Plot, Theme and Tone in Shooting an Elephant by George Orwell Free Essay Example, 1250 words

The theme of this essay can be defined as an attempt to offend imperialism and its evils by relating the narrator s state of being a member of the British Indian Imperial Police in Burma. By including the right details for plot and the behaviour of the public with him, the author has precisely expressed the misfortune of a man living life on land where the local people do not acknowledge him and his duty due to their negative feelings for imperialism. The theme also comprises of the narrator s understanding that he has lost his freedom of judgment and choice in the process of getting acknowledgment and respect from the natives of Burma. The main purpose of Orwell s describing the shooting of an element is to describe the effort he made, to inspire the local people and drag their attention to the fact he is willing to do any task according to their demand, without caring if he has been left with an unsatisfied conscience. The author narrates that he felt himself so bound to accept th e demand, for shooting the elephant, made by the crowd of native following him, and he did so even at the cost of his own reluctance. The author has used his expertise in narrating atmosphere, events, and tone in a very promising approach. We will write a custom essay sample on Plot, Theme and Tone in Shooting an Elephant by George Orwell or any topic specifically for you Only $17.96 $11.86/pageorder now He has greatly satisfied the reader that whatever he did, even though he himself considers guilty for it, was not his fault, but of the established impacts of imperialism. There are many parts in the essay where the author has utilized the ironic style to cover up his situation. The author has also incorporated the conflict of argues to justify a situation where a reader can demand the narrator to fulfill his duty honestly and not to pursue the feeling of making natives happy. As the narrator indicates that deep inside, against the demand of crowd, he himself was not comfortable with the idea of shooting the elephant, but he did it. The author has very efficiently saved himself from the charge of being the culprit by putting all blame to the negative consequences of imperialism in his text.