Tania Sarabia

Dr. Lynda Haas

Writing 37 (11am)
March 8, 2015
Shooting an Elephant: Historical and Cultural Context
Thesis: Although George Orwells Shooting an Elephant has withstood the test of time and is
seen as a classic story of the human-animal relationship, its fullest meaning is understood when it
is read in light of the historical time and culture in which it was created. The story of a man who
kills an elephant because he doesnt want to look weak works as a story about man vs. animal,
but both the man and the elephant are symbols of British Imperialism in India, and Orwells main
point is about power and control in human relationships.
Revised Paragraph (Introduction)
From 1922 to 1927, George Orwell served as a British officer for the Indian Imperial
Police force in Burma. That life-changing experience sparked his interest in becoming a
professional writer. Throughout those five years of policing he began to notice the bigger picture
of colonialism and its effects on the oppressed and the oppressors. Moral and political conflicts
internally emerged for Orwell and created an unstable mindset about imperialism. In 1931,
George Orwell decided to indirectly express his opinions about imperialism through a short
story, Shooting an Elephant. Orwell is portrayed as the main character, the man, who is called
to take action on a community disturbance of an elephant that has gone wild. The man feels
pressured by the community to kill the elephant but knows that it is wrong, however progresses

in doing so for the motive of gaining power and respect from the natives. The short story was
published for the first time in 1936 in a literary magazine and due to the historical and cultural
context critics were able to analyze the symbolism embedded. Although George Orwells
Shooting an Elephant has withstood the test of time and is seen as a classic story of the humananimal relationship, its fullest meaning is understood when it is read in light of the historical time
and culture in which it was created. The story of a man who kills an elephant because he doesnt
want to look weak works as a story about man vs. animal, but both the man and the elephant are
symbols of British Imperialism in India, and Orwells main point is about power and control in
human relationships.