the restaurant table in a cloud and rushed after it, but they came back a few minutes later," which instantly establishes in the reader's mind a strong sense of disrespect and a gut-wrenching disgust. Strong imagery is used again when the treatment and "burials" of the gazelles is mentioned. Instead of treating those who provide so much in the vacant lives of the people with respect and loyalty, as they show the people, they misuse them and they abuse them, and when they are finished doing that, they simply "tip [them] into the ditch, and the village dogs have torn [their] guts out before [they are] cold." Again, Orwell presents to his reader the anonymity that all things, living and dead, have due to colonialism. The Jewish Ghetto is yet another description that Orwell utilizes when saying, "Many of the streets are a good deal less than six feet wide, the houses are windowless, and sore-eyed children cluster everywhere...like clouds of flies." The picture that the imagery paints to the reader in this passage is poverty-stricken and extremely unpleasant. The same is true when the ...

... middle of paper ...

..." Instead of accepting the fact that the white race was prevailing and omnipotent, the narrator is now able to perceive the damage that colonialism has done on society. This line is what ties together Orwell's intent and the impression he had sought out to compose because it is the key moment of realization for the narrator.

"Marrakech" portrays to its audience the challenges of life that thousands face throughout the world. By accurately and efficiently using imagery, direct views, and illustrating the significance of the transitions between each "scene" in "Marrakech," Orwell balances his purpose with a strong picture of poverty, racial inequality, and anonymity. Colonialism oppression cannot last forever, as shown in the last paragraph of the text, but for now, it will require more than only one white man to distinguish that in order for anything to change.

Open Document