Another Animal Farm Essay, Research Paper

George Orwell’s Animal Farm is a political satire of a

totalitarian society ruled by a mighty dictatorship, in all

probability an allegory for the events surrounding the Russian

Revolution of 1917. The animals of "Manor Farm"

overthrow their human master after a long history of

mistreatment. Led by the pigs, the farm animals continue to

do their work, only with more pride, knowing that they are

working for themselves, as opposed to working for humans.

Little by little, the pigs become dominant, gaining more

power and advantage over the other animals, so much so

that they become as corrupt and power-hungry as their

predecessors, the humans. The theme in Animal Farm

maintains that in every society there are leaders who, if given

the opportunity, will likely abuse their power. The book

begins in the barnyard of Mr. Jones’ "Manor Farm". The

animals congregate at a meeting led by the prize white boar,

Major. Major points out to the assembled animals that no

animal in England is free. He further explains that the

products of their labor is stolen by man, who alone benefits.

Man, in turn, gives back to the animals the bare minimum

which will keep them from starvation while he profits from

the rest. The old boar tells them that the source of all their

problems is man, and that they must remove man from their

midst to abolish tyranny and hunger. Days later Major dies,

but the hope and pride which he gave the other animals does

not die. Under the leadership of the pigs, the most intelligent

of the animals, they rebel against their human master

managing to overthrow him. After the rebellion, under the

direction of Napoleon, the most outspoken pig, and

Snowball, the most eloquent pig, the animals continue to

work the farm successfully. As with all societies, the animals

have laws which must be obeyed. Their laws stated that

animals shall never become like humans; cruel and

manipulative. They shall not wear clothing nor sleep in beds.

Most importantly, they are to respect one another’s equality

and killing another animal is strictly forbidden. Meanwhile,

the pigs as leaders are taking bigger food rations for

themselves justifying their behavior as something necessary

for the "brains" of their animal society. At this point we begin

to suspect that the pigs will abuse their positions and power

in this animal society. Mr. Jones tries to reclaim his power

but the animals prevent him from doing so in what they call

"The Battle of the Cowshed". After the battle, Napoleon

drives Snowball off the farm telling everyone that Snowball

was on Mr. Jones’ side. Napoleon is further appreciated by

the other animals for exposing and removing the traitor,

Snowball, from their midst. Slowly, Napoleon gets a

stronger and stronger hold over the other animals,

dominating their every action. The situation at "Animal

Farm", the new name for "Manor Farm", really starts to

change now. Napoleon moves into Mr. Jones’ house, sleeps

in his bed, and even wears his clothes. In order to make his

actions appear legal, the law had to be interpreted

differently, which Napoleon arranged. In defiance of the

original laws, Napoleon befriends Mr. Pilkington, the human

owner of a nearby farm. Napoleon had such control over

the other animals that they accepted such a blatant disregard

of their law about fraternizing with humans. The book ends

with the pigs sitting at a table, eating with humans. Napoleon

announces to those around the table that the name "Manor

Farm" will be reinstated. The humans and pigs converse

while the other animals outside look on. They, the lowly

creatures according to the pigs and humans, look from pig to

man and from man to pig, unable to differentiate between the

species. The theme throughout Animal Farm is presented

through the allegory of corrupt pigs and the passivity of the

other barnyard animals. The humans in the story represent

the Russian royal family and aristocracy, tyrants who abused

their power with no regard for the peasants who, in essence,

supported their royal lifestyle. The pigs represent the

Bolshevik revolutionaries who led the masses in rebellion

against the Czar and the entire royal family. Unfortunately, as

with the pigs, power corrupted and the people were then

oppressed by their "comrades" under the new communist

government. Orwell’s message about power, in the hands of

a few, is corrupting and does nothing to benefit the masses.