Jasmine Williams
ENG 1101
Essay #2
September 20, 2017
Saving Face I remember when I was growing up, as a child, my mom would always tell me “Jasmine make sure you come straight home when you get off the bus.” I had always wanted to stay a while and converse with my friends. They use to laugh and jive at the fact I had to go straight home. In the essay “Shooting an Elephant” author George Orwell writes how he often had to face many adversities until he was granted a certain opportunity. I use to feel like if only I could be with them a little more I wouldn’t have got picked on so much or been an oddball. Growing up I was never one of the more popular kids. I didn’t really go outside much. Before my father
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As I got ready to head home one girl was laughing and calling me lame because I was going home. I turned around and told her that I didn’t have to go home I only went home by choice. Apparently the girl took it as though I was challenging her. She turned defensive and started swearing at me. Of course I didn’t want to seem scared in front of everyone so stood there arguing with her. Everyone sat around laughing just like when Orwell “Faces all happy and excited over this bit of fun” (89). I ended up getting in my first fight that day. I truly do regret it. The girl hit me first swelling my eye. Just as Orwell, it’s like “I heard the devilish roar of glee that went up from the crowd” (91). All the kids were excited to see action. Although I ended up not losing the fight in the end I was embarrassed because I know that it could have been avoided. The worst part was going home to an upset mother. In the end although my mother was upset because of my face there was some benefit of that fight. I no longer got picked on. My mom also now knew that I could defend myself so she did eventually let me converse for a while with my true friends, yet she did schedule a time I had a time I had to be home. Just like Orwell once he shot the elephant he got a little more respect from the people in
Throughout the ages, people have at times been influenced by society to do things they would not normally do. There are people who have been influenced to do things they did not desire to do at the behest of others, simply to be accepted by their peers. The choices that are made in life affect you either way even if they were made by you or someone else. Each choice made has a consequence which will affect the individual and in return the decision will produce a particular outcome. Influence is a hard thing to calculate into someone’s life and seeing how it changes lives for better or for worst is very difficult. Perseverance through hardship is a theme that is seen in many works of literature, these include “Shooting an Elephant” by George Orwell and “Mirrors” by Lucy Grealy. Influences fulfill their objectives while affecting others in many different ways. Both authors show similarities and differences by explaining how life is taken advantage of by others.
Being pressured to do something is the worst feeling ever, especially when you’re a teenager. For me, it happened when I was in middle school on a Friday morning, when my friends pressured me to cut school with them. I have always considered myself a careful person where I don’t get into situations I know I can’t handle, but sometimes when a group of people are surrounding you and they all expect you do something, it’s overwhelming. This feeling could to the essay “Shooting an Elephant” by George Orwell where a policeman in Moulmein was pressured into doing something he did not want to do, which was killing an elephant.
elephant: ?Here I was the white man with his gun, standing in front of the
In the essay ?Shooting an Elephant? by George Orwell, the author uses metaphors to represent his feelings on imperialism, the internal conflict between his personal morals, and his duty to his country. Orwell demonstrates his perspectives and feelings about imperialism.and its effects on his duty to the white man?s reputation. He seemingly blends his opinions and subjects into one, making the style of this essay generally very simple but also keeps it strong enough to merit numerous interpretations. Orwell expresses his conflicting views regarding imperialism throughout the essay by using three examples of oppression and by deliberatly using his introspection on imperialism.
In “Shooting an Elephant” writer George Orwell illustrates the terrible episode that explains more than just the action of “shooting an elephant.” Orwell describes the scene of the killing of an elephant in Burma and reveals a number of emotions he experienced during the short, but traumatic event. Effectively, the writer uses many literary techniques to plant emotions and create tension in this scene, leading to an ironic presentation of imperialism. With each of the realistic descriptions of the observing multitude and the concrete appeal of the narrator’s pathos, Orwell thrives in persuading the audience that imperialism not only has a destructive impact on those being governed under the imperialists’ oppressive power, but also corrupts
Every day, each individual will look back on decisions he or she have made and mature from those experiences. Though it takes time to realize these choices, the morals and knowledge obtained from them are priceless. In George Orwell’s nonfictional essay, “Shooting an Elephant”, a young Orwell was stationed in Burma for the British imperial forces, tasked to deal with an elephant who destroyed various parts of the village Moulmein while its owner was away. Backed by second thoughts and a crowd of thousands, he finds himself shooting the elephant and reflecting that it was not justified; however, it was a choice pushed by his duty and the people. Written with a fusion of his young and old self’s outlook on shooting the elephant, Orwell’s essay is a sensational read that captivates his audience and leaves them questioning his decision.
