George Orwell appeals to pathos and uses imagery to give a satirical presentation of imperialism, showing it’s negative impact on both those governed and those who govern. Throughout the entire essay, the narrator expresses various feelings of hatred, fear, anxiety, and doubt. He resents the fact that hs is in a position of authority, yet mocked. He resents that he is forced to continue his career despite the fact that he detests British imperialism. He resents that he must deal with the internal conflice of struggle and self-image. By showing these emotions, the audience becomes more aware of the narrator’s mental state and is drawn towards his pathos appeal as the essay continues. He feels that in Burma was the “only time in [his] life that …show more content…
The entire mood of the essay is determined when Orwell first proclaims the setting to be a “cloudy, stuffing morning at the beginnings of the rains” (1). This line foreshadows the entire situation to be weak and discomforting as drab weather. Later, when the narrator looks back on the natives standing behind him, he sees a “sea of yellow faces,” with “two thousand wills presing [him] forward, irresistibly” (2). This image of an uncontrollable sea pushing the narrator forward like an indominable wall creates a sense of power behind the actual image of powerless natives. Through this imagery, Orwell is able to highlight both the uncontrollable nature of mob mentality, but also the helpless nature of an imperalist conqueror. In this moment, when the “white man turns tyrant, it is his own freedom he destroys” (2). The narrator realizes that he is forced to put on a façade of power when the people demand it. As Orwell mulls over the critical decision, he comes upon the realization that the “white man” must display strength and authority when the people demand it. In this scene, Orwell also juxtaposes the powerful “white man” against an “absurd puppet… a hollow, posing dummy… about to perform a trick” (2). The narrator is equated to a helpless doll forced to move whenever the native demand. He becomes a symbol of false authority. By using these paradoxes, Orwell is able to show the
In George Orwell’s novel, 1984, Orwell conveys the theme of conformity though his diction, and through his depiction of the “fixing process” employed by the government. After every governmental message in the novel, Big Brother, the leader of Oceania, states the country’s slogan of “War Is Peace, Freedom Is Slavery, Ignorance Is Strength.” (Orwell, 16). Orwell’s diction in this slogan is used to essentially list the characteristics of a conformed society, showing that they do not have free thought, are ignorant towards governmental flaws, and believe that what they are doing is for a good cause. As O’Brien is “fixing” Winston, he has Winston to believe that when he is holding up four fingers, “there are five fingers there.”
The reader can become more aware that Orwell hates his job and, the reader can see more of a pathos appeal as they read on. Orwell uses ethos as well, to conduct his feelings about imperialism, his description of being a police officer in a Moulmein, Burma reflects his judgment on
Rhetorical Analysis: “Shooting an Elephant” Contrary to popular belief, the oppressors of imperialism lack freedom. Imperialists are usually powerful and maintain control over the native people of the land they are taking over. It is expected for someone with great power to have choices and freedoms, however, that is not necessarily the case. Sometimes power can limit or restrict the choices one makes.
He appeals to the empathy of the audience by stating the actions of the Burmese people: “if a European woman went through the bazaars alone somebody would probably spit betel juice over her dress” (Orwell, 1), “When a nimble Burman tripped me up on the football field and the referee (another Burman) looked the other way, the crowd yelled with hideous laughter.” (1). Actions with which would be more expected of the European imperialists rather than the Burmese people themselves. He clearly states his contempt for Imperialism through the following statement on his life and job: "All I knew was that I was stuck between my hatred for the empire I served and my rage against the evil-spirited little beasts who tried to make my job impossible.”
This narrative piece is an effective expository technique that describes the narrator’s thoughts and tone. Orwell uses oxymoron such as “grinning corpse” and paradox phrases such as “the story always sounds clear enough at a distance, but the nearer you get to the scene of events the vaguer it becomes”. Another paradox statement is shown in “I perceived this moment that when the white man turns tyrant it is his own freedom that he destroys”. Orwell’s decisions were briskly altered as he was deciding on whether to kill the elephant or not. His mind altered from “I ought not to shoot him” to “I had got to do it” and also to “But I did not want to shoot the elephant”.
