Communism In Animal Farm Essay, Research Paper
Communism in Animal Farm
The novel Animal Farm, written by George Orwell, is a story of rebellion and dictatorship. The book is usually referred to as an extended fable, or a story that contains a moral and has animals that function as humans. The moral of Animal Farm is that communism does not work. This book can also be described as a satire because it makes fun of a certain aspect of society, such as communism. The book itself is about an irresponsible, usually drunk, farmer named Jones and the animals on his farm. Jones’s terrible treatment forced the animals on his farm, Manor Farm, to rebel and overthrow him in hope of not having to work for such a cruel tyrant. But when the pigs take it upon themselves to be the Animal Farm leaders, things start to gradually go back to the way it used to be with Jones in control. In the end, the animals on the farm cannot tell the difference between their leaders, the pigs, and their enemies, the human beings. This book is an excellent representation of why communism does not work through use of fictional characters. Karl Marx also wrote a book, Communist Manifesto, which tries to show how communism would work. Marx’s theory of the thesis, antithesis, and synthesis can be found in George Orwell’s Animal Farm.
The thesis, or the old way of doing things, can be represented by the years Mr. Jones owns and operates Manor Farm. The terrible abuse and neglect of the animals on the farm is because Mr. Jones gets drunk almost everyday. He uses animals for his own success and does not even think about their well being. Jones has animals slaughtered for money, he sells the chickens’ eggs, and he forgets to feed the animals regularly. The animals perceive Mr. Jones as a parasite, because he takes and takes and gives them very little in return. Old Major, Jones’s show pig, is very old and dreams of a day when the animals take over the farm in a great rebellion. This rebellion will give the animals freedom from not just Jones, but the horrible living conditions.
The dream of old Major’s rebellion is the new idea of running the farm. This new idea is the antithesis. After old Major’s lifetime, the rebellion happens and the animals run Jones off the farm. With no human control, the pigs, being the most intelligent, make themselves the leaders. One of the first things the pigs do is make the Seven Commandments for all animals on the farm to obey. Such laws as, “All animals are equal,” and, “Whatever goes upon two legs is an enemy,” are the new values of Animal Farm. When the farm is first taken in the animals’ possession, everyone works together and even fight in a victorious battle against the humans called “The Battle of the Cowshed.” They have their own inspirational anthem, “The Beasts of England,” which is given to them by old Major before he dies. This song is about the animals coming together to overthrow the humans and work on a farm on their own. It is used as a symbol of their freedom. The pigs give out the work to do on the farm and, without question, the animals do it. With animals in control, productivity on the farm goes up and most everyone looks up to Snowball for leadership, except Napoleon.
In the novel, there is no actual synthesis, but Napoleon thinks his way is the synthesis. In reality, the story goes back to the thesis, because of the way Napoleon operates the farm. His way involves overworking the animals, conducting executions, and mistreating the animals in general. The pigs sell Boxer, an overworking optimistic horse who is about to retire, to a slaughterer for money to buy alcohol. This action alone breaks two of the original Seven Commandments. Over time, it always amazes the animals that everything Napoleon does is within the law and if it is not with in the law, the incident is blamed on Snowball, who is dead. The chickens’ eggs start to be sold again and the food is at an all time low. The weather destroys the windmill that is being constructed, and Napoleon says Snowball did it. Even though the pigs promise to not live anything like the humans, they end up being just like them. Against original law, the pigs live in the human’s house, sleep in human beds, wear human clothes, drink alcohol, and learn to read, write, and walk like the humans. But with the new mended laws, every one of these acts is legal. For the animals’ interest, Napoleon changes the farm anthem and renames Animal Farm back to Manor Farm. The whole time Napoleon convinces the animals that his way is the right way and they are much better off with him in control. This works because Napoleon brainwashes the animals and threatens anyone who opposes him. The book is also a good example of a proletariat working for an oligarchy. The pigs act as the oligarchy and the animals on the farm represent the proletariat. This is because the pigs are a group of few members who exercise control over the animals who are the lowest class of workers. In the end, Napoleon and the other pigs act so much like the humans, the animals cannot tell the difference between man and pig.
In the beginning, Jones owns Manor Farm, which is operated by “Man”. This whole time period is known as the thesis. The antithesis is when the animals take over and everything seems to be going good for them. Even though the novel does not follow Karl Marx’s theory for a synthesis, Napoleon and the pigs think it does. The main message, which is contradicted by Karl Marx’s theory, is that communism does not work.