BOOK REPORT

In
ENG 99

ECS 09
Submitted by: Duapa, Justin
Z.

I. Animal Farm
Author: George Orwell (Eric Arthur Blair)
Setting: Set in an unspecified time. The novel takes place on a farm so
called the Manor Farm; it is named after the animals expel Mr. Jones, the
farmer, from its grounds. It is a typical barnyard, except that the animals
have assumed the farmers tasks.
Character:
The Animals

Major- an old boar whose speech about the evils perpetrated by

humans rouses the animals into rebelling.

Snowball a boar who becomes one of the rebellion's most valuable

leaders. Napoleon A boar who, with Snowball, leads the rebellion
against Jones.

Squealer- a porker pig that becomes Napoleon's mouthpiece.

Boxer- a dedicated but dimwitted horse who aids in the building of the
windmill.

Mollie- a vain horse that prefers ribbons and sugar over ideas and
rebellion. She is eventually lured off the farm with promises of a
comfortable life

Clover- a motherly horse that silently questions some of Napoleon's

decisions and tries to help Boxer after his collapse.

Benjamin- a cynical, pessimistic donkey

Moses- a tame raven and sometimes-pet of Jones

Bluebell, Jessie, and Pincher- Three dogs. The nine puppies born
between Jessie and Bluebell are taken by Napoleon and raised to be his
guard dogs.

The Humans

Jones- The irresponsible farm-owner who is overthrown by the animals.

Frederick- a tough, shrewd businessman involved in lawsuits and the

owner of a small but well-kept farm.

Pilkington- an easy-going gentleman farmer who wastes most of his

time in fishing and hunting.

Whymper- a not-so important solicitor who acts as a medium between

humans and animals (especially Napoleon)

Mrs. Jones- Jones' wife, who flees from the farm when the animals
rebel.

Mr. Frederick- an enemy of Pilkington and owner of Pinchfield, another

neighboring farm.

Summary
The story begins with a very drunk Mr. Jones (owner of Manor Farm). That
night all the animals at Mr. Jones' Manor Farm assemble in a barn to hear old
Major, a pig, convincing the animals of Manor Farm to rebel against the
farms owner, reclaim their rights, and establish their equality. Three nights
after the meeting Old Major dies and is succeeded by pigs; Snowball and
Napoleon. About three months later they formulate old majors principles
into a philosophy called Animalism. Late one night, the animals manage to
defeat the farmer Mr. Jones in a battle, running him off. The two pigs prove
themselves important figures and planners of this dangerous enterprise.
When Jones forgets to feed the animals, the revolution occurs, and Jones and
his men are chased off the farm. Manor Farm is renamed Animal Farm, and
the Seven Commandments of Animalism are painted on the barn wall, but
soon begin to award themselves special privileges.
Later that fall, Jones and his men return to Animal Farm and attempt to
retake it. Thanks to the tactics of Snowball, the animals defeat Jones in what
thereafter becomes known as The Battle of the Cowshed. Winter arrives, and
Mollie, a vain horse concerned only with ribbons and sugar, is lured off the
farm by another human. Snowball begins drawing plans for a windmill, which
will provide electricity and thereby give the animals more leisure time, but
Napoleon vehemently opposes such a plan on the grounds that building the
windmill will allow them less time for producing food. An incredibly strong
horse, proves himself to be the most valuable animal in this endeavor. Jones,
meanwhile, forsakes the farm and moves to another part of the county.
Contrary to the principles of Animalism, Napoleon hires a solicitor and begins
trading with neighboring farms. Napoleon's lust for power increases to the
point where he becomes a totalitarian dictator, forcing "confessions" from
innocent animals and having the dogs kill them in front of the entire farm. He

