【Book Review】Animal Farm

Animal Farm

    A group of animals who are tired of being ruled by humans, decide to revolt and establish their own society where everyone is equal. However, the animals face even worse situation under the tyranny of pigs, who declares to be “more equal than others”…

    Before I read this novel, I have already known that Animal Farm is a satire of the Russian Revolution, though I don’t possess a complete knowledge of the counterparts of each character in the novel. Then, after reading this book, I did a little research on the internet and found something useful. Now I can present a more understandable chart to illustrate the relations between the fictional characters and the reality.

    Mr. Jones, the former owner of the farm, represents the last Tsar of Russia, Nicholas Alexandrovich Romanov (Nicholas II), and Mrs. Jones represents the Tsar's wife, Alexandra. Old Major, as the father of Animalism, not only symbolizes Karl Marx but also symbolizes the original leaders of communists Vladimir Lenin in some degree. Napoleon represents the second leader of the Soviet Union Joseph Stalin while Snowball represents Leo Trotsky, who is one of the initial revolutionaries and is expelled from Russia. Squealer represents the media which spreads Stalin’s words to the general public. Boxer, the dedicated horse, represents the working class; the dogs represents the police or the army.

-Spoilers Alert!-

    There are two themes I want to share my opinions in Animal Farm. The first one is the class stratification. In the beginning, animals all have the same enemies which are humans, but as long as animals seize on the ownership of the farm, they begin to turn on each other. The pigs, who are portrayed as intellectuals, separate themselves from other animals, who are regarded as working labors. The rulers manipulate the society and establish their power by making the naïve working class animals believe that“Napoleon is always right.” This is a strong indication of the formation of classes. The commandment is now rejected since the equal between every animal no long exists.

    George Orwell also portrays how the controllers exhibit the abuse of language. The most evident example is the Seven Commandment which the Old Major proposes as the core of animalism. When Napoleon takes the power, he gradually twists the original meaning of the words for the purpose of improving his own dominance. He even proclaims that even though everyone is equal, someone is more equal than the others.

    One of the major conflicts within the plot of Animal Farm happens between Snowball and Napoleon. Snowball is dedicated to spreading Animalism to every part of the world. His problems are that he is too idealistic. He insists on relying on his mental power, therefore, he is incapable of competing with Napoleon, who possesses military forces in some degree. Even though in Animal Farm, Snowball seems to be more appealing than Napoleon, he still has fatal flaws when it comes to the role of a leader. He accepts the fact that pigs are supposed to be superior to other farm animals. His enthusiasm for grand and hard-to-achieve project can also leave undesirable consequences to the farm. As for Napoleon, he never makes any contribution to the revolution. He trains the puppies for his own sake, which is to rule the farm and defeat Snowball. Napoleon successfully demonstrates the image of a political tyrant. After Napoleon expels Snowball, he depicts Snowball as a traitor and makes him take all the blame. This is obviously for Napoleon to take better control of the farm. As readers, we can see this occurrence happens in a various time period while the winner takes it all, the loser loses it all.

    Overall, reading Animal Farm is a great fun especially when you have a knowledge about the background information and all the implications. I heard that there is a comic version of Animal Farm, and I would like to give it a try. This classic is not only accessible and simple but also has an intriguing plot. If anyone wants to start reading a classic, Animal farm will be a desirable starting point.

【Special thanks for newspeakdictionary.com for the characters explanation lists】http://www.newspeakdictionary.com/go-animal_farm.html