Explain what corruption means. Do you think
everyone has the ability to be corrupt?
Corruption
Dishonest or a liar. They are usually quite
important and intimidating; people that are
corrupt usually use bribery to support
themselves.
Also if a person is corrupt they make another
person behave in the wrong way.
Which animals are the most corrupt and why?
Napoleon is the most corrupt animal on Animal Farm. He took all the money
for himself ‘Frederick had wanted to pay the timber with something called a
cheque, which, it seemed was a piece of paper with a promise to pay written
upon it. But Napoleon was too clever for him. He demanded a payment in real
five pound notes, which were to be handed over before the timber was
removed. Already Frederick had paid up; and the sum he paid was just enough
to buy the machinery for the windmill’. This is showing that Napoleon is too
clever for Frederick therefore he takes advantage because he has great power.
Another quote from the book showing Napoleon kept all the money to himself
– ‘Smiling beatifically, and wearing both his decorations, napoleon reposed on
a bed of straw on the platform, with the money at his side, neatly piled on a
china dish from the farmhouse kitchen’. This is suggesting that he wants to
show off the money to all the animals and that he is full of himself and he
always thinks about himself but not others.
He also does a number of other things for example:
1. He takes the milk for himself at the start
Which animals are the most corrupt and why?
2. He claims to take Boxer to the vets but actually he is selling him to the
knackers to be killed just so he can have the money which he spends on the
whisky.
3. He takes the dogs away to train them to be his ‘guards’
4. He trains the sheep to chant when the animals try and say something
against him.
Another point could be when Napoleon and Squealer manipulated the
animals after ‘the battle of the windmill’ as they fired a gun and told them to
celebrate their victory. They also said that it didn’t matter that the windmill
had gotten destroyed and that they were going to celebrate the victory and
that’s all that mattered. Napoleon also made a speech and put up a green flag,
and awarded a green banner to himself. The animals had been persuaded that
they had won a great victory.
This all shows that both Squealer and Napoleon are corrupt but Napoleon is
the most corrupt and he is taking advantage of his power.
Which animals could have used their power
corruptly but chose not to?
I think Boxer could have used his physical power corruptly but
chose not to because he is too considerate and fair. He is also
committed to his work and would never disobey Napoleon.
His two mottos were ‘I will work harder’ and ‘Napoleon is
always right’. He is also really strong so he could kill Napoleon
easily and think of ways to destroy the un-fairness but
unfortunately he is too dumb to think of ways.
The corruption of Communism
The ideas of the revolution become corrupt because the animals
are very distracted by thinking about communism and when they
do this, another animal could come (Napoleon) and become a
leader to the animals because the animals need a leader and are a
bit too stupid too realise that the leader leading them is going to
become a tyrant, like in the quote “I trust that every animal here
appreciates the sacrifice that comrade Napoleon has made in
taking this extra labour upon himself. Do not imagine, comrade,
that leadership is a pleasure!” This shows that the animals do not
realise that the difference between lies and the truth. Also the
animals can not object to anything the leader says as the leader is
a tyrant and will probably kill them if they say anything to absurd
or unnecessary.
The corruption of the seven commandments
As the story carries on the seven commandments slowly change
from adding words on the end of commandments to deleting the
whole seven to one short and corrupt one, which is “All animals
are equal but some animals are more equal than others”.
This change represents corruption as Napoleon uses his power to
do whatever he wants in a sort of tyrant way as he keeps on
changing the commandments in a way that will give him the
advantage over the other animals like “no animal shall sleep in a
bed with sheets” or “no animal shall drink alcohol with excess” so
he can do anything like selling Boxers remains to the glue factory
and buying whisky with the money, then telling the animals an
absolutely massive lie which the animals believe except from
Benjamin because all the other animals are not clever enough to
have understood what the writing meant on the side of the van.