February 21

Shooting an Elephant

What connection do you see between the narrator in “Shooting an Elephant” and the narrator in “A Soldier Recalls the Trail of Tears?” Be specific and cite concrete details from each narrative.

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Posted February 21, 2013 by tashak38 in category Uncategorized

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22 thoughts on “Shooting an Elephant

  1. Michael Griggs

    Michael Griggs
    Ms. Keeble
    3/14/13; Per. 5
    AP. English

    In “Shooting an Elephant” and “A soldier Recalls a Trail of Tears”, the authors clearly have the same ideas as they both have been in a harsh time and has had to witness horrible things that they couldn’t have helped in. Burnett, having grown up with the Cherokees, has now had to face a horrifying experience with his times. He, a as private soldier, would have to assist in the ouster of the Cherokees. This was a horrible experience for him as he had witnessed countless executions as he had been escorted through the homelands. The Cherokees were a peaceful bunch of people who had no right to be removed as they had been in his times. Orwell, on the other hand, has had a similar experience due to the fact he had to witness the countless killings of innocent elephants in order to do his job. As a person feeling remorse for those actions he could not have helped as he had wished. Both stories had been written by these brave men as they had recollected the times of something that most couldn’t have done.

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  2. Niauni

    Niauni Hill
    Ms. Keeble
    AP English, Period 1
    27 February 2013
    (BECAUSE OF ABSENCE ON FRIDAY YOU TOLD ME I HAVE AN EXTENSION UNTIL TODAY, WEDNESDAY, 2/27/13).

    In “Shooting an Elephant” and “A Soldier Recalls the Trail of Tears”, both narrators connect in a way in which they feel guilt, sorrow, and empathy. Burnett says, “I saw the helpless Cherokees arrested and dragged from their homes, and driven at the bayonet point into the stockades”(A Soldier Recalls the Trail of Tears). In “Shooting an Elephant”, Orwell writes, “There were several thousands of them in the town and none of them seemed to have anything to do except stand on street corners and jeer at Europeans” (Orwell 276-277). Both Burnett and Orwell are bystanders who have no choice but to watch, but can they do something, take action to make a difference?

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  3. Alexis l.

    Alexis l.
    Ms. Keeble
    AP English 11
    2/25/13
    In “Shooting an Elephant” and “A Soldier Recalls the Trail of Tears”, both narrators are sympathetic towards the oppressed. Burnett has guilt for not being able to stop the removal of the indigenous people ,“I saw the helpless Cherokees arrested and dragged from their homes, and driven at the bayonet point into the stockades.”(A Soldier Recalls the Trail of Tears). Orwell is the same, since both have no say in the matter, but they both still feel guilty. “For it is the condition of his rule that he shall spend his life in trying to impress the natives,” the actions that Orwell commits are because of the indigenous people. Both narrators were hated due to the position they had during those events.

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  4. Jhoann B.

    Jhoann B.
    Ms. Keeble
    AP Eng 11 Per. 2
    24 February 2013

    Private John G. Burnett, narrator of “A Soldier Recalls the Trail of Tears,” and George Orwell, speaker of “Shooting an Elephant,” both descriptively account their experiences with the native population of land conquered by their imperialist societies to reveal the unjust consequences of global expansion. In his recollection of the Trail of Tears, Burnett, a Private of the American army, shares his memory of the Cherokees being forced to leave their homes to satisfy the United States’ desire for land. His description of the Cherokee Indians’ tribulation serves as a microcosm of the misfortune many Native American tribes experienced under American imperialism. He states, “I made the long journey to the west with the Cherokees and did all that a Private soldier could do to alleviate their sufferings.” Burnett disagrees with the imperialist attitude of the United States towards the Cherokee nation and believes that Americans have committed a serious crime against Native Americans by unrightfully taking their lands and subjugating their peoples in the process of expanding the American nation. Similarly, Orwell, a sub-divisional police officer of Moulmein, exhibits his disagreement with the oppression endorsed by the imperial government of Great Britian in “Shooting an Elephant.” He explains, “… I was stuck between my hatred of the empire I served… I thought of the British Raj as an unbreakable tyranny, as something clamped down, in saecula saeculorum upon the will of prostrate peoples…” In essence, Burnett and Orwell are both public servants of nations ambitious for territory and are upset by the injustices stimulated by imperialism.

