Animal Farm

Animal farm is a political satire. George Orwell's classic work is an allegory and satire of the Russian Revolution, a biased and yet informative paradigm that illustrates how boundless hope and potential can disintegrate into tyranny. The bold struggle of the animals against the oppression of Mr. Jones in his Farm forges the Animal Farm, founded on the notion that All Animals Are Created Equal. But when the pigs re-establish an elite class over the masses, betraying their faithful followers, all realize the dark significance of the tacked-on postscript that Some Animals Are More Equal than Others. Animal Farm is the history of a revolution that went wrong, which is George Orwell's brilliant satire on the corrupting influence of power.

Starting out as just wanting a better future for themselves, the animals revolt against the humans and take over the farm that they live in. But when their 'leader' dies, his successors pretty much screw things up for all the others just so they can live comfortably and more human-like. It is all summed perfectly in the following quote: "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."

George Orwell managed to put the characters' personalities into the exact animal being they should be. Though the book has been written decades ago, the system of "Animal Farm" is still easy to relate in the present time. The double meaning attacks of bitter truth quotations and eye-opener lines of realizations when it comes to power corrupting and freedom deprivation are thought provoking.

Mr. Jones of Manor Farm is so lazy and drunken that one-day he forgets to feed his livestock. The ensuing rebellion under the leadership of the pigs Napoleon and Wellington leads to the animals taking over the farm. Vowing to eliminate the terrible inequities of the farmyard, the renamed Animal Farm is organized to benefit all who walk on four legs. But as time passes, the ideals of the rebellion are corrupted, and then forgotten. And something new and unexpected emerges.

The political satire `Animal Farm' by George Orwell shows how idealistic ideas can be misused and good intentions go awry. It is a novel about human behavior towards both others and their own, it also explains greed and the corruption that brings it around. It manages to be both tragic and at times comic; however Animal Farm is far from subtle. The setting of a farm enables Orwell to paint a picture of a society that starts out with good intentions but lapses into inequality.

The setting of the novel primarily took place on "Manor Farm", in England. The name was later changed to "Animal Farm". Parts of the setting were surrounding countryside, including two neighborhood farms. There are references to a market town, farmhouse, barns, sheds, pastures, roads, and gates of a farm.

There were several main themes and ideas in this novel. The first would be the betrayal of political idealism. Old major states "All animals are equal." Those words encourage animals to free themselves from human control. With strong sense of comradeship, they vote to include even barn rats in their group. After the rebellion took place, Snowball and Napoleon summarize its principles in Seven Commandments: 1) whatever goes upon two legs is an enemy. 2) Whatever goes upon four legs, or two wings is a friend. 3) No animal shall wear clothes. 4) No animal shall sleep in a bed. 5) No animal shall drink alcohol. 6) No animal shall kill any other animal. 7) All animals are equal. After time, Napoleon maneuvers to seize power. It brings about drastic changes in the wording of the commandments. The seven commandments are eventually abolished by Napoleon and changed it to one: "All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others." This statement represents a betrayal of Old Major's idealism, it describes how Napoleon and those like him view other animals.

The other main theme could be the lust for power. Several animals have qualities of leadership, but in different ways. Old Major's encouragement leads animals to rebel, but he has no personal interest beyond the defeat of the human race. Snowball is a leader with vision; his strength lies in organizing the animals into committees that will work to achieve the goals of revolution. He becomes so involved in theory and planning that he is caught off guard by Napoleon's schemes and is forced into exile. Napoleon adopts the title of leader. He brushes aside theory and idealism. His emergence as a dictator shows that the goals of the Rebellion have become corrupted and demonstrates how absolute power corrupts absolutely.

The next theme is propaganda used as a weapon. Snowball, Napoleon, and squealer condense Old Major's ideas into the system of Animalism, expressed in the Seven Commandments. Used as favorable propaganda, for animals everywhere, the system promotes the idea of a fair revolution. Unfortunately, Napoleon uses propaganda negatively. Through Squealer, he convinces the animals that all misfortunes, failures, and shortcomings at Animal Farm are the