A Book Report on Animal Farm

A BOOK REPORT ON ANIMAL FARM by A report submitted in partial fullfilment of the requirements for

COLLEGE
University of
20 March 2012

Table of Contents

Table of contents...........................................................................i

Introduction..................................................................................ii

Characters...................................................................................iii

Plot Summary.............................................................................iv

My Personal Impression..............................................................v

The Seven Commandments of Animalism.................................vi

Glossary of Terms......................................................................vii

References................................................................................viii

Introduction:

This report is submitted to Profesor, for the partial fullfilment of the requirements for . The book Animal Farm, by George Orwell, first published in 1945, has been published in many different editions, ranging in length from 60 to 192 pages. Some editions listed that contain over 200 pages probably contain annotation of Orwell 's other novel, "1984”. The most common number of pages in most editions is about 144.

The reason for my reading this book is to complete a requirement in and also to entartain myself.

Characters The main characters of the story are as follows: Napoloen, he is most directly modeled on the
Soviet dictator, Joseph Stalin. Napoleon represents, in a more general sense, the political tyrants that have emerged throughout human history and with particular frequency during the twentieth century.
Snowball, he emerges as a fervent ideologue who throws himself heart and soul into the attempt to spread Animalism worldwide and to improve Animal Farm’s infrastructure. His idealism, however, leads to his downfall. Relying only on the force of his own logic and rhetorical skill to gain his influence, he proves to be of no match for Napoleon’s show of brute force. Squealer, He is “a brilliant talker” who is talented in the art of argument. Under Napoleon’s rule, Squealer acts as the liaison to the other animals. Squealer is especially good at playing on the animals’ ignorance and gullibility. He represents the propaganda machine of a totalitarian government. Squealer’s lack of conscience and unwavering loyalty to his leader, alongside his rhetorical skills, make him the perfect propagandist for any tyranny.
Squealer’s name also fits him well: squealing, of course, refers to a pig’s typical form of vocalization, and
Squealer’s speech defines him. Boxer, one of the two horses. With his determination to be a good public servant and his penchant for hard work, Boxer becomes Napoleon’s greatest supporter. He works tirelessly for the cause of Animal Farm, operating under his personal maxims, “I will work harder” and
“Napoleon is always right”. Boxer’s pitiful death at a glue factory dramatically illustrates the extent of the pigs’ betrayal. The pigs used the money from the slaughter to buy themselves a case of whisky. The name Boxer implies that he is a strong character, but still even with his strength, he lacks the intelligence to notice that he is only being used. Boxer represents the peasants or the working class.
Old major, Major claims to “understand the nature of life on this earth as well as any animal now living”
(p.28). Major, who represents both Karl Marx and Vladimir Lenin, serves as the source of the ideals that the animals continue to uphold even after their pig leaders have betrayed them. Lenin died during the
Soviet Union’s early years, leaving Trotsky (Snowball) and Stalin (Napoleon) to vie for his leadership position. The other characters of the story are as follows: Minimus, The poet pig who writes verse about
Napoleon and also composes the patriotic song “Animal Farm, Animal Farm” to replace the former idealistic hymn “Beasts of England,” which Old Major passes on to the others. Mr. Pilkington, the man who runs Foxwood, a neighboring farm. He is Mr. Frederick’s enemy. He represents the capitalist governments. Mr. Frederick, the operator of Pinchfield, a neighboring farm. He is based on Adolf
Hitler, Mr. Frederick proves to be an untrustworthy neighbor. Mr. Jones, The often drunk farmer who ran the Manor Farm before the animals staged their Rebellion and established Animal Farm. Mr. Jones is an unkind master who indulges himself while his animals lack food. He is baed on Tsar Nicholas II.
Mr. Whymper, A solicitor in Willingdon who acts as Animal Farm’s intermediary to the human
World. Mr. Whymper’s business-minded attitude makes him a parody of nations that conducted business with the Soviet Union while turning a blind eye to its internal affairs. Jessie and Bluebell, the two dogs who gives birth early in the novel. Napoleon takes the puppies in order to “educate” them.
Muriel, The white goat, helps Clover decipher the alterations to the Seven Commandments.
Moses, he constantly gets in the way of the pigs’ efforts to spread Animalism by inventing a story about an animal heaven called Sugarcandy Mountain. Moses represents religion, which gives people hope of better life in heaven. Mollie, the mare who pulls Mr. Jones’s carriage. Mollie craves the attention of human beings and loves being groomed and pampered. She has a difficult time with her new life on
Animal Farm because she misses wearing ribbons in her mane and eating sugar cubes. She represents the bourgeoisie that fled from Russia a few years after the Russian Revolution. Clover, the female of the two horses on the farm. Clover is Boxer’s faithful companion. Like Boxer, Clover is not intelligent enough to read, so she enlists Muriel to read the altered Seven Commandments to her. Clover represents the people who remember a time before the Revolution and realized that the government is lying about its success and adherence to its principles. Benjamin, The long-lived donkey who refuses to feel inspired by the Rebellion. Benjamin firmly believes that life will remain unpleasant no matter who is in charge

Plot Summary

The story’s setting is on Manor Farm. A farm owned and operated by Mr. Jones.

