English Cooking and Elephants －イギリス料理と象－

English people don’t cook elephants.  At least I have never seen it.  I have been reading a book of essays by George Orwell recently.  In the book, he writes about many different topics, including English cooking, and the time he shot an elephant. 

Orwell is most famous for writing the books “Animal Farm,” and “1984.”  He was born in 1902 and lived a fascinating life.  He was educated at Britain’s most elite school, Eton.  But he spent some time homeless as he struggled to sell his writing.  He worked for a while as an administrator in the British Empire in Burma, before coming to hate the Empire.  He volunteered and fought in the Spanish Civil War where he was shot in the throat by a fascist. 

Here are a few quotes about English cooking, and elephants, from the essays I have read so far. 

1

“It is commonly said, even by the English themselves, that English cooking is the worst in the world.  [But] there is a whole host of delicacies which it is quite impossible to obtain [elsewhere].” 

Orwell recommended many great British foods, such as kippers (smoked fish), Yorkshire pudding (a baked egg and flour pudding, served with gravy), and boiled potatoes served with mint and melted butter, among many other dishes. 

2

“As for the job I was doing [as a police officer in British controlled Burma], I hated it more bitterly than I can perhaps make clear.

…

Early one morning, the sub-inspector of the police station at the other end of town rang me up on the phone and said that an elephant was ravaging the bazaar.  Would I please come and do something about it? 

…

The Burmese population were without weapons and were quite helpless against [the elephant.]

…

As I started forward [with my rifle], practically the whole population of the [area] flocked out of the houses and followed me.  They had seen the rifle and were all shouting excitedly that I was going to shoot the elephant.”

 

Orwell felt that the elephant had calmed down, and he didn’t want to shoot it.  But a crowd of local people had gathered, expecting to see the white man shoot the elephant.  Orwell felt powerless to go against the crowd’s wishes, and so shot the elephant.  He says that the incident made him realise how foolish it was to think that Britain could really control its empire.  Although he was the only one with a gun, he had to follow the wishes of the crowd, to avoid being laughed at.

 

Vocabulary:

an administrator – a person who helps to manage an organisation, do the correct paperwork, etc.

the throat – the part of the body at the front of the neck, important for breathing, swallowing food, etc.

a whole host of – a huge number of, like a gathering army

a delicacy – a rare or special food

to obtain something – to get something

to hate something bitterly – to hate something with strong feeling

to ravage something – to do terrible damage to something with violent force

a bazaar – a large market, especially in the Middle East

to flock  - to gather together in large numbers, like a group of birds