As of the point in time where the account was taken, the British Empire has the power. They are the ones who have implanted their chosen power structure on to the citizens of Burma and the English expatriates living there. While the Burmese people are a force of pressure in Orwell’s conscience leading him to the eventual act of killing the elephant, there is a larger pressure, coming from the Empire which is validating the pressure coming from the burmese. The english have set up the power structure in Burma, they have created the “mask” that orwell now finds to be his skin. It is the english that have put him in the position of relative power and now orwell must be a slave to the system which empowers him in order to not let it fall. What the British have been able to do is connect inseparably the dignity of Orwell, to him doing his duty to uphold the power dynamics which the British Empire has seen fit to implement. While orwell is trying to protect his dignity by using a decisive method of force he is also playing into the power dynamic that not only allows him, but expects him to do so.
Later this phenomenon will play out in more formative ways. When enforcers of english rule abroad will be faced with unruly subjects who question the authority of the outsiders, the power dynamic engrained in the minds of the english foreigners will be used to justify the repression of the indigenous people.
I very much agree. I think that your first point can be expanded as well. The British Empire has shaped Orwell’s social experience so that his interpretation of the Burmese crowd’s actions are completely based on a British social experience. Indeed, his need for dignity itself might even be a British ideal that, had Orwell grown up outside of the British Empire, he might not have felt as compelled to uphold.
You make a very interesting point when you note that, by killing the elephant, Orwell is controlled by the power of the British Empire more so than the power of the Burmese crowd watching. While I think that his decision better demonstrates (in the sense that it is a bigger statement of) the power held by oppressed people(s), renewed consideration of the situation described by the story showed me you’re probably right. Orwell feels the the pressure of the expectant crowd because he is an officer of the British Empire; a representative of British supremacy in Burma. He doesn’t shoot the elephant solely because the Burmese want him to, he does it because not doing so after calling for a rifle would reflect badly on him and Britain, as they would not appear resolute in front of the natives. His concern isn’t letting the natives down. His concern is the natives’ view of their oppressors.
Moreover, the narrative of soldiers being representatives of the empire and the empire needing to appear resolute and worthy of respect to successfully control the colony is one that has been fed to him by Britain. In this sense, any pressure or power he feels in his situation (from the Burmese or otherwise) exists because he has bought into the general narrative of a British soldier above. This, in and of itself, is a testament to the power and influence of the British Empire over him. In essence, the dilemma in the story is between his morality and his duty to Britain, and the latter wins.
I liked how you talked about the role of the British Empire on Orwell’s decision. Even though Orwell ultimately states that it was the pressure from the 2,000 Burmese that pushed him to shoot of the elephant, there was definitely an element of fear of being perceived as inferior by the lower class and also his class that played a part in the situation. Although he did receive some backlash from the younger soldiers, Orwell in total plays the part of an Imperialist perfectly by demonstrating his power as a police official. Even so, I think it is crucial to uplift the resistance inhibited by the Burmese against the British Empire. Although they ultimately do not hold the legitimate overarching power, their numbers play a significant part in dictating Orwell’s actions. Only Orwell knows which factor–the Burmese or the British Empire–had more persuasion.