Though Shooting an Elephant was written in 1936, its theme is still applicable today. George Orwell's theme is that people are driven by others' expectations for them. In the narrative, Orwell makes it clear that the only reason the speaker shoots the elephant is because a crowd of Burmans expect him to. He begins the narrative by giving the audience background information on the speaker, such as how he came to be a police officer in Burma and his political views. This leads the audience to believe that the speaker is a good person, a protagonist for the story. By doing this, Orwell makes his theme more applicable to all of the audience because they connect with the speaker's good heart. The plot goes on to the speaker's encounter with the elephant, and even after he discovers a man killed by the elephant and he retrieves a gun designed for shooting elephants, he still declares that he has no intention of shooting the elephant. Orwell uses this to show how someone who knows the difference between right and wrong was swayed by pressure of other people.
An important rhetorical device that Orwell used is foreshadowing. When the speaker finds a man who was crushed by the elephant, his appearance is described using very macabre imagery. Orwell even describes the victim's expression as looking "devilish" and "grinning with an expression of unendurable agony." This is a darker mood than Orwell had used up to this part of the narrative, and it foreshadows that the elephant will be killed. Then, Orwell shifts to a very lugubrious mood as he details the death of elephant in a very drawn-out way. He ends the narrative by noting that he only killed the elephant to avoid looking foolish, further establishing the theme.
Works Cited:
Orwell, George. "Shooting an Elephant." Shooting an Elephant, and Other Essays. New York: Harcourt, Brace, 1950. N. pag. Web. 26 Sept. 2015.
An important rhetorical device that Orwell used is foreshadowing. When the speaker finds a man who was crushed by the elephant, his appearance is described using very macabre imagery. Orwell even describes the victim's expression as looking "devilish" and "grinning with an expression of unendurable agony." This is a darker mood than Orwell had used up to this part of the narrative, and it foreshadows that the elephant will be killed. Then, Orwell shifts to a very lugubrious mood as he details the death of elephant in a very drawn-out way. He ends the narrative by noting that he only killed the elephant to avoid looking foolish, further establishing the theme.
Works Cited:
Orwell, George. "Shooting an Elephant." Shooting an Elephant, and Other Essays. New York: Harcourt, Brace, 1950. N. pag. Web. 26 Sept. 2015.