Oppression Of Guilt In George Orwell's 'Shooting An Elephant'

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“Shooting an Elephant” by George Orwell

“Shooting an Elephant” By George Orwell reflects Orwell’s emotions of hatred, bitterness, and guilt felt due to oppression of Imperialism in Moulmein, Burma; During Orwell’s service as a sub-divisional police officer with the India Imperial Police.

The story begins with Orwell explaining his deep hatred for the role he took place in during his service as a police officer in Burma. He was not happy within his daily routine and began to feel intense hatred towards the empire he served, the Burma people (yellow faces) and with his deep smoldering emotions within himself. Although Orwell was born in India he was a white man and was made aware of his skin color daily. The Yellow faces as he would call the natives made a point of singling him out with heckling remarks or bullying tactics as the ones he experienced during his many games. The young monks where among the worse when it …show more content…

Orwell would begin to feel guilt for the act he was lead into the day of the shooting of the elephant. Guilt for being used as a puppet, Guilt for being bullied into such an act against his wishes, Guilt for what he had done! The events of this day would lead to Orwell retiring from the police to become a writer, it is here that he shared the events of that fateful day and the shooting of the elephant. Over the years many discussions have taken place as to the act of the shooting some speak of it being just and right, while others felt it was a crime to shoot such an animal worth more than anything the elephant may have destroyed in its path. However, in the end it was Orwell’s words that said it best “I often wondered whether any of the others grasped that I had done it solely to avoid looking a

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