Animal Farm
Building background
What is Animal Farm?
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A masterpiece of political satire, Animal
Farm is a tale of oppressed individuals
who long for freedom but ultimately
are corrupted by assuming the very
power that had originally oppressed
them.
The story traces the deplorable
conditions of mistreated animals who
can speak and who exhibit many
human characteristics. After extreme
negligence by their owner, the animals
revolt and expel Mr. Jones and his wife
from the farm.
The tale of the society the animals
form into a totalitarian regime is
generally viewed as Orwell's critique
of the communist system in the
former Soviet Union.
Interesting Fact: Orwell initially struggled to
find a publisher for Animal Farm.
Significance Today

But why – now that Soviet Communism has fallen and the
Cold War is over –does Animal Farm deserve our
attention?
◦ The answer lies in the power of allegory. Allegorical fables,
because they require us to make comparisons and connections, can be
meaningful to any reader in any historical period. The story of Animal
Farm will always have lessons to teach us about the ways that people
abuse power and manipulate others.

Orwell's chilling story of the betrayal of idealism through
tyranny and corruption is as fresh and relevant today as
when it was first published in 1945.
Fables

What does FABLE mean?...
◦ The fable is one of the oldest literary forms
◦ A fable is usually short, written in either verse or
prose, and conveys a clear moral or message.
◦ The earliest fables still preserved date back to 6th
Century Greece B.C.
 The author of these fables, Aesop, used animal
characters to stand for human "types."
 For example, a fox character might embody the human
characteristics of cunning and cleverness.
 Though Aesop's animal fables were supposedly about
animals, they were really instructional tales about human
emotions and human behavior.
Allegorical Fables

What does ALLEGORY mean?...
◦ Most fables have two levels of meaning.
 On the surface, the fable is about animals. But on a
second level, the animals stand for types of people or
ideas.
 The way the animals interact and the way the plot
unfolds says something about the nature of people or
the value of ideas.
◦ Any type of fiction that has multiple levels of
meaning in this way is called an allegory.
Satire
◦ In a satire, the writer attacks a serious issue by
presenting it in a ridiculous light or otherwise
poking fun at it.
 Orwell uses satire to expose what he saw as the myth
of Soviet socialism. Thus, the novel tells a story that
people of all ages can understand, but it also tells us a
second story— that of the real-life revolution.
Soviet Coat of Arms
1984
The novel, published in 1949, takes place in
1984 and presents an imaginary future
where a totalitarian state controls every
aspect of life, even people's thoughts.
The state is called Oceania and
is ruled by a group known as
the Party; its leader and dictator
is Big Brother.
Why did Orwell choose to use Animals?

In explaining how he came to write Animal Farm,
Orwell says he once saw a little boy whipping a
horse and later he wrote,
◦ “It struck me that if only such animals
became aware of their strength we should
have no power over them, and that men
exploit animals in much the same way as the
rich exploit the [worker].”
Symbolism
Symbols are objects, characters, figures, and
colors used to represent abstract ideas or
concepts.

Example:
◦ The dove is an animal,
◦ but it also stands for peace.
Quick Practice:
What do the following commonly stand for?
Death, Evil,
Sadness
Luck
Wisdom
Symbolism in literature

A symbol in literature often represents an important
issue or is significant to the meaning of the story.
◦ To enhance the meaning of the story
◦ Add to the mood of a story
◦ Can relate to theme

