Animal Farm

3 Pages 725 Words

In the novel Animal Farm, George Orwell uses farm animals to create the conflict between Marxist Socialism and Russian Communism. Orwell uses these actual historical events to create his novel but reorganizes them to fit his plot. Manor farm symbolizes Russia, Mr. Jones is the Czar of Russia, and the pigs are the Bolsheviks. In addition, the humans represent the working class, and the animals are the workers and the peasants. The main characters in Animal Farm are Old Major, Napoleon, Boxer and Squealer.
Old Major is an inspired, boar who provides the political philosophy on which Animal Farm is established. His philosophy of Animalism is a mixture of Marx and Lenin. He shows the animals how their lives are miserable and confined under the cruelty of Farmer Jones and inspires them to revolt. He wants to establish a utopian society on the farm, and in result, he wants the animals to live happily in equality and freedom. However, his dreams are not concrete and he never has a plan for achievement. At the end of the first chapter, Old Major dies right before the rebellion just as Lenin did in the Russian Revolution. In result, his skull is dug up and is paid weekly tributes to by the animals for a period of time. This could also be symbolic for Lenin’s body. In reality, Stalin and Trotski argue over power after Lenin’s death, which Orwell imitates in Napoleon and Snowball.
Snowball is a pig who is a competitor for leadership on the farm. He is livelier, quicker in speech, and more creative than Napoleon. He is also much more concerned about the welfare of all the animals. He proves that he is a good thinker, and planner. He plans the 'Battle of Cowshed' in advance, and fights bravely. He is then acclaimed a hero after his victory. In reality, this battle represents the civil war that followed the Russian Revolution. Mr. Jones is helped by his neighbors, just as some western countries sent troops to help the Russian forces. Snowba...