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  5. Thomas T

    Thomas T.
    Keeble
    Ap English
    Period 1

    In “Shooting an Elephant” and “A Soldier Recalls the Trail of Tears”, both narrators are tasked with an objective they don’t want to carry out. The narrators, however, are put into different scenarios. Burnett’s “A Soldier Recalls the Trail of Tears” narrates his life during the infamous Trail of Tears and is acquainted by the community he is helping through past experiences as “On these long hunting trips I met and became acquainted with many of the Cherokee Indians, hunting with them by day and sleeping around their camp fires by night. I learned to speak their language, and they taught me the arts of trailing and building traps and snares.” Whilst Burnett has the advantage of acceptance by the community, Orwell was at a disadvantage being a European police officer in India during the imperialist movement. They both, however, are placed with false dilemmas. Orwell’s choice to kill the elephant was pressured by his peers and Burnett’s job to escort the Cherokee was pressured by his occupation. Orwell could have easily let the elephant live, but he would not be accepted by the community he was working with while Burnett would have been denied by his own community. Although, both men had tried to be accepted by the community they were forced to work with.

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  6. Rachel N.

    Rachel N.
    Ms. Keeble
    AP English Language & Composition
    25 February 2013

    There are various connections that were evident between the narrator in “Shooting an Elephant” and the narrator in “A Soldier Recalls the Trail of Tears.” Both passages portray the dominated white culture during the time when America was being born. Moreover, both essays depict the prideful fear that had been embroidered into the white male. By revealing this habit in society we learn how “natives” have been mistreated and looked down upon in the face of America’s communities. In “A Soldier Recalls the Trail of Tears,” the narrator says, “The only trouble that I had with anybody on the entire journey to the west was a brutal teamster by the name of Ben McDonal, who was using his whip on an old feeble Cherokee to hasten him into the wagon.” Also, in “Shooting An Elephant,” George Orwell says, “A white man mustn’t be frightened in front of natives; and so, in general, he isn’t frightened.” These two passages both illustrate that
    white men always wanted to feel superior in front of people who were different from them. In both cases, they reaction to their fear was violence. Instead of trying to learn and understand, the white man made assumptions that completely were wrong and disrespectful. This connection gives another window on how our American society functions not only then, but even now.

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  7. Kiana Ledda

    Kiana Ledda
    Keeble
    AP English, 5
    24, February 2013
    The narrators of “A Soldier Recalls the Trail of Tears” and “Shooting an Elephant” share a connection because they have similarities within their backgrounds. Both Burnett and Orwell serve as officials of imperialist countries, and they both express sympathy towards the oppressed people. In “A Soldier Recalls the Trail of Tears”, Burnett serves as a soldier who feels guilty for driving the Cherokees out of their homes. Burnett explains, “I made the long journey to the west with the Cherokees and did all that a Private soldier could do to alleviate their sufferings.” Burnett also a recalls a time where he helped an injured Cherokee Indian. He states, “I carried him to a spring, bathed and bandaged the bullet wound, and built a shelter out of bark peeled from a dead chestnut tree.” Within the essay, “Shooting an Elephant”, Orwell helps the Burmese people by shooting down a rampaging elephant. Orwell writes, “And suddenly I realized that I should have to shoot the elephant.” Even though both men were frowned upon by the natives, they both provided care and sympathy towards them when needed.

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  8. Desiree N.

    Desiree N.