and the pigs move into Jones' house and begin sleeping in beds. The animals
receive less and less food, while the pigs grow fatter. After the windmill is
completed in August, Napoleon sells a pile of timber to Jones; Mr. Frederick, a
neighboring farmer, cheats Napoleon in the purchase of some timber and
then attacks the farm and dynamites the windmill, which had been rebuilt at
great expense. After the demolition of the windmill, a pitched battle ensues,
during which Boxer receives major wounds. The animals rout the farmers,
but Boxers injuries weaken him. One day, Boxer is nowhere to be found.
According to Squealer, Boxer has died in peace after having been taken to
the hospital, praising the Rebellion with his last breath. In actuality, Napoleon
has sold his most loyal and long-suffering worker to a glue maker in order to
get money for whisky.
Years pass on Animal Farm, and the pigs become more and more like human
beingswalking upright, carrying whips, and wearing clothes. Eventually, the
seven principles of Animalism, known as the Seven Commandments and
inscribed on the side of the barn, become reduced to a single principle
reading all animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than
others. Napoleon entertains a human farmer named Mr. Pilkington at a
dinner and declares his intent to ally himself with the human farmers against
the laboring classes of both the human and animal communities. He also
changes the name of Animal Farm back to the Manor Farm, claiming that this
title is the correct one. Looking in at the party of elites through the
farmhouse window, the common animals can no longer tell which the pigs
are and which the human beings are.

II. Identifying/formulating main idea

One of the themes running through the book is the idea of the dream
betrayed chapter one gives the animals hope for a better life without man.
Old major the pig paints a picture of peace and harmony. Ironically even
before the revolution takes place on the farm his view of utopia will never
become a reality.
To me, the major theme is revolution & corrupt power corrupts people. I
think that Orwell is trying to tell us that even people who start out very
idealistic can become corrupted. You can see this in how the pigs start out
with Old Major's vision but are exactly like the people (oppressive) by the
end of the book. Second is totalitarianism George Orwell once wrote:
"Every line of serious work that I have written since 1936 has been against
totalitarianism." Animal Farm is no exception. Totalitarianism is a form of
government in which the state seeks to control every facet of life, from
economics and politics to the each individual's ideas and beliefs. Different
totalitarian states have different justifications for their rule. For instance, Mr.
Jones runs Manor Farm based on the idea that human domination of animals
is the natural order of things, while Napoleon and the pigs run Animal Farm
with the claim that they are fighting for animals against evil humans.
Orwell's underlying point is that the stated goals of totalitarianism don't
matter because all totalitarian regimes are fundamentally the same. Every
type of totalitarianism, whether communist, fascist, or capitalist, is founded
on oppression of the individual and the lower class. Those who hold power in
totalitarian regimes care only about one thing: maintaining their power by
any means necessary. While the story of Napoleon's rise to power is most
explicitly a condemnation of totalitarianism in the Soviet Union, Orwell
intends Animal Farm to criticize all totalitarian regimes

I would say that another theme is that people who are idealistic end up
getting exploited and then oppressed by those who are power-hungry. I think
you can see this especially in the character of Boxer. He is very idealistic but
ends up getting worked to death by the new regime (which then essentially
sells his body).
One main theme that I always keep in mind is one where history is bound to
repeat itself if one is ignorant to the past. The animals had disregarded their
prior knowledge of the events that had occurred and the emotions that
conveyed those events, so history was set into the same cycle once again.
Never be ignorant to the past, or you can't help yourself in the future.
Analyzing character traits
From the very beginning of the novel; napoleon emerges as utterly corrupt
opportunists. Napoleon is cowardly, shrewd, calculating, and selfish. While he
fully supports the revolution against Mr. Jones. His selfishness leads him to
build a totalitarian government based on terror and lies that gives him more
power over the other animals than Mr. Jones ever had. Napoleon symbolizes
Stalin, who led the Soviet Union from 1930 until his death in 1953.
Old Major a pig. He creates the ideas behind Animalism and inspires the
other animals to rebel. Old Major symbolizes both Karl Marx and Vladimir
Lenin, the fathers of Communism.
Snowball A pig. Alongside Napoleon, one of Old Major's main disciples.
Snowball is a more lively, original, and intelligent pig than Napoleon, but he
is less shrewd in the ways of power. Snowball symbolizes Trotsky, a rival of
Stalin exiled from Russian and assassinated on Stalin's orders in Mexico in
1940.
Squealer A pig. Short and fat, Squealer is a terrific speaker who prioritizes
his personal comfort above all else. Squealer represents the Soviet press,
which Stalin controlled throughout his rule.
Minimus A pig who writes propaganda poems and songs praising Napoleon
and Animal Farm. Minimus represents the takeover of art by propaganda in a
totalitarian state that aims to control what its citizens think.
Boxer A horse. Strong and hardworking, Boxer is extremely honorable,
though not so intelligent. One of Boxer's favorite sayings is "Napoleon is
always right." Boxer has the strength to overthrow Napoleon's dictatorship,
but not the wit to realize that it is a dictatorship. Boxer symbolizes the male
working class and peasants of the Soviet Union.