The phrase “the power of the press” is used often, but what exactly is the power of the press? Since the beginning of news reporting, it’s been known that what actually gets into the news reports is monitored and carefully picked by higher authorities. What isn’t widely known, however, is that the media can use specific wording and phrases that, on the surface, look like normal news coverage, but are actually a technique of the media to control the images people see and the words they hear and read. From this, people then form their ideals, but are these actually ideals of those people if the media from which they based them off of was controlled to begin with? It is the power of the press to control and manipulate the public’s ideals by what is released in the media.
The essay “Stranger in the village” by James Baldwin, and “Shooting an Elephant” by George Orwell, share a similarity in their experience in a new environments. Orwell a British officer he was not warmly welcome, the Burmese people hated. As for Baldwin it is more of racism than hated. Both essays happen in unfamiliar places where there were racism and discrimination. They do not fit in with the natives and is judged because of their nationalities. However, the themes of these writing differ.
Every writer has that one special quirk that keeps readers coming back for more. Whether it is the humor or the characters, most authors carry their quirks from story to story. In “Shooting an Elephant,” George Orwell describes his experience of shooting an elephant. In “A Hanging,” he describes the emotions that run through him as he watches the hanging of a prisoner. Both essays have similar key ideas that identify Orwell as a writer. The results of pride and power contribute to the themes that connect his essays and identify Orwell as a descriptive writer.
...friends” then they would interpret my words differently and make me look like a bad person. Rumors were spread, arguments took place, and I lost those two friends because they couldn’t treat me right. I learned to not be friends with anyone who might spread rumors about me or that might be too easily offended. I found out that the popular kids can be mean sometimes. I was made fun of for my oversized sweater. The sweater used to belong to my older cousin whom I admired. I didn’t know why they thought it looked funny when I believed it was the best piece of clothing I ever owned. The popular group taught me to keep dressing the way I want. Then my attire could make the girl upset and I would be the one comfortable at school. Therefore, my peers taught me about life and myself. This group affected me because I learned to not fall under the norms and make my own trends.
Throughout "Shooting an Elephant" by George Orwell, he addresses his internal battle with the issues of morality and immorality. He writes of several situations that show his immoral doings. When George Orwell signed up for a five-year position as a British officer in Burma he was unaware of the moral struggle that he was going to face. Likewise, he has an internal clash between his moral conscious and his immoral actions. Therefore, Orwell becomes a puppet to the will of the Burmese by abandoning his thoughts of moral righteousness. This conflicts with the moral issue of relying upon other's morals, rather than one's own conscience.
The glorious days of the imperial giants have passed, marking the death of the infamous and grandiose era of imperialism. George Orwell's essay, Shooting an Elephant, deals with the evils of imperialism. The unjust shooting of an elephant in Orwell's story is the central focus from which Orwell builds his argument through the two dominant characters, the elephant and its executioner. The British officer, the executioner, acts as a symbol of the imperial country, while the elephant symbolizes the victim of imperialism. Together, the solider and the elephant turns this tragic anecdote into an attack on the institution of imperialism.
Growing up, I always felt out of place. When everyone else was running around in the hot, sun, thinking of nothing, but the logistics of the game they were playing. I would be sat on the curb, wondering what it was that made them so much different from me. To me, it was if they all knew something that I didn’t know, like they were all apart of some inside joke that I just didn’t get. I would sit, each day when my mind wasn’t being filled with the incessant chatter of my teachers mindlessly sharing what they were told to, in the hot, humid air of the late spring and wonder what I was doing wrong. See, my discontent
People started crowding around, to see what was happening. Almost all the kids laughed at me, the older kids laughed because they were mean and the smaller ones laughed to fit in. Luckily, the bell rang and recess was over. I was truly "saved by the bell." I had put it off for too long; I had to tell my teacher about these bullies.I went to my teacher’s desk and whined to her, "Some older kids were bullying me in the playground. They told me to cut my hair.""You should cut your hair. So much hair is disgusting" she told me most spitefully.I went to my seat crying with anger, not to those bullies or my teacher, yet to myself for being, so weird.
"Shooting an Elephant" is perhaps one of the most anthologized essays in the English language. It is a splendid essay and a terrific model for a theme of narration. The point of the story happens very much in our normal life, in fact everyday. People do crazy and sometimes illegal moves to get a certain group or person to finally give them respect. George Orwell describes an internal conflict between his personal morals and his duty to his country to the white man's reputation. The author's purpose is to explain the audience (who is both English and Burmese) about the kind of life he is living in Burma, about the conditions, circumstances he is facing and to tell the British Empire what he think about their imperialism and his growing displeasure for the imperial domination of British Empire.