His story tells of his stay in Burma and the moment when he had no choice but to shoot an elephant. In reading “Shooting an Elephant,” Orwell uses three literary devices: tone, irony, and imagery. Orwell faced imperialism at its worst and he uses tone to emphasize how he was in real opposition to it. While imperialism was supposed to make the British stronger, it sometimes weakened them. Orwell makes sure to get this message across by using irony. Last but not least, Orwell uses strong imagery to paint a picture of imperialism and its effects on himself and the indigenous people. As seen, each literary device connects to help narrate and captivate an era of Orwell in