In the following essay, Stewart compares Orwell to another Indian-born English writer, Rudyard Kipling. Both wrote essays on killing elephants, though Kipling used more humor in his account. In contrast, Orwell often took himself too seriously, according to Stewart, and thereby jeopardized his credibility.

Malcolm Muggeridge called attention to the affinity between Orwell and Kipling: "When I used sometimes to say to Orwell that he and Kipling had a great deal in common, he would laugh that curious rusty laugh of his and change the subject. When Kipling died in 1936, Orwell wanted to offer some kind of tribute— a salute of guns, if such a thing were available— to the story teller who was so important in my youth."

Similarities and differences are so numerous that one requires a specific point of departure to avoid bare catalogues. My point of departure is a coincidence: both...