    Ms. Keeble

    AP English 11

    Feb. 24, 2013

    In “A Soldier Recalls the Trail of Tears” and “Shooting an Elephant,” the narrators of both the stories share one thing in common. They both are being forced to do tasks they don’t want to do. They are helpless in their orders they are given. Burnett, from “A Soldier Recalls the Trail of Tears,” didn’t want to perform the tasks he was ordered to do but he had no choice, “I made the long journey to the west with the Cherokees and did all that a Private soldier could do to alleviate their sufferings.” (Paragraph 6) Burnett tried to to everything he could to help his Cherokee friends. Orwell from “Shooting an Elephant,” was forced to be in India. ” All this was perplexing and upsetting. For at that time I had already made up my mind that imperialism was an evil thing and the sooner I chucked up my job and got out of it the better.” (Orwell 277) Orwell wouldn’t have stayed in India if he wasn’t forced to by the British government, people in India hated him just because he was British. Orwell was also pressured by bystanders to shoot the elephant, “I could feel their two thousand wills pressing them forward, irresistibly. And it was at this moment, as I stood there with the rifle in my hands, that I first grasped the hollowness, the futility of the white man’s dominion in the East.” (280) In the beginning of the story, he wasn’t palnning on shooting the elephant but presure from other people caused him to shoot it. Both of these men felt guilty for doing the orders that were given to them but they had no choice but to listen to their leaders.

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  9. Jessica A

    Jessica A.
    Ms. Keeble
    AP Lang. & Composition, Per 5.
    24 February 2013

    In “A Soldier Recalls the Trail of Tears” and “Shooting an Elephant,” both of the narrators are poorly influenced by outside forces. Because in both cases the nations that are served in are imperialist, the narrators have no choice but to complete the task they are ordered to do. Burnett (A Soldier Recalls the Trail of Tears) writes about one of his encounters with the Natives after he was forced to travel with them, “On the morning of November the 17th we encountered a terrific sleet and snow storm with freezing temperatures and from that day until we reached the end of the fateful journey on March the 26th, 1839, the sufferings of the Cherokees were awful.” Although Burnett was a good soldier, in which he was able to “alleviate their sufferings,” he feels the influence from those who ordered him to proceed on the Trail. Even though he wanted to help the Natives, he didn’t have another option but to lead them from their home land. In “Shooting an Elephant,” George Orwell also faces poor influence from outside forces. Because he was a white officer in Burma, he was frowned upon by the inhabitants of Burma. To gain their respect, he shot an elephant that brought chaos along with it. He writes, “When I pulled the trigger…I lay.” Although Orwell wanted to be loved by the Burmans, he didn’t want to shoot the elephant to receive it. Therefore, he was influence poorly.

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  10. Elisha Hussain

    Elisha Hussain
    AP English 11,Period:5
    Ms. Keeble
    February 24,2013

    The narrators in “A Soldier Recalls a Trail of Tears”, and “Shooting an Elephant”, share a connection of guilt and sorrow. They both dislike the jobs that they have to do, and the expectations that they are expected to live up to. Both of the essays describe life through a painful and helpless perspective. The main characters in both of the essays have to do what is wanted of them, and by doing all of those things they feel guilty. In ” A Soldier Recalls a Trail of Tears, “I made the long journey to the west with the Cherokees and did all that a Private soldier could do to alleviate their sufferings. When on guard duty at night I have many times walked my beat in my blouse in order that some sick child might have the warmth of my overcoat. I was on guard duty the night Mrs. Ross died. When relieved at midnight I did not retire, but remained around the wagon out of sympathy for Chief Ross, and at daylight was detailed by Captain McClellan to assist in the burial like the other unfortunates who died on the way. Her unconfined body was buried in a shallow grave by the roadside far from her native home, and the sorrowing Cavalcade moved on.(Burnett Paragrap 6). Burnett describes the tragic death of Mrs. Ross, and how he did everything he could have to help their suffering. Although Burnett doesn’t clearly state the pain that he felt throughout this paragraph, you can feel it radiating through. It makes you understand how miserbale and sad he really was. Also, in the essay “Shooting an Elephant”, “But at that moment I glanced round at the crowd that had followed me…The people expected it of me and I had to do it; I could feel their two thousand wills pressing me forward, irresistibly.” (Orwell 280). Orwell here describes how he felt at the moment, which was complete and utter pressure. He believed that he had to shoot the elephant no matter the circumastances of whether it behaved or not, because like mentioned before it was a clear expectataion of him. These men both connected on as deeper way of expectation and guilt, in which they succumbed, even though their heart said not to.

