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What happens in George Orwell’s essay “Shooting an Elephant”?

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George Orwell, c. 1940 — George Orwell Known best for his powerful anti-utopian novels *Animal Farm* (1945) and *Nineteen Eighty-four* (1949), English author George Orwell came to be regarded as a prophetic voice in 20th-century literature.

In his 1936 autobiographical essay "Shooting an Elephant," George Orwell recounts his experiences serving as a colonial police officer in Burma (now Myanmar). The essay serves as a critique of imperialism, illustrating the dehumanizing effects of colonial rule on both the oppressed Burmese people and the British colonizers themselves.1

Orwell describes witnessing the "dirty work of Empire at close quarters," using the specific incident of killing an elephant to explore the pressures of his position. As an officer, he felt compelled to act against his own conscience to maintain his authority and avoid appearing weak in the eyes of the local population. The narrative captures his internal conflict and the profound shame he felt regarding his role in enforcing British rule against the will of the Burmese people.1