Animal Farm

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Themes, Motifs & Symbols
Themes
Themes are the fundamental and often universal ideas explored in a literary work. The Corruption of Socialist Ideals in the Soviet Union Animal Farm is most famous in the West as a stinging critique of the history and rhetoric of the Russian Revolution. Retelling the story of the emergence and development of Soviet communism in the form of an animal fable, Animal Farm allegorizes the rise to po er of the dictator !oseph Stalin. "n the novella, the overthro of the human oppressor Mr. !ones by a democratic coalition of animals quic#ly gives ay to the consolidation of po er among the pigs. Much li#e the Soviet intelligentsia, the pigs establish themselves as the ruling class in the ne society. The struggle for preeminence bet een $eon Trots#y and Stalin emerges in the rivalry bet een the pigs Sno ball and %apoleon. "n both the historical and fictional cases, the idealistic but politically less po erful figure &Trots#y and Sno ball' is e(pelled from the revolutionary state by the malicious and violent usurper of po er &Stalin and %apoleon'. The purges and sho trials ith hich Stalin eliminated his enemies and solidified his political base find e(pression in Animal Farm as the false confessions and e(ecutions of animals hom %apoleon distrusts follo ing the collapse of the indmill. Stalin)s tyrannical rule and eventual abandonment of the founding principles of the Russian Revolution are represented by the pigs) turn to violent government and the adoption of human traits and behaviors, the trappings of their original oppressors. *lthough +r ell believed strongly in socialist ideals, he felt that the Soviet ,nion realized these ideals in a terribly perverse form. -is novella creates its most po erful ironies in the moments in hich +r ell depicts the corruption of *nimalist ideals by those in po er. .or Animal Farm serves not so much to condemn tyranny or despotism as to indict the horrifying hypocrisy of tyrannies that base themselves on, and o e their initial po er to, ideologies of liberation and equality. The gradual disintegration and perversion of the Seven /ommandments illustrates this hypocrisy ith vivid force, as do Squealer)s elaborate philosophical 0ustifications for the pigs) blatantly unprincipled actions. Thus, the novella critiques the violence of the Stalinist regime against the human beings it ruled, and also points to Soviet communism)s violence against human logic, language, and ideals. The Societal Tendency toward Class Stratification Animal Farm offers commentary on the development of class tyranny and the human tendency to maintain and reestablish class structures even in societies that allegedly stand for total equality. The novella illustrates ho classes that are initially unified in the face of a common enemy, as the animals are against the humans, may become internally divided hen that enemy is eliminated. The e(pulsion of Mr. !ones creates a po er vacuum, and it is only so long before the ne(t oppressor assumes totalitarian control. The natural division bet een intellectual and physical labor quic#ly comes to e(press itself as a ne set of class divisions, ith the 1brain or#ers2 &as the pigs claim to be' using their superior intelligence to manipulate society to their o n benefit. +r ell never clarifies in Animal Farm hether this negative state of affairs constitutes an inherent aspect of society or merely an outcome contingent on the integrity of a society)s intelligentsia. "n either case, the novella points to the force of this tendency to ard class stratification in many communities and the threat that it poses to democracy and freedom. The Danger of a Naïve Working Class +ne of the novella)s most impressive accomplishments is its portrayal not 0ust of the figures in po er but also of the oppressed people themselves. *nimal .arm is not told from the perspective of any particular character, though occasionally it does slip into /lover)s consciousness. Rather, the story is told from the perspective of the common animals as a hole. 3ullible, loyal, and hard or#ing, these animals give +r ell a chance to s#etch ho situations of oppression arise not only from the motives and tactics of the oppressors but also from the na4vet5 of the oppressed, ho are not necessarily in a position to be better educated or informed. When presented ith a dilemma, 6o(er prefers not to puzzle out the implications of various possible actions but instead to repeat to himself, 1%apoleon is al ays right.2 *nimal .arm demonstrates ho the inability or un illingness to question authority condemns the or#ing class to suffer the full e(tent of the ruling class)s oppression. The !use of "anguage as Instrumental to the !use of #ower

