INTRODUCTION
Sometimes when you look at your pets, or animals in the farm, do you ever pause to think of the possibility that they have lives of their own? Do you question the noises they make, what if they are communication signals? Animal Farm details the stories of the animals in a small barn. Stories so rich that make us wonder if its time to give some attention to non-human beings too.
ABOUT THE BOOK
Animal Farm is an allegorical novella that represents misunderstood and mistreated animals and their frustrations. This book is strung with themes of idealism, equality, progress and justice. It is a book about totalitarianism.
BLURB
In Animal Farm, Old Major, a famous boar, calls for a meeting with all the farm animals in Manor farm. He shares his dreams of a life with no human oppressors for the animals. But this old boar dies soon after sharing his dreams. Three young pigs, Snowball, Napoleon and Squealer begin formulating their plans on leading the pack. The story then becomes a question of who can lead the pack, who can think of goodness for the group of animals and more importantly which breed has qualities of leadership over other breeds.
THEMES
This thought provoking book has some important yet complicated themes:
● The social tendency towards class stratifications: this book depicts how integral it is for communities to stratify themselves into the powerful and the powerless. As shown in this book this stratification is a result of great violation of power and trust.
● Corruption: another significant theme of this book is becoming drunk on power and authority. The misuse of power plays a key role in pushing forward the narrative of this book. Particularly it is interesting to note the rise of power of the pig, Napoleon as he becomes a ruler.
CHARACTERS
The central characters of this book are the three pigs, Snowball, Napoleon and Squealer. Of these, it is a tight competition between Snowball and Napoleon to gain power and authority. The character arcs of these pigs take an interesting turn when they become flooded with the greed for ruling power. Their interactions with other animals also begin to change with this greed.
BEST LINES
A book about power and the rights to one’s own choices is littered with beautiful quotes. The one iconic quote however is:
– “All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others.”
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
George Orwell is widely celebrated among the writers of the 20th century. His humor, wit and satire are key characteristics of his works. His writing is always clear, succinct and to the point. Interestingly one can also note how George Orwell also served as a police officer! – a man of many trades.
CONCLUSION
Animal Farm might read like a storybook, but instead it’s a book that reflects the harsh realities of today’s governances. It depicts the pain and agony of lower classes, and people on the lower rungs of social stratifications. Animal Farm is a dual sided book. Some might think its about affairs in the animal lives, but in reality these animals represent humans. We are the animals and the politics for power and greed is something that the world is facing today and tomorrow. This book is a message to clean up this mess and start anew without an overflowing greed for power. George Orwell’s masterful storytelling has crafted a story that will remain legendary for years to come, because at the heart of it, this is a story of truth, a story of what is happening. It is time for you to read this story of truth too.
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