Example:
◦ A storm at a critical point in a story may represent a
conflict or height of emotion.
◦ A transition from day to night, or spring to winter, could
symbolize a move from good to evil or hope to despair.
Symbolism in literature
There are many ways to recognize symbols
in literature.
◦ The frequency
◦ Amount of detail
◦ Commonly Used:
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Colors
Animals
Nature
Religious
Symbolism - Animal Farm
Animal Farm, known at the beginning and the end of
the novel as the Manor Farm, symbolizes human
society, be it capitalist, socialist, fascist, or communist.
*Can you find the definitions to these 4 terms in your Social
Studies textbook?
It possesses the internal structure of a nation:
-a government (the pigs)
-a police force or army (the dogs)
-a working class (the other animals)
Its location is amid a number of hostile neighboring farms
supports its symbolism as a political entity with diplomatic
concerns.
Symbolism - The Barn
The barn at Animal Farm represents the
collective memory of a modern nation.
The many scenes in which the ruling-class pigs
alter the principles of Animalism and in which
the working-class animals puzzle over but
accept these changes represent the way an
institution in power can revise a community’s
concept of history to bolster its control.
Symbolism - The Windmill
The great windmill symbolizes the pigs’
manipulation of the other animals for
their own gain.
Despite the immediacy of the need for food
and warmth, the pigs exploit Boxer and the
other common animals by making them
undertake backbreaking labor to build the
windmill, which will ultimately earn the pigs
more money and thus increase their power
THEME
Your focus will be on the symbolism
presented throughout the text and how it
connects to Orwell’s overall theme.
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Symbolism – Orwell’s use of animals to reflect
certain human-like characteristics (connection
to humanity)
Theme – Orwell’s overall theme is man's
inhumanity to man
Specific Examples that Display
Theme Throughout the Novel
The Inevitability of Totalitarianism
Those who seek freedom from oppression will inevitably fall to repeat that
which oppressed them.
Intelligence and Education as Tools of Oppression
Those in a position of power will use intelligence and education as tools of
oppression.
Violence,Terror & Propaganda and Duplicity
Those in power will use propaganda, violence, and terror as a means of
control in order to ensure their position of power.
Apathy and Acceptance
The oppressed will fall into a system of apathy and acceptance of their way
of life.
You will be responsible for identifying these themes while you read.
You will need to be annotating.
Jigsaw Activity
Groups will spend one class
period researching topic/s and
one class period presenting on
their assigned topic:
Lenin- Molly, Spencer, Brandon
(focus the research on that person in regards to the Russian Revolution)
 Stalin – Liam, Sarah, Kathleen
(focus the research on that person in regards to the Russian Revolution)
 Trotsky – Riley, Kira, Amber, Mathew
(focus the research on that person in regards to the Russian Revolution)
 Tsar Nicholas II – Andy, Jack, Sydnie, Logan
(focus the research on that person in regards to the Russian Revolution)
 Marx– Mikey, Megan, Kyle, Jason
(focus the research on that person in regards to the Russian Revolution)
 Fascism – Anushka, Tara, Hannah
 Communism – Lauren, Jake
 Totalitarianism – Melanie, Elise
 Capitalism – Mikayla, Noelle
 Socialism – Jimmy, TJ
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How to plan your presentation…
If you are researching a person, you should be
focusing on a mini-biography of that person’s
relevance to the Russian Revolution.
If you are doing a type of government, you
should be giving a brief description of the basic
ideals of that government, and a brief history
of that system of government’s use around the
world during the time of the Russian
Revolution.
Socratic Seminar Practice
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“Whip Around” Rules:
◦ Read the statement carefully.
◦ Determine your opinion.
◦ We will go around and share whether we AGREE
or DISAGREE. You must pick a position.
 No explanation is permitted at this point.
◦ After we have all completed the whip around, we
will elaborate on the discussion statement by
adding onto the statement with an open-ended
question.
 Remember how to address your classmates when you
agree/disagree with their ideas?
 Do not raise your hand. I will not call on you. 
MOCK SOCRATIC SEMINAR
WHIP AROUND:
Determine whether you agree or disagree.
People take their freedoms for
granted.
Animal Farm Novel Study – Pre Reading
Socratic Seminar Questions:
1.
Which is the more important value,
freedom or equality?
i.
ii.
How would you define freedom and equality?
Should the government use violence to enforce
these values?
Two minutes to think, pair, share.Then we will discuss together!
This is an open-ended question.
Socratic Seminar Questions:
1.
What freedoms do we take for granted
in the United States? Do you think we
have too much freedom? Support your
answer.
This is an open-ended question.
Socratic Seminar Questions:
1.
What freedoms do you think we don’t
need in the U.S.? Which one would you
be willing to give up if you were forced
to make that choice? Support your
answer.
This is an open-ended question.
Comparing Characters
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Now that we have been introduced to
some of the main characters lets make
some comparisons to the historical
figures you presented about last week….
Napoleon = Joseph Stalin
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Napoleon
◦ Boar who leads the rebellion against Farmer
Jones
◦ After the rebellion’s success, he
systematically begins to control all aspects
of the farm until he is an undisputed tyrant.
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Joseph Stain
◦ The communist dictator of the Soviet Union
from 1922-1953 who killed all who opposed
him.
◦
He loved power and used the KGB (secret
police) to enforce his ruthless, corrupt
antics.
Farmer Jones = Czar Nicholas II
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Farmer Jones
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Czar Nicholas II
◦ The irresponsible owner of the
farm
◦ Weak Russian leader during the
early 1900s
◦ Lets his animals starve and beats
them with a whip
◦ Often cruel and brutal to his
subjects
◦ Sometimes shows random
kindness
◦ Displays isolated kindess
Snowball = Leon Trotsky
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Snowball
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◦ Boar who becomes one of the
rebellion’s most valuable leaders.
◦ After drawing complicated plans for
the construction of a windmill, he is
chased off of the farm forever by
Napoleon’s dogs and thereafter used
as a scapegoat for the animals’
troubles.
Leon Trotsky
◦ A pure communist leader who was
influenced by the teachings of Karl
Marx.
◦ He wanted to improve life for people
in Russia, but was driven away by
Lenin’s KGB.
Old Major = Karl Marx
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Old Major
◦ An old boar whose speech about the
evils perpetrated by humans rouses
the animals into rebelling.
◦ His philosophy concerning the tyranny
of Man is named Animalism.
◦ He teaches the animals the song
“Beasts of England”
◦ Dies before revolution
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Karl Marx
◦ The inventor of communism
◦ Wants to unite the working class to
overthrow the government.
◦ Dies before the Russian Revolution
Animalism = Communism
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Animalism
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Taught my Old Major
No rich, but no poor
Better life for workers
All animals are equal
Everyone owns the farm
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Communism
◦ Invented by Karl Marx
◦ All people are equal
◦ Government owns
everything
◦ People own the
government
Animal Farm Revolution
=
Russian Revolution
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Animal Farm Revolution
◦ Was supposed to make
life better for all, but . . .
 Life was worse at the end.
 The leaders became the
same as, or worse than the
other farmers (humans) they
rebelled against.

Russian Revolution
◦ Was supposed to fix the
problems created by the
Czar, but . . .
 Life was even worse after
the revolution.
 Stalin made the Czar look
like a nice guy.