Clover A horse. Clover is a gentle, motherly, and powerful mare, who

supports the revolution, but becomes dismayed by the direction it takes
under Napoleon. She becomes a witness to the corruption of the revolution
as it turns into a totalitarian state, though she only vaguely understands that
something has gone wrong. Clover symbolizes the female working class and
peasants of the Soviet Union.
Mollie A vain horse who loves sugar and wearing pretty ribbons in her
mane, Mollie never much cares about the revolution. Mollie symbolizes the
selfish and materialistic middle-class.
Benjamin A donkey. Guided by a skeptical philosophy that life will always be
difficult and painful, Benjamin represents those who were aware of Stalin's
unjust and oppressive policies but did nothing to try to stop them.
The Dogs Jessie, Bluebell, Pincher, and the nine attack dogs provide the
pigs with the brute force necessary to terrorize the other animals. In return,
the dogs receive special privileges. The dogs don't rule, but they live
comfortably. The dogs symbolize the Soviet secret police.
Moses A tame raven who constantly speaks about a beautiful place called
Sugar candy Mountain where all animals go when they die. Moses represents
organized religion.
The Sheep Dumb animals who believe whatever propaganda is told to them
and follow orders. The sheep represent the duped citizens of a totalitarian
state.
Muriel A goat. One of the few animals other than the pigs and dogs who
become fully literate.
Mr. Jones The owner of Manor Farm, and once a strict and fierce master, Mr.
Jones has in recent years become drunk, careless, and ineffective, though he
remains as casually cruel and arrogant as ever. Mr. Jones symbolizes the
Russian Tsar in the early 20th century.
Mr. Frederick The owner of the neighboring farm of Pinchfield. A vicious,
cruel, and calculating man, Frederick symbolizes the Fascist Germans.
Mr. Pilkington The gentleman owner of the neighboring farm of Pilkington. A
man who prefers recreation to farm work, Pilkington represents the Allies
before World War II, particularly the British.
Mr. Whymper The human that the pigs use as their connection to the
outside world, Whymper symbolizes capitalists who got rich doing business
with the USSR.

Describing setting
The novel Animal Farm is set on an imaginary farm in England. The story
itself doesnt take place during a specific period, but it is meant to parallel
the years of Russian revolution. As a satire, the novel addresses that
revolution and thus mimics those events which took place between the years
of 1917 to 1945.
On Orwell's Animal Farmoriginally Manor Farmdifferent animals represent
different members of the proletariat (working class) or the Russian
communist regime. But the point is that Orwell picked the setting of the farm
because it would work well as an allegory. Manor Farm is set to represent
Russian Revolution era Russia, while these two other farms might represent
Great Britian, Germany, and/or the United States. Each of these countries
had a different political ideology from one another as well as Russia. Setting
involves both time and place and the Russian Revolution took place in 191718, while the reign of Lenin lasted until 1924. Since Stalin is represented by
Napoleon, the represented activity of the book took place after that.
Conclusion
I can say though that Animal Farm is about how the ideals of revolution
quickly get tossed out as people seek out their own means of survival in the
new establishment.
In other words, the story shows a struggle for
authoritative dominance where the majority suffer victimhood at the hands
of the elite few. A familiar quote comes from near the end of the book when
the revolutions seven commandments get replaced by one, All animals are
equal but some animals are more equal than others. The end of the story
presages the line from the old song by The Who, Wont Get Fooled Again,
where Daltry sings Meet the new boss, same as the old boss. The story
reminds me of yet another quote that goes: Power corrupts and absolute
power corrupts absolutely. I would only add that those who seek power are
the most corrupt of all. Old Major had a vision that never came to be. After
his death, it became twisted and perverted by those animals that got a taste
of power and could not let it go. Instead of an animal utopia, pigs like

Napoleon turned the farm into an autocratic dictatorship. Animals would

senselessly and tragically die through a poisoned ideology meant for the selfgain of certain pigs. Orwell's Animal Farm hence becomes a cautionary tale
of a utopian dream going wrong through human (animal) nature.