Shooting an Elephant In "Shooting an Elephant " why did George Orwell feel that he "would have to shoot the elephant after all"? Asked by bookragstutor 13 years ago 8/20/2012 10:23 AM Last updated by anonymous 13 years ago 9/4/2012 2:20 PM
He feels pressured by the demand of the crowd for the act to be done, and he does it to keep from looking like a fool in front of the Indians. Of course, the entire story is a ironic look at British colonialism.