Response to George Orwell’s Shooting an Elephant

Although m all tidy sum believe that racism has disappeared from our minds after altogether those solutions of trying to set equal rights in the worlds history, it still exists today, and bequeath probably never vanish from our thinking. nigh freshthorn clearly express it, whereas others may express racism un noniceably, even to themselves. George Orwell, in Shooting an Elephant, tells a story of his late(prenominal) when he despatched an elephant in order to beguile the Burmese crowd. At the time, Orwell was a purity Indian Imperial Police officer who was disliked by the countrys natives due to the event that he was European.One day, he perceive of an elephants doing of ravaging the tget, so he ran to the face with a rifle. When he fin every(prenominal)y arrived, he found himself observing a peacefully feeding elephant while a huge crowd of Burmans gathered excitedly to reveal his future action. Even though he does non feel it right to conduct the elephant, he has t his huge, un distractable military press from the Burmese crowd. Eventually, his final decisiveness was to shoot the elephant and cope with the natives hunger for excitement.Although the state of affairs mustiness lose been difficult from Orwells perspective, his action of cleanup spot the elephant foot non be justified. George Orwells situation was definitely burdensome, looking from his perspective. He had his spirits and feelings yet, he vividly felt the jam dawning on him as the natives assembled at the scene, e climb onrly and impatiently waiting for him to just shoot the elephant. Especially for a psyche who was all for the Burmese and all against their oppressors, the British, he must have experienced an bitter moment of making a decision.We all experience such burdensome pressure numerous times, starting from school as a kid. Students have such subject called peer pressure, where you are usually hale to do make a decision of whether or not to follow others ways . Whether in academic studies, sports, or social life, they constantly tend to end up pursuit others t peerlesss and ways. For instance, peer pressure is the reason why the number of students who smoke since young age is rapidly increasing.However, adapting to others beliefs and ways nub that person is lacking self-confidence and self-respect. In order to survive this world at least a little much joyfully, mint must follow their own beliefs and practices as many times as possible. Even though he had his belief about killing the elephant, Orwell purely addicted the idea of following his way, and concentrated on how to please the natives. Only after he carried out the action did he defy that he had d one and only(a) it solely to avoid looking a fool, meaning he had no self-confidence or self-respect.In fact, by doing so what he resolved to do, Orwell became a fool who was too fearful to speak out his belief that the elephant does not deserve to be killed. As Orwell states, he wears a mask, and his face grows to fit it. Basically, people first hide their belief and conform to others, then without knowing, they become to be one of them completely, losing their true selves. Following our own honorable beliefs does not mean we must be ignorant of all outside beliefs. In other words, ignoring rules while living in a country with differing beliefs and laws is definitely a foolish act.For example, when I lived in Saudi-Arabian Arabia, the bailiwick law forced us to wear black veils called abbaya like the local women outside home, and both the law and their belief forbid us to drink any kind of alcohol. Needless to say, we should not be fools as to go against any national laws to end up in prison, unless our personal beliefs must still be kept safe. Further much, although Orwell faces a difficult situation, where he can either unnecessarily kill the elephant or decide not to, ground on his own moral beliefs, he should have realized that he was the ti dy one.Orwell explains his situation, To come all that way, rifle in hand, with two thousand people marchland at my heels, and then to trail feebly away, having done nothing no, that was impossible. The crowd would joke at me. And my whole life, every white mans life in the East, was one long struggle not to be laughed at. But I did not want to shoot the elephant. It was a situation in which he could not help and act according to the natives expectations.Nevertheless, readers must not forget that he was the one in control and power, with the rifle in his hands, and the natives could neither physically harm him nor state that he did the wrong thing. This meant that he rattling could have protected his moral values, and be ignorant of what others desperately wanted him to do since he believed the action to be wrong. The expiry of standing up to our own beliefs and practices can mean conflict with others who have diametrical ones. But another consequence is opinion in ourselve s, self-confidence in our indistinguishability and ability to carry out those beliefs.Maintaining these give help us survive our lives more successfully, although probably not easily on the other hand, if we continue to conform to others beliefs, we depart come to depend only on others and have no self-respect. Overall, the action of killing the elephant by George Orwell is not justified because, in spite of his moral belief about not killing the elephant, he went straight against it and surmisal the elephant, winning the natives expectations, and overcoming the boundary between them, but losing his true self and his beliefs.