Surname 1
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Analyzing the Real Nature of Imperialism in George Orwell’s Shooting an Elephant
The book Shooting an Elephant by George Orwell is an interesting commentary on the
personal and ethical problems of a British colonial officer in Burma. The effects of imperialism
on both the colonizer and the colonized have been critically discussed in the essay through the
prism of an incident in which Orwell is compelled to shoot an elephant. The author of the book,
Orwell, who has been critical of the authority and suppression, uses this personal experience to
provide insight into the destructive effects of imperialism to demonstrate how it has a destructive
impact on personal integrity, ethical decisions, and the effects on the whole society. This
discussion examines the relevance of the phrase "real nature of imperialism," the struggle that
Orwell was facing personally, the symbolic use of the death of the elephant as well as his
indecisiveness to take action, and how both factors combine to project his disappointment in the
colonial power.
The Real Nature of Imperialism
The discussion of imperialism in Shooting an Elephant by Orwell reveals the reality of
imperialism as a form of oppression towards the colonized and the colonizers. Imperialism is not
merely about domination; it involves the establishment of a web of power structures that
dehumanize all the involved parties. It entails keeping the control and authority and repressing
their desires and moral values to the British colonizer. Orwell is put in such a situation that he is
expected to defend the strength of the empire despite his own dislike of it. The position compels
, Surname 2
him to do things he does not think are right, but he is caught up in the demands of the empire and
the citizens he supposedly is supposed to rule.
This self-dilemma forms the central point of how Orwell perceived imperialism. It
deprives the idealism and pretensions of the colonizer and the emptiness of the power that the
colonizer possesses. The example of Orwell himself (he hesitantly shoots the elephant) indicates
the corrupting influence of imperialism on the personal decision and makes people make
decisions that are opposed by their own sense of right and wrong to keep appearing in control. In
this perspective, imperialism is a tyrannical power that denies people the right to do as they
please to do with their conscience but turns them into instruments of a system that they might not
even believe in.
Orwell’s Personal Dilemma
The central focus of the story is Orwell as an internal dilemma of a colonial officer in
Burma. The size of the moral dilemma of colonization is hinted at in his ambivalence about his
role in the British Empire. According to Orwell, he was, theoretically speaking, opposed to the
idea of imperialism, but being an element of the colonial machine, he was directly contradicting
his own values. The impracticality of the realities of his work, in which he had to go and enforce
the will of the empire, weighed against the hatred he felt towards the oppressive systems of the
empire. This tension is also seen when he writes about the Burmese people whom he
sympathizes with and hates at the same time because he is caught in the middle of a system that
is dehumanizing both the rulers and the ruled.
This ethical dilemma is made even more severe when Orwell is summoned to handle the
elephant, a metaphor for the greater system of colonial domination. Initially, Orwell does not
want to act because he regards the situation as something that would come by itself.
Name
Course Code
Instructor
Date
Analyzing the Real Nature of Imperialism in George Orwell’s Shooting an Elephant
The book Shooting an Elephant by George Orwell is an interesting commentary on the
personal and ethical problems of a British colonial officer in Burma. The effects of imperialism
on both the colonizer and the colonized have been critically discussed in the essay through the
prism of an incident in which Orwell is compelled to shoot an elephant. The author of the book,
Orwell, who has been critical of the authority and suppression, uses this personal experience to
provide insight into the destructive effects of imperialism to demonstrate how it has a destructive
impact on personal integrity, ethical decisions, and the effects on the whole society. This
discussion examines the relevance of the phrase "real nature of imperialism," the struggle that
Orwell was facing personally, the symbolic use of the death of the elephant as well as his
indecisiveness to take action, and how both factors combine to project his disappointment in the
colonial power.
The Real Nature of Imperialism
The discussion of imperialism in Shooting an Elephant by Orwell reveals the reality of
imperialism as a form of oppression towards the colonized and the colonizers. Imperialism is not
merely about domination; it involves the establishment of a web of power structures that
dehumanize all the involved parties. It entails keeping the control and authority and repressing
their desires and moral values to the British colonizer. Orwell is put in such a situation that he is
expected to defend the strength of the empire despite his own dislike of it. The position compels
, Surname 2
him to do things he does not think are right, but he is caught up in the demands of the empire and
the citizens he supposedly is supposed to rule.
This self-dilemma forms the central point of how Orwell perceived imperialism. It
deprives the idealism and pretensions of the colonizer and the emptiness of the power that the
colonizer possesses. The example of Orwell himself (he hesitantly shoots the elephant) indicates
the corrupting influence of imperialism on the personal decision and makes people make
decisions that are opposed by their own sense of right and wrong to keep appearing in control. In
this perspective, imperialism is a tyrannical power that denies people the right to do as they
please to do with their conscience but turns them into instruments of a system that they might not
even believe in.
Orwell’s Personal Dilemma
The central focus of the story is Orwell as an internal dilemma of a colonial officer in
Burma. The size of the moral dilemma of colonization is hinted at in his ambivalence about his
role in the British Empire. According to Orwell, he was, theoretically speaking, opposed to the
idea of imperialism, but being an element of the colonial machine, he was directly contradicting
his own values. The impracticality of the realities of his work, in which he had to go and enforce
the will of the empire, weighed against the hatred he felt towards the oppressive systems of the
empire. This tension is also seen when he writes about the Burmese people whom he
sympathizes with and hates at the same time because he is caught in the middle of a system that
is dehumanizing both the rulers and the ruled.
This ethical dilemma is made even more severe when Orwell is summoned to handle the
elephant, a metaphor for the greater system of colonial domination. Initially, Orwell does not
want to act because he regards the situation as something that would come by itself.
