Animal Farm
Revolutions and failure
Encouraged by the wretched conditions he lived while working in Burma, the Spanish Revolution, the abuse of the working class and many other events, George Orwell started writing his political satire, Animal Farm, in 1943 to finally publish it in 1945. In this novel Orwell condemns all the totalitarian regimes that humanity has been through by referring to the Russian revolution, underscoring the danger that a naive working class may represent. Indeed, this work is, as far as I believe, influential to the extent that it fits politicians of all the times.
Among the most dominating issues that the novella calls attention to is rulers' dictatorship. Through an allegorical reference to a variety of events and regimes, Orwell seeks for criticizing and awakening people and such systems at a time. In the novel, animals reflect the image of human beings divided among different social classes, and different intellectual levels. The majority of these characters are shown as passive creatures and mere receivers who only live to obey orders and submit to a dominant that is in this story a "Pig". Pigs epitomize political figures that used to take control over the people during the Russian Revolution. For instance, Napoleon, who chooses himself to be the leader after the death of Old Major, is based on Joseph Stalin(1), and Snowball is used as an image of Leon Trotsky(2). These two characters were basically the most prominent. In the beginning, Old Major, the "wisest and oldest" pig in the farm who is representative of both Karl Marx(3) and Vladimir Ilych Lenin(4), gives a speech to encourage the rest of the animals to rebel against their master, Mr Jones. And so the rebellion was announced, and they managed to expel the owner out of the farm. This event is an animal allegory of the Russian Revolution that took place in 1917. Through this work, Orwell attacks the Russian Communism ,or Stalinism. He underscores the dictatorship that the Russian people witnessed under the rule of Tsar Nicholas II(5) (1868-1918) , the last Russian Emperor.Actually, during his reign Russia witnesses a period of great political and social upheavals. People suffered from hunger and dictatorship at a time; the same conditions that the animals lived in, and hence it was a suitable seed for a rebellion. After the WWI, Russia was the country that lost men the most. Right then, people were more encouraged to abolish the Tsarist rule, and so they went into strikes to signal the beginning of the end with the dominance of the Bolshevics and the Civil War during which Nicholas was removed from his place. Shortly thereafter, Lenin, the leader of the Bolshevic Party, got inspired by Marx's " Communist Manifesto" the way Old Major announced "Animalism", a theory that calls for the equality between all the animals, which will turn out to be violated with the rule of the pigs. In breif, Orwell tries to make the reader aware of the fact that all revolutions are doomed to a certain fate , that is failure. Indeed, defeated revolutionary activities are basically the outcome of the appearance of new dictators, and another disguised oppression. Accordingly, people are always willing to abolish dictators, but not dictatorship. The oppressor may be removed, but oppression is always there.
When it comes to dictators, the very basic means to impose their rule is a naive people. Animal Farm is a great illustration of this notion, which is dramatically shown through the majority of the characters. Concerning naivety and obedience, Boxer, the horse, is a good example. He is the most faithful animal in the novel, though nothing is worthy being faithful for. During battles he is always the one that fights bravely. He always works hard and obeys all the orders given by the pigs, repeating the same slogans" I will work harder" and " Napoleon is always right". Boxer is kind to an extent that makes him stupid, for he strongly believes that a Utopian life is possible, and that his efforts would not go with the wind. Even when the pigs take him to the knacker's to kill him, he believes that he is going to be recovered and then returns to the farm. As opposed to Boxer, Mollie is a character who only thinks about herself. She does not show any interest in the rebellion, and she just cares about whether she will get sugar ribbons after the revolution or not. A passive creature that represents the few of the Russian Bourgeoisie that fled right after the Revolution, and a huge number of individuals of our time. Ultimately, Boxer and Mollie added to the other animals sat the tone for an oppressive-like system. They seem to be rebellious, but they contribute to their own persecution.
All in all, George Orwell wrote his beast-fable in an attempt to peep into people's consciousness to exhilarate them about the dangers of being unaware of history, and the consequences that people's dullness lead to. By nature, we were born to make the change, no matter how risky it is, it has to be done, and it will. Moreover, the novella is, obviously, so beautifully written, in an easy language that all the readers may understand what the writer aims at. However, he sometimes seems to be paradoxical. In fact, when it comes to history, as a social democrat, Orwell should have been more objective.
All in all, George Orwell wrote his beast-fable in an attempt to peep into people's consciousness to exhilarate them about the dangers of being unaware of history, and the consequences that people's dullness lead to. By nature, we were born to make the change, no matter how risky it is, it has to be done, and it will. Moreover, the novella is, obviously, so beautifully written, in an easy language that all the readers may understand what the writer aims at. However, he sometimes seems to be paradoxical. In fact, when it comes to history, as a social democrat, Orwell should have been more objective.
Favorite Quotes:
"Man is the only creature that consumes without producing".
"Man serves the interest of no one except himself'.
“The creatures outside looked from pig to man, and from man to pig, and from pig to man again; but already it was impossible to say which was which.”
Historical Figures:
(1) Joseph Stalin: (18 December 1878 – 5 March 1953) was the leader of the Soviet Union from the mid-1920s until his death in 1953. Holding the post of the General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, he was effectively the dictator of the state.
(1) Joseph Stalin: (18 December 1878 – 5 March 1953) was the leader of the Soviet Union from the mid-1920s until his death in 1953. Holding the post of the General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, he was effectively the dictator of the state.
(2)Leon Trotsky: (26 October 1879 – 21 August 1940) was a Marxist revolutionary and theorist, Soviet politician, and the founding leader of the Red Army.
(3)Karl Marx: (5 May 1818 – 14 March 1883) was a German philosopher, economist, sociologist, journalist and revolutionary socialist. He published numerous books during his lifetime, the most notable being The Communist Manifesto (1848) , which sheds lights on the problems of capitalism and the capitalist mode of production.
(4)Vladimir Ilych Lenin: (22 April 1870 – 21 January 1924) was a Russian communist revolutionary, politician, and political theorist. He served as head of government of the Russian Republic from 1917 to 1918, of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic from 1918 to 1924, and of the Soviet Union from 1922 to 1924. Ideologically a Marxist, his political theories are known as Leninism.
(5) Tsar Nicholas II: (18 May 1868 – 17 July 1918) was the last Emperor of Russia, Grand Duke of Finland, and titular King of Poland. He ruled from 1 November 1894 until his forced abdication on 15 March 1917 .His reign saw Imperial Russia go from being one of the foremost great powers of the world to economic and military collapse.
Sources:
www.brighthubeducation.com
www.theorwellreader.com
Animal Farm-George Orwell
