Animal Farm is a political allegory that revolves around the nature of politics. Written by George Orwell, it shows how those aiming to establish a communist society in the initial phase, ends up losing its original integrity and gets trapped in loop — it ends up transforming into the same system it aimed to overthrow.
Communism, the ideology which claims that all beings are equal socially and economically, isn’t as straightforward as it seems to be. Initially, it might look it’s working and quite effective but as time passes the system ends up evolving into something completely different from the true spirit of communism.
This book is written in a fictional fairy tale style where animals bring the ideology of “animalism” which meant all animals are equal after throwing away their human master and achieving the freedom. Despite being fictional, it’s scenarios closely mirrors real-life historical events, especially the rise of communism during the Russian Revolution and the Formation of Soviet Union.
The story
The story begins with a speech of an old Major boar who motivates the animals in the farm for the uprising from their human Master Jones. They later initiate the rebellion and drive away the humans from the farm and then rename the farm “Animal Farm,” signifying they will not be under human domination anymore.
In the farm, they establish their own structure where pigs named Napoleon and Snowball are regarded as the leaders while Squealer acts as their adviser in the system. At the initial stage, everything appears flawless, the animals are satisfied and labouring diligently for the farm, especially Boxer the cart-horse, who is extremely dedicated and loyal regarding working for the farm. Humans attempted reclaiming the farm and seizing it, but the animals’ bravery and resolve didn’t allow that to occur, and they commemorated their triumph.
But shortly, a conflict emerged. Snowball and Napoleon, who serve as leaders to the other animals, strongly disagreed with each other’s views. Since Snowball was more persuasive in the farm and most of the animals supported him, Napoleon exploited his deceitful tactics to expel him from the farm and then proclaimed that now solely pigs would make decisions, revealing the true start of his control and tyranny.
Using various schemes and manipulation strategies, Napoleon succeeded in convincing the animals that Snowball was a betrayer who intended to damage the farm and was a hidden ally of humans. Boxer, the diligent cart-horse, keeps repeating, “Napoleon is always right.” Before long, Napoleon begins living much like the animals’ former master, Jones.
The rebellion, which had Seven Commandments meant to be obeyed by the animals, starts being twisted by Napoleon to suit his own motives. And ultimately, the seven commandments ended up being condensed to: “All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others.”
In the end, the farm is renamed Manor Farm again, where now animals can’t differentiate between the pigs and humans.
Simple yet depth
Animal Farm is a thought-provoking book. It portrays a political satire about how a movement like communism, which begins with the goal of equality, ultimately transforms into a tyrannical regime. The regime that dominates and oppresses weaker group to maintain their authority and enjoy the luxury as their wish without having to face any consequences.
One great thing about this book is its simplicity, yet the depth in its details that gives readers a sense of how the story will unfold. For instance, one scene I remember is Napoleon taking the little puppies with him under the pretense of protecting them.
Almost all animals forget about the existence of those puppies, and later in the scene, when Napoleon needs to eliminate Snowball from the competition, he uses those same puppies—now ferocious dogs loyal only to him—showing that he had already orchestrated his rise to power long ago and was simply waiting for the right moment to execute his plan.
Also, the story’s continuity from the opening scene to the ending is truly remarkable. At the beginning, when the Major boar speaks about how, during the revolution, animals must avoid adopting human vices—such as living in a house, wearing clothes, drinking alcohol, sleeping in beds, smoking tobacco, or engaging in trade. The pigs eventually end up doing all of these by the final scenes.
This clearly reflects that, despite their desire for freedom, the greed for power and the corruption that followed blurred the line between pigs and humans to the point where they were indistinguishable from one another. The animals never questioned the pigs’ actions because they were kept in constant fear that if they resisted, the humans would return. What they failed to realize was that it wasn’t the humans they despised rather it was the cruel system the humans had imposed on them, which was now being repeated under Napoleon’s authoritarian rule.
Personally, I absolutely loved this book. The straightforward language of the story, the brutally accurate depiction of how corrupt leaders rise to power—because let’s face it, we can’t ignore the reality that nearly all such communist movements in history have devolved into oppressive dictatorships, where the strong dominate the weak.
This book is essential reading for anyone seeking to understand why communism, despite appearing as the flawless ideology, contains inherent flaws that prevent it from functioning as intended. And I’d suggest everyone to read it because at some point I am sure it will work quite accurately to bring clarity in thoughts and vision.
Author: George Orwell
Publisher: Penguin Books
Pages: 136
Genre: Political Satire
Book: Hardcover
