Animal Farm Essay
English 12
Format
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Centre your essay’s (original) title
Put the following information in the top left-hand
corner: name, class, due date, and Ms. McKenzie
Double space (skip lines)
Neatly hand-write the essay (practice for exam
essay)
Indent new paragraphs
Do not skip extra lines between paragraphs
Number each page in the bottom right-hand corner
Introductory Paragraph
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Clearly state the name of the work and the author in
the first few sentences
Since this is a major text, put the title in italics:
Animal Farm
Clearly indicate the topic you will be addressing in
your essay
Finish with a strong thesis statement that provides
direction for the essay
Avoid phrases such as: “In this essay…”, or “I will
argue…”
Body Paragraphs (at least 3)
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Each body paragraph will have a specific topic that
is explicitly addressed in a topic sentence. The topic
sentence indicates what the entire paragraph will be
about.
Make sure each topic (body paragraph) directly
supports your thesis
Use direct quotations from the text to support your
topic sentence, which, in turn, supports your essay’s
thesis
Carefully analyze and explain each quotation that
you use – DO NOT just drop a quotation into your
paragraph without explaining it
Incorporating Quotations
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Option 1: Introduce the quotation with a statement followed by a
colon and the quotation. After the closing quotation marks, put
the page number in brackets and follow with a period.
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Example:
Squealer’s duty is to rationalize Napolean’s decisions to the other
animals so they will believe Napolean and the other pigs are
acting in their best interest: “ ‘The whole management and
organization of this farm depend on us. Day and night we are
watching over your welfare. It is for your sake that we drink that
milk and eat those apples’ ” (23).
Incorporating Quotations
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Option 2: Work short quotations directly into your own writing, as
part of your original sentence. The quotation should flow
seamlessly into the sentence you are constructing. Encase the
quoted words in quotation marks, and put the page number in
brackets after the closing quotation marks.
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Example:
Although the animals were originally uncertain about the pigs
drinking all of the milk and eating all of the apples, Squealer’s
speech convinced them that the pigs needed the extra
sustenance and that “the importance of keeping the pigs in good
health was all too obvious” (23).
Additional Notes about Quotes
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Explain clearly and fully how each quotation supports the topic of
the paragraph (and thus your essay’s thesis)
If you are quoting from more than one source, you must also
include the author’s name. You can either include the author’s
name in the introduction to the quotation or in the brackets at the
end of the quotation (Orwell 23).
Refer to your quotation handout for additional examples.
If you need to quote more than three lines of text, see special
formatting for Long Quotations on your quotation handout.
Visit owl.english.purdue.edu for extra assistance.
Paraphrasing and Summarizing
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Use summaries to provide important information and
to help your reader understand the text and the
points you are making
Do not over-rely on summaries
If you paraphrase another author’s ideas, make sure
to give him/her credit by referring to his/her name in
your writing or in brackets. Put the page number of
the information you are paraphrasing in brackets at
the end of the paraphrase. (Smith 101). DO NOT
USE QUOTATION MARKS WHEN
PARAPHRASING.
Conclusion
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Refer back to the essay’s general topic/thesis
Do not directly repeat anything you have
already written – reword and summarize your
points
Ideas and Hints for Essay Topic #1
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Choose 3 or 4 characters and/or events to focus on – refer to the
first Powerpoint for ideas
Do some research on the corresponding people/event from the
Russian Revolution
 Use reputable sources (NO Wikipedia)
 Create a Works Cited entry for the article(s) you used
Make notes from the novella and from your research about
similarities and differences
Introduction – introduce George Orwell and Animal Farm as a
satire of the Russian Revolution
Body – dedicate each body paragraph to a character or event
match up. Depending on the amount of detail you include, you
may need to do separate paragraphs for comparisons and
contrasts.
Ideas and Hints for Essay Topic #2
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Choose a character
Introduction – introduce George Orwell and Animal Farm.
Introduce your selected character and say who or what that
person represents/symbolizes.
Body paragraphs
 Detailed explanation of who/what the character
represents/symoblizes. Include examples (quotations and
explanations) to support this. You may even want to do a little
research.
 Explain the character’s role on Animal Farm. How does he/she
act? What does he/she think? What does he/she contribute to
Animal Farm and Animalism?
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This may end up being more than one paragraph
How does this character change throughout the novella?
How does this character respond to the changes on Animal Farm
and in Animalism?
Ideas and Hints for Essay Topic #3
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Introduction
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Discuss the importance of language and education in society in general.
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Discuss how language can be used to convince, persuade, manipulate, control, etc.
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Introduce George Orwell and Animal Farm and its focus on language
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Introduce character(s) and/or key words you will address
Body paragraphs
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Abuse of language by the pigs
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Their successes and their failures
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Their self-taught ability to read and write
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Napoleon, Squealer, Minimus
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Snowball as the scapegoat
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Role of uneducated working class – as a whole group, then choose one or two to focus on
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Their trust in the pigs
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Their mottos and maxims
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Their willingness, or unwillingness, to become literate
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Propaganda – what is it and how was it used on Animal Farm
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Equal – what does it mean? What does it mean on Animal Farm and how does that meaning
change and/or differ from the true definition?
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Seven Commandments – How do they change? What is their effect on life on Animal Farm?
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Songs-What is the purpose of anthems and songs? Discuss Beasts of England and other
songs and poems.