Shooting an Elephant by George Orwell : Summary and analysis

Introduction to the Author

George Orwell (1903–1950), whose real name was Eric Arthur Blair, is one of the most influential English writers of the twentieth century. He was: novelist, essayist, journalist,political critic, social commentator.

Orwell is celebrated for his commitment to:

truth, justice, political freedom, social equality.

His works expose the dangers of:

imperialism, totalitarianism, oppression, abuse of power.

Some of his major works include:

Animal Farm

Nineteen Eighty-Four

Burmese Days

Homage to Catalonia

The Road to Wigan Pier

Between 1922 and 1927, Orwell served in the Indian Imperial Police in Burma (present-day Myanmar). The experiences he gained there profoundly shaped his political ideas and turned him into a severe critic of imperialism. Shooting an Elephant, written in 1936, is largely based on these experiences.

Introduction to the Essay

Shooting an Elephant is one of Orwell's finest autobiographical essays.

On the surface, it narrates the story of a British police officer who shoots an elephant in Burma.

At a deeper level, however, it is:

a critique of imperialism,

an exploration of power and responsibility,

a study of psychological conflict,

an examination of the relationship between rulers and the ruled.

The essay demonstrates the tragic irony of colonialism:

the oppressor himself becomes a prisoner of the system of oppression.

Orwell uses one seemingly ordinary incident to expose the moral and psychological corruption of imperialism.

Historical Background

During the early twentieth century, Burma was a British colony.

The British exercised political and economic control over the country.

The Burmese people deeply resented foreign rule.

As a British police officer, Orwell occupied a difficult position.

Although he represented imperial authority, he personally sympathized with the Burmese people and opposed imperialism.

This internal conflict forms the basis of the essay.

Detailed Summary of the Essay

Orwell's Life in Burma

The essay begins with Orwell's confession that he was hated by many Burmese people.

As a young police officer stationed in Moulmein, he became the target of: insults, mockery, ridicule.

Burmese boys tripped him on the football field.

Buddhist priests jeered at Europeans whenever they had the opportunity.

If a European woman walked alone through the market, people would throw betel juice on her clothes.

Orwell therefore occupied an uncomfortable position.

He hated imperialism, but he also sometimes felt anger toward the Burmese because of their hostility.

This contradiction caused him great mental confusion.

He writes that:

imperialism was an evil thing.

At the same time, he admits that he sometimes wanted to hurt those who mocked him.

Thus, from the very beginning, the essay presents a deeply divided mind.

News of the Elephant

One morning, Orwell received a message from a sub-inspector.

A tame elephant had suddenly gone mad.

The elephant was in its period of must, a temporary state of violent excitement in male elephants.

Its keeper had gone in search of it in the wrong direction.

Meanwhile, the elephant had caused considerable destruction.

It had:

destroyed a bamboo hut,

overturned a municipal cart,

killed a cow,

raided fruit stalls,

frightened the local population.

Orwell did not intend to kill the elephant.

He merely took his rifle for protection and set out to assess the situation.

The Crowd Follows Him

As Orwell walked through the streets, more and more Burmese people joined him.

They believed that he had come to shoot the elephant.

Soon an enormous crowd followed him.

The crowd consisted of nearly two thousand people.

For them, the shooting of the elephant promised: excitement, entertainment, free meat.

Orwell gradually realized that he was expected to kill the elephant.

Discovery of the Dead Coolie

As he approached the elephant's location, Orwell encountered a horrifying sight.

An Indian labourer, or coolie, had been killed by the elephant.

The dead man lay in the mud.

His body had been terribly mutilated.

The elephant had trampled him so violently that:

his back was broken,

his face was twisted,

his body appeared grotesque.

This gruesome sight deeply affected Orwell.

He immediately sent for a more powerful rifle.

Seeing the Elephant

Soon Orwell saw the elephant.

To his surprise, it appeared completely peaceful.

It was standing in a field, quietly eating grass.

The animal no longer seemed dangerous.

It looked:

calm, harmless, majestic.

At this moment Orwell realized that killing the elephant would be wrong.

He understood that the elephant's violent behaviour had been temporary.

Once its keeper arrived, the elephant would probably become manageable again.

He decided not to shoot it.

The Psychological Crisis

At this point the essay reaches its climax.

Orwell suddenly looked behind him.

He saw the enormous crowd waiting expectantly.

Thousands of faces stared at him.

They wanted a spectacle.

At that moment he understood something profound:

As a colonial ruler, he was not free.

He had to behave according to the expectations of the crowd.

If he failed to shoot the elephant, the Burmese would laugh at him.

He would appear:

weak, frightened, ridiculous.

He realized:

"A white man mustn't be frightened in front of natives."

The fear of humiliation forced him to act against his own judgment.

The Decision to Shoot

Although Orwell knew that the elephant should not be killed, he decided to shoot it.

He later confessed:

"I had done it solely to avoid looking a fool."

This sentence is the moral centre of the essay.

He did not shoot the elephant:

out of necessity,

out of courage,

out of duty.

He shot it because he could not bear public humiliation.

The Shooting

Orwell fired the first shot.

The elephant did not die.

Instead, it looked:

suddenly old, shrunken, exhausted.

He fired again.

And then again.

The animal remained standing.

Finally it collapsed.

However, it still did not die.

The elephant continued to breathe painfully.

Its body trembled.

Its suffering lasted for a long time.

Orwell was unable to bear the sight.

He fired several more shots into its heart.

Still the elephant remained alive.

Its slow and painful death deeply disturbed him.

Eventually, unable to watch further, Orwell walked away.

He later learned that the elephant had taken nearly half an hour to die.

The Aftermath

Almost immediately, local people rushed toward the elephant.

They carried:

knives, baskets.

Before long, they had stripped the carcass of its flesh.

The owner of the elephant was furious.

However, being an Indian, he had little power to challenge a British officer.

Among Europeans, opinions were divided.

Some believed Orwell had acted correctly.

Others thought it was a disgrace to kill such a valuable animal merely because it had killed an ordinary labourer.

Orwell himself felt relieved that the elephant had killed the coolie because the death provided a legal justification for his actions.

Yet he continued to wonder whether anyone understood the real reason for the shooting:

he had acted merely to avoid appearing foolish.Significance of the Ending

The ending reveals the true meaning of the essay.

The elephant's death is not merely the death of an animal.

It symbolizes:

the moral corruption of imperialism,

the destruction of individual freedom,

the tragedy of acting against one's conscience.

The essay ends with a painful realization:

the oppressor himself becomes enslaved by the role he is forced to play.