'A Hanging' - extra notes

Below is a exemplar essay.

Remember, if you choose the non-fiction option, the question will be different. Your answer must reflect the question.

Choose a non fiction text in which the writer expresses outrage or shock about an issue which you feel is important.                                                                                                                                      Show how the writer conveys the emotion and discuss to what extent this emotional response enhances your understanding of the issue.

“A Hanging” by George Orwell is a non-fiction text in which the writer expresses his outrage and opposition to the issue of the use of capital punishment. The essay is set in Burma during the 1920’s, when Orwell, stationed there as a policeman, witnesses the hanging of a Hindu man. He expresses his outrage through his description of setting, character, turning point and by transferring some of his thoughts and feelings onto the appearance of a dog.

Orwell selects his detail carefully. He begins with his description of the weather that day describing it as “a sodden morning” with “a sickly light, like yellow tinfoil”. This adds an ominous atmosphere, creating a mood, which is dark and foreboding. He then describes the condemned cells as being “small animal cages.” This suggests that the conditions were inhumane. All of this denotes Orwell’s growing unhappiness about the treatment of the prisoners and suggests his disapproval.

Having described the conditions, Orwell moves on to give detail about the prisoner, describing him as “a puny wisp of a man with… vague liquid eyes” Orwell tells us nothing of his crime, which may influence our view. Instead he characterises the Hindu as weak and unthreatening. The man is “chained”, “handcuffed” and his arms are “lashed tight to his sides”. This vivid description suggests harsh treatment and Orwell’s opposition to the way condemned men are treated.

As the execution party heads toward the gallows, a dog appears. Orwell states, “a dreadful thing happened… a dog appeared and bounded among us with a loud volley of barks.” The word choice “dreadful” suggests Orwell’s shock and disapproval, but really it suggests his own thoughts – an idea he returns to later in the essay. The dog jumps up on the prisoner and licks his face - expressing friendliness. This friendly act makes the actions of the execution party seem even more outrageous in contrast.

A further technique Orwell uses to express his feelings against capital punishment is the use of a turning point. On the way to the gallows, Orwell notices the prisoner “stepping slightly aside to avoid a puddle on the path.” This is when Orwell states: “… till that moment I had never realised what it means to destroy a healthy conscious man.” At this moment, the wrongness of capital punishment becomes clear to Orwell. Orwell also uses imagery to explain his new thinking: “I saw … the unspeakable wrongness of cutting a life short when it is in full tide.” Just as a full tide suggests moving water at its highest point, so too this man’s life was in full flow. The word choice “unspeakable wrongness” expresses Orwell’s strong opinion that capital punishment, in any circumstances, is completely unjustifiable and morally wrong.

The execution of the prisoner is then shown is vivid detail. The Hindu man called out rhythmically to his god “Ram! Ram! Ram!”, building up an unbearable tension. Orwell also tells us “There was a clanking noise then a dead silence” The short sentence draws our attention to how easy it was for to take the man’s life.

Then, once again, we see Orwell’s emotional reaction reflected in the dog’s behaviour, when, on realising the prisoner was dead, “it stopped short, barked, and then retreated into a corner of the yard” The word choice, “retreated”, suggests shock and disgust at what had happened.

In conclusion, “A Hanging”, George Orwell is clearly a non-fiction text where the writer’s outrage is well expressed. The detailed description of setting and the prisoner and then the use of turning point enhance our understanding of how Orwell sees the convict as victim of a repressive system. Interestingly, in focusing on a dog’s reaction to the execution, Orwell effectively conveys to the reader his own revulsion at the taking of a man’s life.