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  11. Alicia

    Alicia Oseguera
    AP English
    Ms. Keeble
    22 February 2013

    The narrators in “Shooting an Elephant” and ” A Soldier Recalls the Trail of Tears” both are persuaded by others to do something they do not necessarily agree with. Both have to face/take great decisions that come down to their moral values. In “Shooting an Elephant” Orwell has to face the decision of killing the elephant or not. He did not have the heart to shoot the elephant but he was persuaded and pushed by the crowd seeing everything to shoot. “The crowd would laugh at me. And my whole life, every white man’s life in the East, was one long struggle not to be laughed at. But I did not want to shoot the elephant”(280). Through this the narrator emphasizes how the crowd was the one pushing him to shoot the elephant. The fear of being neglected and made fun of by the crowd made him shoot when he clearly did not want to. The same as Orwell, Burnett saw the suffering of the Cherokee people while in the Trail of Tears. Burnett supports this because once in his life the Cherokee people were there for him. He says, ” I made the long journey to the west with the Cherokees and did all that a Private soldier could do to alleviate their sufferings”. Burnett clearly did not support what the soldiers were doing for these Cherokee people but he was forced to harm them. He did his best to protect them and help them but him being a Private soldier forced him to go against his morals. Both Burnett and Orwell had to go against their morals and harm others just to please others.

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  12. Hannah R.

    In both ” Tears” both narrators of the short story and essay did not enjoy their jobs. In “A Soldier Remembers the Trail of Tears” Burnett describes hos horrible time having to watch over the Cherokees, and how he had befriended and helped them along the way. In George Orwell’s “Shooting an Elephant” he explains his time policing Burma. He explains how the natives of Burma hated him and made the job he originally did not want to do. The connection is that they both did not enjoy theory jobs, but yet they still did their jobs. During “Shooting an Elephant” George Orwell explains how in he didn’t like the British Raj. Also in “A Soldier Recalls the Trail of Tears” Burnett specifically gives the example of stopping “a brutal transfer by the name of Ben McDonal” from beating a Native American.

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  13. Phuong-My N.

    Phuong-My N.
    Keeble
    AP English, Per. 2
    22 February 2013

    Shooting an Elephant

    The narrators in “Shooting an Elephant” (Orwell) and “A Soldier Recalls the Trail of Tears” (Burnett) both share similarities between their stories due to their backgrounds and sympathetic personalities. For one, they were both “working” for an organization. Orwell was a “… sub-divisional police officer of the town…” (Orwell 276) and Burnett was “…a Private soldier in the American Army,” (Burnett paragraph 3). Second, they had to act upon orders given by a higher position. In Lower Burma in Moulmein, there was an elephant “…ravaging the bazaar…” ( Orwell 277) and Orwell was asked if he could do something about it. Burnett, an American Army soldier, was “…sent as interpreter into the Smoky Mountain Country…” (Burnett paragraph 3) to speak to the Cherokee Indians. Third, the two men had to carry out a task they did not wish to follow. Due to the pressure of the native Burmese of India, Orwell had to shoot the elephant that was making a fuss at the bazaar. He “…did not want to shoot the elephant…” but he “…had committed…to doing it when…sent for the rifle” (Orwell 280). Burnett basically grew up with the Indians, and now he has to escort them out of their homelands due to the Trial of Tears. He “…made the long journey to the west with the Cherokees and did all that a Private soldier could do to alleviate their sufferings,” (Burnett paragraph 6). Lastly, the men felt grief and sorrow for the actions they caused. Orwell stated, “It seemed dreadful to see the great beast lying there, powerless to move and yet powerless to die…in the end I could not stand it any longer and went away,” (Orwell 283). He was miserable after killing the elephant because he did not want to in the first place. Burnett will be haunted by the Trial of Tears for the rest of his life. More than fifty years passed, and he still remembers it. “I wish I could forget it all, but the picture of 645 wagons lumbering over the frozen ground with their cart of suffering humanity still lingers in my memory.” (Burnett paragraph 19).