One night the prize boar, Old Major, gathers all the other farm animals because he envisioned that the misery of their daily lives is due to the tyranny of human beings, and that if they try to overthrow the humans their lives will become easier and more comfortable.

After Old Major dies, the pigs (led by Snowball and Napoleon) start teaching Old Major’s ideas, which they soon develop into a system of thought called Animalism to the other animals. A few months later,
Mr. Jones gets drunk and forgets to feed the animals. The animals became so hungry that they finally rebelled against the humans and drove them off the farm. They then renamed the farm to “Animal
Farm” and wrote the Seven Commandments of Animalism up on the wall of the barn. Mr. Jones comes back with a group of armed men to try and take back the farm, but the animals, led by Snowball, overpowers them.

Snowball and Napoleon constantly fight over plans for the future of the farm, especially over the
Windmill, which Snowball wants to build in order to make electricity for the farm. Napoleon calls in the nine dogs he took from Jessie and Bluebell to chase Snowball off the farm. Squealer, the persuasive pig who relays most of Napoleon 's decisions to the other animals, tells them that Snowball was a traitor in league with Mr. Jones, and that the windmill was really Napoleon 's idea.
The animals work hard work on the windmill. they relied heavily on Boxer the cart-horse, who is very strong and hard-working. Napoleon begins to trade with the neighboring farms, and the pigs move into the farmhouse and sleep in the beds there. Even when sleeping in beds like humans was forbidden in the original principles of Animalism.

The winter was trecherous. The animals had little food. Napoleon and Squealer blamed Snowball for everything that went wrong. Napoleon ordered the dogs to attack four pigs, who then confess that they were plotting with Snowball. A series of confessions of various “crimes” from other animals then started. All of those who confess are killed by the dogs, leaving the survivors shaken.

The windmill is finally completed. To get back the money used to build the windmill, Napoleon sells a bunch of timbers. He sells it to Mr. Frederick only to discover that he has been paid with worthless forged banknotes. Mr. Frederick and his men then came to the farm to blow up the windmill, the animals fought them off once again and won after a bloody battle. The pigs then find a case of whiskey in the cellar and get drunk.

Boxer gets injured while repairing the windmill. Benjamin notices that the van Napoleon calls to send him to the vet, had “Horse Slaughterer” painted on the side. After Boxer “died in the hospital” under the care of the “vet”, the pigs suddenly have enough money to buy another case of whisky.

Life was just as hard as it ever was. The pigs have started to walk on two legs. None of the old Commandments are left on the barn wall. A group of human farmers comes to the farm to play a game of cards. The animals discover they can no longer tell which is human and which is pig.

My Personal Impressions

The Seven Commandments of Animalism

1. Whatever goes upon two legs is an enemy.

2. Whatever goes upon four legs, or has wings, is a friend.

3. No animal shall wear clothes.

4. No animal shall sleep in a bed.

5. No animal shall drink alcohol.

6. No animal shall kill any other animal.

7. All animals are equal.

Squealer secretly paints additions to some commandments to benefit the pigs while keeping them free of accusations of law-breaking The changed commandments are as follows:

1. No animal shall sleep in a bed with sheets.

2. No animal shall drink alcohol to excess.

3. No animal shall kill any other animal without cause.

Eventually the laws are replaced with: "All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others", and
"Four legs good, two legs better!"

Glosarry of terms coccidiosis a parasitic infection that causes bloody diarrhea and sudden death in animals

communism a theory or system of social organization based on the holding of all property in common, actual ownership being ascribed to the community as a whole or to the state; in practice, communism is often a totalitarian system of government

comrade a fellow member of a political party; a member of the Communist party

disinter to exhume; to unearth that which is buried

proletariat in Marxism, the class of workers, especially industrial wage earners, who do not possess capital or property and must sell their labor to survive

propaganda information, ideas, or rumors disseminated to help or harm a person, group, movement, institution, nation, or other entity

regime a mode or system of rule or government; such a system when in power

socialism a theory or system of social organization that advocates vesting the ownership and control of the means of production and distribution, of capital, land, and other assets in the community as a whole

totalitarianism absolute control by the state or a governing branch of a highly centralized institution

tushes small, short tusks such as those belonging to a boar

References

Davison, Peter (2000). "George Orwell: Animal Farm: A Fairy Story – 'A Note on the Text '". England: Penguin Books. Archived from the original on 12 December 2006. http://web.archive.org/web/20061212041856/http://www.orwell.ru/library/novels/Animal_Farm/english/eint_pd.

Orwell, George (1979) [First published by Martin Secker & Warburg 1945; published in Penguin Books 1951]. Animal Farm. England: Penguin Books. ISBN 0140008381.

References: Davison, Peter (2000). "George Orwell: Animal Farm: A Fairy Story – 'A Note on the Text '". England: Penguin Books. Archived from the original on 12 December 2006. http://web.archive.org/web/20061212041856/http://www.orwell.ru/library/novels/Animal_Farm/english/eint_pd. Orwell, George (1979) [First published by Martin Secker & Warburg 1945; published in Penguin Books 1951]. Animal Farm. England: Penguin Books. ISBN 0140008381.