Thomas Paine in his essay The Rights of Man suggests that the morality of an issue is based on the equality of an issue. For the existence of all men should be seen as equal. The Monarchy and imperial ways detracts from the equality of mankind and creates a suggestive loophole which gives the rights of man to a select few and thus creates an imbalance. The imbalance can be religious, legal, racial or social. Paine believed that only with equality would there be any sort of justice and morality for in every other case there would be a perception of morals but in fact it would be simple injustice. His view of Monarchy can be read through the words, "What is called monarchy always appears to me a silly contemptible thing. I compare it to something kept behind a curtain, about which there is a great deal of bustle and fuss, and a wonderful air of seeming solemnity; but, when, by any accident, the curtain happens to be open, and the...
[Rights of Man, part 2, 1792]
The scene of the elephant collapsing after being shot is so poignant it can move any reader to tears. The look of extreme shock and betrayal on the face of the animal expressed through his dying body caused intense anguish to the narrator as he decided to leave without finishing his job completely. "I felt that I had got to put an end to that dreadful noise. It seemed
George Orwells short story "Shooting Elephant" Henry Louis Gates' "What's in a name" versus George Orwell's "Shooting an Elephant" Henry Louis Gates' essay "What's in a name" and George Orwell's short story "Shooting an Elephant" both present central characters who are part of a minority group present in a society that is inclined to discriminate them. Orwell is the narrator in his short story and he discusses in regard to an
So, the reader of this essay was set up by Orwell perfectly: blast away at the stinking rotting, drunken social scene in Paris, frequented in large part by Americans pretending to have talent, and mention that Miller thought this was cool to write about. Then bring in the terrible, frightening and bloody realities happening elsewhere in Europe, and you have shown what a rascal Miller was. But wait, Orwell admits
However, when his assistance is needed by the townspeople, the two very different populations show similar responses to the bloody scene of shooting an elephant, "It was a bit of fun to them, as it would be to an English crowd; besides they wanted the meat," (Orwell, 649). Orwell furthers this blend of modern and primitive as seen through the use of his language. The narrator describes the scene of
He still has his pride, even if his pride does not trickle down to his work. He is anything but ambivalent about the reaction he will get from the people, and so, he must shoot the elephant to save face, rather than to "serve and protect." This illustrates his ambivalence to everything but his own reputation in front of the people. However, he discovers he has lost more than
In this case, the language, perpetrated by a few, is becoming pervasive in society, and so, it is taking over many aspects of society. However, for the most part, society seems to be resisting much of this doublespeak type of language. It is not prominent in the media, (perhaps in the government), and is seems that language, in general, is about the same as it always has been, full
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