The Theme of Compassion in A Very Old Man With Enormous Wings and Shooting an Elephant

The stories  A Very Old Man with Enormous Wings by Gabriel Garcia Marquez and Shooting an Elephant by George Orwell lack elements of compassion. The elements of compassion range from harming the beast of the stories to slightly wanting to help them out. In the shooting of an elephant, the main character  was faced with a decision to shoot or not to shoot the elephant when he encountered it in the field and saw it as a work creature. This was a difficult decision for him due to situational circumstances which led to the decline in passion he faced. While in the other story the family started off with slight compassion and as time moved on they ended up with none towards the time the man flew off.

Shoot of an elephant by George Orwell, the man that had to shoot the elephant did not in fact want to yet it was necessary. This shows that the main character had to show less compassion than he preferred. When placed in an athoratory position, people have to maintain a certain look or stance and when it comes time to help others or make a call that will benefit one party while making them look weak they will choose the path that leads to their power staying where it’s at or growing even bigger. The position the man was in was as the guard of the village sent there by a forgin country. He was the man with the gun in the village and had to show that he was not afraid to use it. He had to show the gathering crowd of people that he could and will maintain his position and do what is necessary in the situation. In the end the main character showed no respect towards the elephant by shooting it in the end. The only elements of compassion he did show was shooting the elephant multiple times to end the suffering.

The element of compassion in the story, A Very Old Man with Enormous Wings, by Gabriel Garcia Marquez changes throughout the story. In the beginning of the story the couple who found the old man in their backyard did not treat the man without dignity yet did not fully dignify the man. When first found, the man was tossed into the chicken coop and locked in there during the rain storm. He was fed and allowed to walk yet the couple would not allow him his freedom. Since the couple found a reason to make money off of the man they kept him more or so as a pet rather than treating him as a guest.  Once they had enough money,they let him roam their property. During this time, the couple ignored him and treated him like he didn't exist. And at the end, when man became well enough to fly away,  Sadly, it seems to me that as long as the couple were poor they had some compassion for the angel like man, but when they realized they could gain wealth from his existence, the less they would care for him and show him compassion.

Lack of compassion is not always a common theme between stories but when it is shown it will be surprising what the character has the ability to do. The main character in the shooting of an elephant did not want to kill the animal and wanted to show compassion towards the beast yet due to social pressures he shot the elephant. While in the very old man with enormous wings, the couple only showed the compassion they did because they were able to gain wealth off of the situation. This shows that a lack of compassion can be common in people and they will only be compassionate when it benefits them but people can also show a lack of compassion when enough pressure is placed on them.