Throughout “Shooting An Elephant” , Orwell’s narrative style brings out internal and external conflicts that are relatable in society today. The narrator faces multiple internal and external conflicts. One external conflict being the Burmese and how they mock him because he is a representative of the British Empire, but he will do what it takes to show them he is not a fool. "I often wondered whether any of the others grasped that I had done it solely to avoid looking a fool.
Throughout the book the slogans of “war is peace, freedom is slavery, [and] ignorance is strength” is a forced acceptance by all citizens (Orwell 16). These particular slogans, that exemplify doublethink, are plastered everywhere. The illogicalness of doublethink completely surrounds the citizens, constantly exposing them to it. The second characteristic of monopoly over mass media is quite evident in Winston 's life. Government employees run the internet, newspapers, and radio/tv announcements.
Rhetorical Analysis of “A Hanging” In his personal narrative, “A Hanging”, George Orwell, a renowned British author, who often used his talents to criticize injustice and totalitarianism, describes an execution he witnessed in Burma while serving as an officer in the British Imperial Police. Originally published in The Adelphi, a British magazine, in 1931, the piece was written for educated, politically aware people in England, in hopes of provoking questions regarding the morality of capital punishment, and perhaps imperialist society overall, in those benefitting from such a system. Although he died nearly seventy years ago, his works are still influential and relevant today. Using vivid descriptions and a somber tone, Orwell recreates his experience in a tense narration that clearly shows his thesis concerning the value of human life and the wrongness inherent to a system that dismisses it so casually.
“It is not wisdom but authority that makes a low.” Thomas Hobbes’ quote reveals that the world is all about authority and how powerful people are. In other words, to be able to rule, wisdom is not essential. However, authority is crucial. This quote relates to George Orwell’s Animal Farm as it represents the theme of power by the pigs that use propaganda, intimidation and false informations to take over the farm and to control the animals.
This explores the ability of oppressive schemes to control the human experience of self-expression, as Winston recognises that rebellion is maliciously schemed in O’Brien’s dramatic pause and emotive language, ‘The Party…persuaded you that you were mere impulses… robbing you of power,’ as oppression is catered through false hope. Hence, Orwell describes how oppression will exploit individual hope and capacity for rebellion,
In George Orwell’s 1984, a future totalitarian government is presented to the audience with the heavy use of satire. This government serves two purposes: mocking Communism and demonstrating the effects of government control on its citizens and society. Through his ominous tone, Orwell satirizes the relationship between citizens and members of government authority. He portrays O’Brien as Winston’s friend, rather than his enemy.
George Orwell’s novel Nineteen Eighty-Four, set in a dystopic future where England, now known as Air Strop One is the home of an evil totalitarian party who rules those in Oceania with fear and ruthlessness. The novel follows the life of Winston Smith, a regular middle-class man who hides a rebellious nature. The world has become a place full of propaganda, intimidation, where people and history itself is manipulated in order to uphold the pristine image of the party, who holds power for their own enjoyment. The novel is a thrilling literary piece that explores the evils of totalitarianism, the nature of truth, the purpose of war, the nature of power and the human spirit. Written shortly after World War 2, Orwell wrote the novel with the purpose
In George Orwell’s 1984, the three slogans of the Party—”War is Peace, Freedom is Slavery, and Ignorance is Strength” (page 4)—are significant paradoxes that are used to reveal the theme of the novel that fear and ignorance allow one to be easily controlled. The three slogans are introduced early in the novel when Winston Smith thinks about his job at the Ministry of Truth. The building is described as “an enormous pyramidal structure of glittering white concrete, soaring up, terrace after terrace, three hundred meters into the air... it was just possible to read, picked out on its white face in elegant lettering, the three slogans of the Party: War is Peace, Freedom is Slavery, Ignorance is Strength” (4). The three slogans present
Imperialism is represented two ways in the works of Gideon and Orwell; separately, the master and the mastered. Orwell is an officer dispatched in British Burma. Orwell resides with the ruling class and gets to call the shots, along with his fellow colleagues, the other British officers. Even if they’re foreigners, yet their word is acknowledged and their will to live is the law.
Firstly, Orwell explores the theme of poverty through the use of imagery and repetition in order to give his writing a very intricate and memorable description. In this first section Orwell