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  14. Merritt Walker

    Merritt Walker
    Ms. Keeble
    AP English 2
    22 February 2013

    The narrators in “A soldier recalls the Trail of Tears” and “Shooting an Elephant” share a connection. Both men come from similar backgrounds, and they feel guilty for the things that happened to the natives. The narrators in both storis are officials. “I was hated by large numbers of people…I was sub-divisional police officer of the town” (Blair 276). “…the year 1838 found me…a Private soldier in the American Army”(Burnett). Both men are intruders to the native people, and their jobs put them in positions that make them appear as if they are horrible or cruel people. During this time white men were hated because of the horrific things they did to the “heathens”, any other race that was not white. Both Eric Blair and Private John G. Burnett are targets of hate, but neither one is cruel to the native people. In fact, both men are sympathetic towards them, and they feel really guilty. “The wretched prisoners huddling in the stinking cages…scarred buttocks of the men who had been flogged…all these oppressed me with an intolerable sense of guilt” (Blair 277). “I saw the helpless Cherokee arrested and dragged from their homes, and driven at bayonet point…Murder is murder, and somebody must answer”(Burnett). They witness horrible things happening to these people. They feel guilty because there is nothing that they can really do. All they can really do is be compassionate towards them, and appeal to their emotions to get them to like them. In both cases that happens, and they make life easier for the people.

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  15. Areli S

    AreliS
    Ms. Keeble
    Ap English 11, 2nd period
    February 21st 2013

    In both “A Soldier Recalls the Trail of Tears” and “Shooting Elephants”, simlarities arise amongst the narrators. Both narrators in the entries are officials of which work for an imperialist country, that of the United States, ” The removal of Cherokee Indians from their life long homes in the year of 1838 found me a young man in the prime of life and a Private soldier in the American Army” and Great Britain, “I was sub-divisonal police…….anti-European feeling…bitter. ” Both of the narrators are sent onto a distinct area to serve their country and their goal. Along the way both narrators experience a situation in which they are left to reason death. In Burnett’s entry, the murder is that of the Cherokee people, “Men were shot in cold blood, lands were confiscated.” The second murder,in “Shooting an Elephant” is that of an animal, ” He was dying very slowly… further.” Both narrators tell what the killings were and shared their thoughts about why such actioins were justifiable in the story or not. The main connection between the two narrators is that of them caring about those living through imperialism and providing a helping hand. In Burnetts story, he was recognized as “the soldier that was good to us” by the Cherokee. And although, the Burmese did not get along with the official in “Shooting an Elephant”, he was willing to lend them a helping hand because he knew that he was all they had, ” And suddenly I realized that I should have to shoot the elephant…” The two narrators share a similar connection that gathers their experience together.

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  16. Gonzalo Haro

    Gonzalo Haro

    The narrators in both “Shooting an Elephant” and “A Soldier Recalls the Trail of Tears” have a lot in common. Both are faced with great decisions that come down to their morality. Brunett faces the guilt of aiding in the removal of innocent people from their lands. “I saw the helpless Cherokees arrested and dragged from their homes, and driven at the bayonet point into the stockades.” (A Soldier Recalls the Trail of Tears). Brunett did not enjoy what he was doing. He felt terrible and frowned upon what the white man did to the Native Americans. Orwell was faced with the decision of killing an elephant or not. He didn’t want to do it, but was pressured into doing so. Once Orwell shot the elephant, he felt terrible about it. “You could see the agony of it jolt his whole body and knock the last remnant of strength from his legs.” (Shooting An Elephant). Both of them did what they felt like they needed to do. The only difference was that Brunett tried to help the people, and Orwell tried to prove himself worthy of the people.

