Mr Flory

Outer characterization

Mr Flory is the main character in George Orwell’s “Burmese Days”. He is an English timber merchant whose company benefits economically from the contracts in Burma as a result of British rule. He describes himself as “Anglo-Indian” (p. 272, l. 17), and is a member of the local Club. The gentlemen's club was a very popular British custom in the colonies. Often they had very strict rules that denied entrance to the native population. From his friend’s description, we learn that he is “an English gentleman of high gifts and character” (p. 272, l. 3). He is not physically described in this excerpt.

Inner characterization

As Dr Veraswami remarks, Mr Flory is a cynical person, who believes that people are largely motivated by self-interest. He is convinced the British rule in Burma is motivated only by economic gain: “ ‘The British Empire is simply a device for giving trade monopolies to the English’ ” (p. 273, ll. 15-17). To the argument made by Dr Veraswami that the British have bro...