+ne of +r ell)s central concerns, both in Animal Farm and in 1984, is the ay in hich language can be manipulated as an instrument of control. "n *nimal .arm, the pigs gradually t ist and distort a rhetoric of socialist revolution to 0ustify their behavior and to #eep the other animals in the dar#. The animals heartily embrace Ma0or)s visionary ideal of socialism, but after Ma0or dies, the pigs gradually t ist the meaning of his ords. *s a result, the other animals seem unable to oppose the pigs ithout also opposing the ideals of the Rebellion. 6y the end of the novella, after Squealer)s repeated reconfigurations of the Seven /ommandments in order to decriminalize the pigs) treacheries, the main principle of the farm can be openly stated as 1all animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others.2 This outrageous abuse of the ord 1equal2 and of the ideal of equality in general typifies the pigs) method, hich becomes increasingly audacious as the novel progresses. +r ell)s sophisticated e(posure of this abuse of language remains one of the most compelling and enduring features of *nimal .arm, orthy of close study even after e have decoded its allegorical characters and events.

$otifs
Motifs are re urrin! stru tures, ontrasts, or literary devi es that an help to develop and inform the text"s ma#or themes. Animal Farm is filled ith songs, poems, and slogans, including Ma0or)s stirring 16easts of 7ngland,2 Minimus)s ode to %apoleon, the sheep)s chants, and Minimus)s revised anthem, 1*nimal .arm, *nimal .arm.2 *ll of these songs serve as propaganda, one of the ma0or conduits of social control. 6y ma#ing the or#ing8class animals spea# the same ords at the same time, the pigs evo#e an atmosphere of grandeur and nobility associated ith the recited te(t)s sub0ect matter. The songs also erode the animals) sense of individuality and #eep them focused on the tas#s by hich they ill purportedly achieve freedom. State %itual *s Animal Farm shifts gears from its early revolutionary fervor to a phase of consolidation of po er in the hands of the fe , national rituals become an ever more common part of the farm)s social life. Military a ards, large parades, and ne songs all proliferate as the state attempts to reinforce the loyalty of the animals. The increasing frequency of the rituals bespea#s the e(tent to hich the or#ing class in the novella becomes ever more reliant on the ruling class to define their group identity and values.

Sym!ols
$ym%ols are o%#e ts, hara ters, fi!ures, or olors used to represent a%stra t ideas or on epts. nimal &arm *nimal .arm, #no n at the beginning and the end of the novel as the Manor .arm, symbolizes Russia and the Soviet ,nion under /ommunist 9arty rule. 6ut more generally, *nimal .arm stands for any human society, be it capitalist, socialist, fascist, or communist. "t possesses the internal structure of a nation, ith a government &the pigs', a police force or army &the dogs', a or#ing class &the other animals', and state holidays and rituals. "ts location amid a number of hostile neighboring farms supports its symbolism as a political entity ith diplomatic concerns. The 'arn The barn at *nimal .arm, on hose outside alls the pigs paint the Seven /ommandments and, later, their revisions, represents the collective memory of a modern nation. The many scenes in hich the ruling8class pigs alter the principles of *nimalism and in hich the or#ing8class animals puzzle over but accept these changes represent the ay an institution in po er can revise a community)s concept of history to bolster its control. "f the or#ing class believes history to lie on the side of their oppressors, they are less li#ely to question oppressive practices. Moreover, the oppressors, by revising their nation)s conception of its origins and development, gain control of the nation)s very identity, and the oppressed soon come to depend upon the authorities for their communal sense of self. The Windmill The great indmill symbolizes the pigs) manipulation of the other animals for their o n gain. :espite the immediacy of the need for food and armth, the pigs e(ploit 6o(er and the other common animals by ma#ing them underta#e bac#brea#ing labor to build the indmill, hich ill ultimately earn the pigs more money and thus increase their po er. The pigs) declaration that Sno ball is responsible for the indmill)s first collapse constitutes psychological manipulation, as it prevents the common animals from doubting the pigs) abilities and unites

them against a supposed enemy. The ultimate conversion of the indmill to commercial use is one more sign of the pigs) betrayal of their fello animals. .rom an allegorical point of vie , the indmill represents the enormous modernization pro0ects underta#en in Soviet Russia after the Russian Revolution.