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  17. Dominique N

    Dominique N
    Ms. Keeble
    AP English 11 2
    21 February 2013

    The narrator from “Shooting an Elephant” and the narrator from “A Soldier Recalls the Trail of Tears” share a few similarities in common. For example, both narrators are in a high position in society, the narrator from “Shooting an Elephant” was a policeman and the narrator from “A Soldier Recalls the Trail of Tears” was a soldier. They were both respected by the people in their communities such as white Europeans, and feared by the oppressed ones in both stories. The main thing these two narrators had in common was the passion and care these narrators had for the things that they should not (as society in their time would say). Both these narrators went against their duties to do what they felt was right, which was to help out the unfortunate in the situation. In “A Soldier Recalls the Trail of Tears” the soldier recalls, “I made the long journey to the west with the Cherokees and did all that a Private soldier could do to alleviate their sufferings. When on guard duty at night I have many times walked my beat in my blouse in order that some sick child might have the warmth of my overcoat.” (Burnett P6) This shows that Burnett had feelings for the Cherokees, and he went against his duty as a soldier to make sure they were at comfortable on the harsh journey they were forced on. In “Shooting an Elephant” Orwell says “…the elephant looked no more dangerous than a cow…I did not in the least want to shoot him.” (Orwell 280) However, one similarity both the narrators had was that their duty overpowered their feelings and they had to perform what they did not want to do. Their priorities took over, and the policeman ended up shooting the elephant and the soldier ended up killing a Cherokee on the journey. “Weak from loss of blood, the poor creature was unable to walk and almost famished for water. I carried him to a spring…”(Burnett P2)“I did not hear the bang or feel the kick… but I heard the devilish roar of glee that went up from the crowd.” (Orwell 282) These are some of the similarities I found in both the narrators.

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  18. Gonzalo Haro

    Gonzalo Haro

    The narrators in both “Shooting an Elephant” and “A Soldier Recalls the Trail of Tears” have a lot in common. Both are faced with great decisions that come down to their morality. Brunett faces the guilt of aiding in the removal of innocent people from their lands. “I saw the helpless Cherokees arrested and dragged from their homes, and driven at the bayonet point into the stockades.” (A Soldier Recalls the Trail of Tears). Brunett did not enjoy what he was doing. He felt terrible and frowned upon what the white man did to the Native Americans. Orwell was faced with the decision of killing an elephant or not. He didn’t want to do it, but was pressured into doing so. Once Orwell shot the elephant, he felt terrible about it. “You could see the agony of it jolt his whole body and knock the last remnant of strength from his legs.” (Shooting An Elephant).

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  19. Rachael B.

    Rachael B.
    Ms. Keeble
    AP English 11, Per. 2
    21 February 2013

    The connection between the narrators in “Shooting an Elephant” and “A Soldier Recalls the Trail of Tears” is their care and sympathy of the oppressed. The soldier recalls of the time where the Indians walked hundreds of miles to their new homes. He mentions, “I made the long journey to the west with the Cherokees and did all that a Private soldier could do to alleviate their sufferings.” He is sympathetic as they tirelessly travel and because of this emotional attachment that he has with the culture/people, he feels all the need to help them. The narrator of “Shooting an Elephant” also has similar views. As a policeman in Burma, he feels the hate from the people, but he is not the one all for the British control exerted on them. He says, “I was all for the Burmese and all against their oppressors, the British.” He clearly denounces the imperialistic involvement of the country and dislikes the British because of this. He is concerned for the people and not against them despite him being a policeman of the controlling government. Both narrators are vicarious towards the subjugates of their time.

