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In "Shooting an Elephant," how does Orwell use the officer and elephant to symbolize the tensions caused by the British occupation of Burma?

 In "Shooting an Elephant," the elephant functions as a symbol of imperial oppression. This is demonstrated most clearly through the image of the elephant "chained up" which illustrates the extent of British control over the Burmese people. That the elephant goes on a rampage across the town symbolizes the inner desires of the Burmese to be liberated from their British oppressors


Conversely, the officer functions as a symbol of British power and control. Moreover, armed with his gun, the officer represents order in a very disordered and chaotic setting. That the officer has no real desire to shoot the elephant, however, evokes his internal sense of conflict: he realises that he must take action, because the nature of imperialism demands it, but, on a human level, he has no wish to harm the animal.


Taken together, then, these symbols illustrate Orwell's central message: that imperialism does not really benefit anybody. It makes the oppressors acts immorally and keeps the oppressed in a state of subjugation and fear. 

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