Shooting an Elephant Discussion Questions
Author of 1984 and Animal Farm, George Orwell was one of the most influential and well-known British writers of the twentieth century. After graduating from school, Orwell served for a time as a British police officer in the colony of Burma. His experiences in Burma greatly disturbed Orwell, and led him to become a staunch opponent of the imperial system. Written in 1936, the autobiographical Shooting an Elephant is widely regarded as Orwell's most incisive and penetrating critique of the imperial system, and of that system's impact upon both ruler and subject.