Even tyrants are, to some extent, made accountable by their people. We see this demonstrated in Orwell’s story of shooting the elephant. By all rights Orwell should have the power, and therefore the choice. His consequences for doing as he pleased would not have been institutional but rather social. The power of the crowd lies in their opinion, their potential disdain for him. If Orwell did not care that he would be made a fool of, it would make him more powerful. However, as humans, we tend to care what others think of us. Those in power want to be seen as strong and capable, therefore they are slaves to that desire, giving power to the Burmese. Furthermore, Orwell is also a slave to the system in his participation in imperialism. He describes it as an “evil thing” and expressed his desire to leave his job. However, in the time when he wrote the story, he was complicit. Orwell is powerless in the sense that he is under the influence from both above and below.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Even tyrants are, to some extent, made accountable by their people. We see this demonstrated in Orwell’s story of shooting the elephant. By all rights Orwell should have the power, and therefore the choice. His consequences for doing as he … Continue reading