“Shooting an Elephant“ by George Orwell, published in 1936
Contents
• A young British officer serving in the Indian Imperial Police in Burmese village is the
main character and first-person narrator
• One day the locals inform him that a tame elephant has gone “must” (the “must” is a
period during which male adolescence elephants are more sexually active but also
more aggressive)
• Elephant has gone mad and is now at large, ravaging the bazaar
• Burmese ask for the police officer´s help because the keeper of the elephant is twelve
hours away (he has taken the wrong direction in his search for the animal)
• Villagers have no weapons to defend themselves against the animal, the officer´s
protection is needed
• Policeman is not sure how to act but takes his rifle and rides on his pony to the area
where the elephant has last been seen
• Finds a dead man lying in the mud who, the locals tell him, was killed by the elephant
• Officer realizes the danger of the situation, sends his pony back and gives the order
to be brought a proper elephant rifle
• When the news comes that the elephant has been spotted in the fields nearby, the
young officer sets out, armed with the new weapon
• Locals follow him with rising excitement, expecting a spectacular shooting of the
elephant and hoping to secure themselves a piece of the animal´s meat
• Officer feels uncomfortable because he has no intention to kill the elephant (only took
the rifle with him to defend himself)
• Arriving at the field, he sees that the elephant is grazing peacefully which makes him
think that the “must” attack has passed
• The creature is no longer a danger so there is no need to shoot it
• At the same time the officer feels the pressure from the crowd (more than two
thousand people) who expect him to kill the elephant
• Feels trapped, realizing that he has to play the role of the White man, in order to not
be laughed at by the Burmese
• For the sake of appearance (and not out of free will) the young officer pulls the trigger
and shoots at the elephant
• He aims the wrong spot because he is not experienced in hunting and wounds the
animal instead of killing it
• He shoots several times but the elephant is still living
• He becomes unable to watch this terrible death and escapes from the scene
• He later learns that the animal suffered great pain for half an hour until it died
• Villagers brought baskets to collect the meat
• After the incident, the furious protest of the Burmese owner are brushed aside by the
authorities
• Opinions among Europeans are divided
Characters
First-person narrator:
− Young British police officer
− Serves in the Indian Imperial Police in Burma
− Young man is still rather inexperienced and only holds this responsible position
because he is a White European
− His relationship to the Burmese village is ambivalent and rather strained
Contents
• A young British officer serving in the Indian Imperial Police in Burmese village is the
main character and first-person narrator
• One day the locals inform him that a tame elephant has gone “must” (the “must” is a
period during which male adolescence elephants are more sexually active but also
more aggressive)
• Elephant has gone mad and is now at large, ravaging the bazaar
• Burmese ask for the police officer´s help because the keeper of the elephant is twelve
hours away (he has taken the wrong direction in his search for the animal)
• Villagers have no weapons to defend themselves against the animal, the officer´s
protection is needed
• Policeman is not sure how to act but takes his rifle and rides on his pony to the area
where the elephant has last been seen
• Finds a dead man lying in the mud who, the locals tell him, was killed by the elephant
• Officer realizes the danger of the situation, sends his pony back and gives the order
to be brought a proper elephant rifle
• When the news comes that the elephant has been spotted in the fields nearby, the
young officer sets out, armed with the new weapon
• Locals follow him with rising excitement, expecting a spectacular shooting of the
elephant and hoping to secure themselves a piece of the animal´s meat
• Officer feels uncomfortable because he has no intention to kill the elephant (only took
the rifle with him to defend himself)
• Arriving at the field, he sees that the elephant is grazing peacefully which makes him
think that the “must” attack has passed
• The creature is no longer a danger so there is no need to shoot it
• At the same time the officer feels the pressure from the crowd (more than two
thousand people) who expect him to kill the elephant
• Feels trapped, realizing that he has to play the role of the White man, in order to not
be laughed at by the Burmese
• For the sake of appearance (and not out of free will) the young officer pulls the trigger
and shoots at the elephant
• He aims the wrong spot because he is not experienced in hunting and wounds the
animal instead of killing it
• He shoots several times but the elephant is still living
• He becomes unable to watch this terrible death and escapes from the scene
• He later learns that the animal suffered great pain for half an hour until it died
• Villagers brought baskets to collect the meat
• After the incident, the furious protest of the Burmese owner are brushed aside by the
authorities
• Opinions among Europeans are divided
Characters
First-person narrator:
− Young British police officer
− Serves in the Indian Imperial Police in Burma
− Young man is still rather inexperienced and only holds this responsible position
because he is a White European
− His relationship to the Burmese village is ambivalent and rather strained
