Orwell describes the coolie as flattened, beaten and disfigured by mud while specifying that he died in agonizing suffering. Orwell, clearly comparing the same defeat to Burma, notes: "His face was covered in mud, his eyes wide open, his teeth bared, and smiling with an expression of unbearable agony" (325). Furthermore, the symbol of the dead coolie serves as a martyr for Orwell who resigns to ask for a gun in case he too is trampled. This features the action of Orwell having to shoot the elephant, as this begins to attract the attention of the crowd. Orwell later realizes: “I had to shoot the elephant. I promised to do it when I sent for the gun”