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  20. Caleb M.

    Caleb M.
    Ms. Keeble
    AP English, Per. 2
    21 February 2012

    The narrators in “Shooting an Elephant” and “A Soldier Recalls the Trail of Tears” write their stories in similar fashions. In “Shooting an Elephant”, Orwell writes “I was was all for the Burmese and all against their oppressors the British”. In “A Soldier Recalls the Trail of Tears”, Burnett writes “we are too near the removal of the Cherokees for our young people to fully understand the enormity of the crime that was committed against a helpless race”. Both narrators ironically express their resentment for their respective imperialistic countries (U.S. and Britain), and express sympathy to the oppressed people who would be normally be considered their enemies or subjects. Also, both narrators are from Anglo-Saxon heritage and belong to countries that oppress natives that are called “Indians”. And finally, both Orwell and Burnett appear to be compassionate soldiers on duty. “The Burmese population had no weapons and were quite helpless against it” (Shooting an Elephant) and “Somebody must explain the 4000 silent graves that mark the trail of the Cherokees to their exile” (A Soldier Recalls the Trail of Tears) explain how bad the narrators felt for the oppressed natives. These are the similarities that I’ve found from both of the narratives.

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  21. Aaron C

    Aaron Chon
    Ms Keeble
    APENG11/P2
    21 February 2013

    The narrators of “A Soldier Recalls the Trail of Tears” and “Shooting an Elephant” both describe the relations that they share with the local indigenous population in times of expansion, from the perspective of the “trespassers”. Burnett recalls living among the Cherokee, “hunting with them by day and sleeping around their camp fires by night,” while Orwell speaks of how he “was sub-divisional police officer of the town,” in lower Burma, India. The specific relations that the narrators share are different, in that Burnett was in fact friends with and respected by the Cherokee, while Orwell was generally hated due to his association with imperialistic forces, regardless of his actual thoughts. While Burnett believes that there is a responsible party that must shoulder the blame for the wrongdoings committed against a peaceful peoples, Orwell describes how imperialists are forced into the state that they enter due to their pride from being superior by some form, which in his case is technology that is used to make a spectacle of the elephant. Burnett says that whatever negative action that is associated with him against the Cherokee was the orders of his superiors, saying “We had no choice in the matter.” Orwell, on the other hand, describes that the actions that he and other imperialistic forces undertake are the result of the indigenous population, as he says “For it is the condition of his rule that he shall spend his life in trying to impress the ‘natives,’ and so in every crisis he has got to do what the ‘natives’ expect of him.”

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  22. Tanzeel H.

    Tanzeel Hak
    Ms. Keeble
    AP English, Period 2
    21 February 2013

    The narrators in both “Shooting An Elephant” and “A Soldier Recalls the Trail of Tears” share many aspects in common. The narrators have a similar background. Burnett states, “I made the long journey to the west with the Cherokees and did all that a Private soldier…” (Burnett paragraph 6). In “Shooting An Elephant” Orwell’s background explains, “Blair was an Imperial policeman” (Orwell 276). They both are European, although where they are working is in foreign lands. Their positions in society makes them look like the bad guy. It is almost like the word “European” had terrible connotations to these people. The narrators are hated upon, although are of no wrongdoing. They have similar outlooks on imperialism. Both work for the government, but do not like what their people are doing to other ethnicities. In “A Soldier Recalls the Trail of Tears,” Burnett recollects, “Weak from loss of blood, the poor creature was unable to walk and almost famished for water. I carried him to a spring…” (Burnett paragraph 2). In “Shooting An Elephant” Orwell recalls this moment, “I did not hear the bang or feel the kick… but I heard the devilish roar of glee that went up from the crowd” (Orwell 282). In both instances Burnett and Orwell are being compassionate. They are helping out the foreigners that do not like Europeans as a whole.

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