Animal Farm Essay

'Animal Farm' by George Orwell tells the tale of the animals of Manor Farm, who want a community for the animals, and by the animals, where all are equal and work is done for the good of the animals. Old Major, a wise old pig, holds this view of the perfect society for animals, free from human oppression. He tells the others about his dream for a better life for all, and says it cannot be reached until Mr. Jones, the owner of Manor Farm, is overthrown, ending his era of cruelty, slavery and mistreatment. But before this situation can be created, Old Major dies.

The revolution however, continues. The animals drive the humans off the farm and seem to be on the road to a perfect existence. The pigs learn the skills of man including farming, reading, writing and architecture. With these skills, they teach other animals. They create a nation of animals with laws for all inhabitants. Although the animals are successful at managing crops and constructing buildings, there is one problem: a power struggle ensues between two ruling pigs.

In "Animal Farm", Orwell describes how power turned the pigs from simple "comrades" to ruthless dictators who managed to walk on two legs, and carry whips. One of Orwell's goals in writing Animal Farm was to portray the Russian (or Bolshevik) Revolution of 1917 as one that resulted in a government more oppressive, totalitarian, and deadly than the one it overthrew.

Of course, the novel's meaning is not rooted solely in its portrayal of the Russian Revolution. The novel asks its readers to examine the ways in which political leaders with seemingly noble and unselfish motives can betray the very ideals in which they apparently believe. The novel also presents the subtle ways in which a group of citizens--of a farm or a nation--can be eventually led by the nose into a terrible life ruled by a dictatorial regime.

The story is set on Manor Farm, which is renamed Animal Farm after the animals expel Mr. Jones, the farmer, from its grounds. It is a typical barnyard, except