Friday, October 1, 2010
Humiliation.
While shooting an elephant is wrong on a moral and economic level, if we "put ourselves in Orwell's shoes" he does gain some justification. Imagine your boyfriend or girlfriend cheated on you. You confront the person he/she cheated on you with, and they punch you in the face. It's not easy to turn the other cheek now is it? Hardly anyone would walk away, losing their dignity and lover in front of your dozens of peers. Orwell wanted to keep his dignity, for it was at stake in front of the two thousand people he had amassed. The rowdy crowd was expecting a show, so he gave it to them. At the moment, pride is sometimes much more important than the consequences on hand. No one wants to be called a sissy. People would do anything to keep themselves from being publically humiliated. There was a story in the news about a college student who put a live webcam in his dorm room. At this time, the second roommate had asked for some privacy. He had brought in his "male companion". As a closeted gay male, his cover because of his roommate's insincerity. Furthermore, Orwell had to deal with the guilt of killing such a majestic creature, while the high school student would deal with suspension or expulsion. Unfortunately, the college student had jumped off of a bridge to escape this humiliation.
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That story from Rutgers University is breaking my heart, Mark. This is going to become even a bigger story in the weeks ahead, calling attention to a pervasive and socially accepted form of bullying that LBGT youth simply learn to live with, or hide from.
ReplyDeleteNo one, gay or straight, would like their private moments broadcast online, and I hope the people who filmed Tyler Clementi have to legally accept responsibility for this act of cyber violence.
His death, like Matthew Shepherd's, is destined to become a talking point for activists everywhere.
I think the band Pearl Jam made a song about a similar incident called "Jeremy". I could look up the actual story, but a junior high student who was constantly psychologically and physically bullied by his peers shot himself in front of his class. He couldn't take it anymore.
ReplyDeleteOrwell had to shoot the elephant. A man can't endure that humiliation from society. It would be embarassing.
No one in society should ever feel alienated. When people do idiotic things like post webcam footage of their gay roommate or egg on an imperial policeman to shoot an elephant for blood, they're pulling the evolution of human society back.