Ignorance Is Bliss In George Orwell's Animal Farm

George Orwell wrote a novel in 1945 called Animal Farm. It was written as an allegory of the Russian revolution. An allegory is a story that has things that represent people, places, or objects. The humans are symbolized as evil and oppressive and the animals decide to change things. I believe that the novel proves the saying “ignorance is bliss” is true. Napoleon and the other pigs are able to take control of the farm because of the other animals’ ignorance. Throughout the story the animals are happy because they have no grasp of what Napoleon is doing. For example Boxer the horse said, “If Comrade Napoleon says it, it must be right” (40). Another example is, “it did not seem strange when Napoleon was seen strolling in the farm house garden with a pipe in his mouth”
(92). The most ignorant animals on the farm are the sheep. The reason they are the most ignorant animals on the farm is because Squealer teaches them a new chant, “four legs good, two legs better! Four legs good, two leg better!
Four legs good, two legs better! ” (92). The sheep are simply repeating what Squealer has told them to say. Another way to say that ignorance is bliss is “the lack of knowledge results in happiness”. This occurs frequently in Animal Farm. If the animals become suspicious and suspect something, Napoleon has Squealer go around and assure the animals that everything’s fine. The animals believe Squealer because they are stupid and ignorant. For example, Napoleon takes the milk, and Squealer explains that they need the milk for their brains to think. Also when they suspect that the pigs are breaking the rules they go check the commandments but they are changed, so they think they are wrong. A key point in the book occurs when all the commandments become one. “All animal are equal but some animals are more equal than others” becomes the single commandment (92). Also an example, “It did not seem strange when the next day the pigs who were supervising the work of the farm all carried whips in their trotters” (92). Another example, “It did not seem strange to learn that the pigs were arranging to install a telephone” (92). Over the course of the story the pigs are
becoming like the oppressive humans. The final scene illustrates how the other animals finally become aware of what has happened. The pigs and men sit at the same table while the others are looking through the windows. Animal Farm is a very complex novel. It has many important lessons that have relevance in our society today.