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Sir Arthur Grimble's Haunting An Octopus In The Gilbert Islands

472 Words2 Pages

Sir Arthur Grimble´s ¨Hunting an Octopus in the Gilbert Islands¨ shares an intriguing story of how the Gilbertese hunt and kill an octopus. The story begins by explaining how the human body acts as the primary tool, as it is responsible for being both bait and weapon. While one man lures the octopus, his partner uses his teeth to puncture the octopus in the eyes to kill it. As the narrator is intently watching a pair of young boys carrying multiple dead octopi, he is intrigued by their abilities and bravery. After the boys explain the importance of covering one's eyes underwater, they offer Grimble a chance to become bait. Even though he was fearful, his reputation was at stake; therefore, he proceeded to follow through with the their plan. …show more content…

His appeal to pathos is apparent especially when he encounters the octopus underwater. The narrator describes a “dreadful sliminess with a herculean power behind it” (343) with “suckers that felt like hot rings pulling against [his skin]” (343) and how his “boyhood’s nightmare was upon [him]” (344). The images he evokes of the octopus entangling around him completely pulls in attention from the audience. His goal is to make the readers feel the same anxiety and fear he experiences. In addition, Grimble effectively shows the conflict between man vs. society and man vs. nature in his narrative. After getting involved with the octopus hunting, Grimble states how his “damnable curiosity had led [him] to a trap from which there was no escape” (342). Being a white man and colonial officer, the Gilbertese hold certain expectations for authoritative figures. With pressure from society, he chooses to hunt in order to keep his high-ranking reputation. This same conflict between man vs. society is displayed in Georgia Orwell’s “Shooting an Elephant.” Orwell, the narrator, kills an elephant, despite his own objections, to please the crowd of Burmese people. Both plot lines depict a narrator of greater status bending towards social wants over individual

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