;uiz
<. Which animal hides during the 6attle of the /o shed= &*' 6o(er &6' /lover &/' !essie &:' Mollie >. To hom does %apoleon sell the farm)s pile of timber= &*' Mr. 9il#ington &6' Mr. .rederic# &/' Mr. !ones &:' Sno ball ?. -o does %apoleon e(press his contempt for Sno ball)s indmill plans= &*' 6y spitting on them &6' 6y giving a scathing speech &/' 6y urinating on them &:' 6y riting Sno ball a letter @. Who reduces the ideals of *nimalism to the phrase 1.our legs good, t o legs bad2= &*' Sno ball &6' %apoleon &/' Squealer &:' 6o(er A. Who teaches the sheep to chant 1.our legs good, t o legs better2= &*' %apoleon &6' Moses &/' /lover &:' Squealer B. What is Sugarcandy Mountain= &*' The name of the lullaby that %apoleon forces the pigeons to sing to his thirty8one piglets &6' The idea of animal heaven propagated by Moses the raven &/' The setting for the story that Mollie tells to the lambs &:' The mountain visible on *nimal .arm)s horizon C. -o many letters is 6o(er able to learn= &*' .ourD* through : &6' Eero &/' Si(Dthe number of different letters in %apoleon)s name

&:' *ll t enty8si(, plus certain letters in the Russian /yrillic alphabet F. Which of the pigs proves the best riter= &*' %apoleon &6' Squealer &/' Sno ball &:' /urly G. Which pig rites the poem lauding %apoleon= &*' Squealer &6' Sno ball &/' Minimus &:' %apoleon himself <H. What does %apoleon rename *nimal .arm in his toast at the end of the novel= &*' %apoleon .arm &6' 9ig .arm &/' .reedonia &:' The Manor .arm <<. Why does %apoleon believe that he is dying the morning after he drin#s the his#y= &*' 6ecause he feels a bizarre desire to leave *nimal .arm &6' 6ecause he has a miserable hangover &/' 6ecause he as visited by the vengeful ghost of Sno ball during a drun#en trance &:' 6ecause he as visited by the vengeful ghost of +ld Ma0or during a drun#en trance <>. With hom does %apoleon play cards at the end of the novel= &*' Mr. .rederic# &6' Mr. !ones &/' Mr. Wiltshire &:' Mr. 9il#ington <?. What is the name of the quasi8Mar(ist socialist philosophy advocated by %apoleon and Sno ball= &*' 9orcinism &6' *nimalism &/' /ommunalism &:' .ourleggism <@. What are 6o(er)s ma(ims= &*' Sno ball is al ays right2 and 1.or the glory of *nimal .arm2 &6' 1" ill or# harder2 and 1.or the glory of *nimal .arm2 &/' 1" ill or# harder2 and 1%apoleon is al ays right2 &:' 1Sno ball is al ays right2 and 1" ill or# harder2

<A. Which animal voluntarily leaves the farm= &*' Mollie &6' 6o(er &/' Squealer &:' %apoleon <B. What is 6o(er)s ultimate fate= &*' -e dies of old age &6' The indmill falls on him &/' %apoleon sells him to a glue factory &:' Mr. Whymper shoots him <C. What is Mr. !ones)s main vice= &*' $ust &6' *lcohol &/' 3ambling &:' /igars <F. Which of the follo ing pigs composes the song that replaces 16easts of 7ngland2= &*' Ma(imus &6' Minimus &/' Sno ball &:' %apoleon <G. What title does %apoleon eventually assume for himself= &*' Iing of the *nimals &6' $ord of Manor .arm &/' 9resident of the Republic &:' 3od of 6easts >H. Which animal refuses to become e(cited about the indmill= &*' +ld Ma0or &6' +ld 6en0amin &/' 6o(er &:' /lover ><. What is the reason for the indmill)s initial collapse= &*' Sno ball sabotages it &6' The farmers blo it up ith dynamite &/' "t falls in a storm &:' %apoleon sabotages it and frames Sno ball >>. Which animal discovers the truth about 6o(er)s destination hen the pigs load him into a cart claiming that he is being ta#en to a doctor= &*' Mollie

&6' Muriel &/' /lover &:' 6en0amin >?. Which Russian leader does Sno ball most resemble= &*' $enin &6' Trots#y &/' Stalin &:' 3orbachev >@. Which Russian leader does %apoleon most resemble= &*' Stalin &6' Trots#y &/' Tsar %icholas &:' Ihrushchev >A. What Russian institution does the raven Moses evo#e= &*' The Secret 9olice &6' The /ongress &/' The Russian +rthodo( /hurch &:' The education system

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