Grade 10 English - King vs Orwell
Many Colours, One World , One Approach to Injustice
The essays “Shooting an Elephant” by George Orwell and the "Letter From Birmingham Jail” by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. share several similarities, particularly in terms of the authors' recognition of injustice in their respective communities. There are striking similarities between their causes despite Orwell being of British descent and part of the caucasian majority while Dr. King was from the United States of America and was part of the coloured minority. Both essays helped emphasize the struggle and injustices in society, regardless of the cultural differences between the authors and the nearly thirty year gap between their publications. Both men were influential civil rights activists who used different approaches to bring awareness to social injustice. While Orwell approached the perceived injustices more passively through his writing, Dr. King actively arranged and participated in protests to draw attention to the injustices. The profound differences in their backgrounds make it thought-provoking to examine how, despite dramatic differences in their upbringing and culture, they recognized injustice in their communities and tried to bring awareness to similar issues through these two documents.
Both essays have strong themes which are meant to appeal to the ‘white moderate’ as the authors spoke about the oppression, injustice and humiliation they experienced and observed in their everyday lives. Orwell wrote “Shooting an Elephant” based on his own experiences as a police officer in Burma under the reign of British India. Dr. King wrote his essay from a Birmingham Alabama jail cell in response to a statement by eight fellow clergymen after he was charged for ‘parading without a permit’ (King). Perhaps what makes their approach to injustices interesting is that neither of the authors were native to the area where the oppression was occurring, yet both felt that it was in their best interest to
The essays “Shooting an Elephant” by George Orwell and the "Letter From Birmingham Jail” by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. share several similarities, particularly in terms of the authors' recognition of injustice in their respective communities. There are striking similarities between their causes despite Orwell being of British descent and part of the caucasian majority while Dr. King was from the United States of America and was part of the coloured minority. Both essays helped emphasize the struggle and injustices in society, regardless of the cultural differences between the authors and the nearly thirty year gap between their publications. Both men were influential civil rights activists who used different approaches to bring awareness to social injustice. While Orwell approached the perceived injustices more passively through his writing, Dr. King actively arranged and participated in protests to draw attention to the injustices. The profound differences in their backgrounds make it thought-provoking to examine how, despite dramatic differences in their upbringing and culture, they recognized injustice in their communities and tried to bring awareness to similar issues through these two documents.
Both essays have strong themes which are meant to appeal to the ‘white moderate’ as the authors spoke about the oppression, injustice and humiliation they experienced and observed in their everyday lives. Orwell wrote “Shooting an Elephant” based on his own experiences as a police officer in Burma under the reign of British India. Dr. King wrote his essay from a Birmingham Alabama jail cell in response to a statement by eight fellow clergymen after he was charged for ‘parading without a permit’ (King). Perhaps what makes their approach to injustices interesting is that neither of the authors were native to the area where the oppression was occurring, yet both felt that it was in their best interest to
Cited: King, Martin Luther, Jr. “Letter from Birmingham Jail.” The Atlantic Monthly 212.2 (1963): 1-6. Print. Orwell, George. “Shooting an Elephant.” Shooting an Elephant and Other Essays. London: Secker and Warburg, 1950. 1-6. Print.