Animal Farm Flashcards
(15 cards)
‘on a raised platform, Major was ensconced… under a lantern’
symbolism of Old Major’s position in authority and he is clearly well respected and important and it shows the power he holds
light symbolism shows him positively and he should be listened to as he is a good person and speaks the truth
the barn is seen to be a spot on the farm where communal decisions are made and pivotal moments happen. Physical representation of the farm’s past and future
shows how he is based off of Karl Marx (Marxism) who was a respected German philosopher
‘wise and benevolent appearance’
‘Now comrades, what is the nature of this life of ours?… our lives are miserable, laborious and short’
address term with references to the army and connotations of conflict which displays an ‘us and them’ mentality of animals and humans. inspiring as gives the animals a sense of belonging
rhetorical question forces the animals to question the quality of their lives and so they support his vision
triadic structure of adjectives emphasises how dreadful their lives are and is very emotive and is persuasive (uses pathos)
address term was used by Communist and Socialist groups meaning ally
‘forced to work’
‘Bright will shine the fields of England, purer shall it’s waters be… on the day that sets us free’
light imagery suggests life will be filled with hope and positivity once the animals have rebelled and this is inspiring and motivating for the animals.
comparative adjective emphasises that there will be changes for the better and life will become almost perfect. This revels Old Major’s unrealistic idealism and naivety.
plural pronoun creates a sense of unity and belonging
emotive adjective implies that the animals currently feel trapped, so the promise of freedom is appealing.
rhyme makes it memorable.
like communist anthem internationale which stirs the emotions of the animals to start the revolution. gives both comfort and courage to them yet is later banned by Napoleon when it becomes a liability.
‘golden future’
‘Four legs good, two legs bad’
Parallelism and repetition make it effective as it is easy to remember and simple for all animals, the adjectives are basic and the contrast (antithesis) is clear.
The slogan gives the animals a common enemy and inspires unity among them.
It is a flawed belief which is exploited by Napoleon, because it causes the animals to blindly trust the pigs (Squealer and Napoleon), which is dangerous!
Problems immediately occur when it is questioned whether birds are included or not - this is a warning of things to come as the animals start to be manipulated more and more, things gradually change, and the slogan eventually changes completely to suit the pigs as they gain power.
Propaganda - designed to bring people together, control, and deceive.
Orwell is mocking the propaganda-driven culture of the Soviet Union, with its slogans, posters, songs, and marches with no substance/truth behind them.
One of the 7 commandments: ‘Whatever goes upon two legs is an enemy. Whatever goes upon four legs, or has wings, is a friend.’ and later this slogan becomes ‘four legs good, two legs better.’
‘The others said of Squealer that he could turn black into white’
Squealer (a pig) is presented as a ‘brilliant talker’ and so persuasive that he could make others believe plain lies. Napoleon exploits this skill and quickly puts Squealer to work as his spokesperson.
Black into white - the antithesis here reveals that Squealer is deceptive and is going to lie to and trick the animals.
Colour symbolism - in literature, white usually connotes purity and innocence (angels) and black connotes evil (devil/death). This suggests that Squealer will make anything that is negative sound positive and cover up Napoleon’s wrongdoing - a worrying detail for the reader as it foreshadows what is to come.
Squealer symbolises propaganda during the Russian Revolution. In the same way, propaganda was information of a biased or misleading nature, used to promote a political cause or point of view.
Links: Squealer cleverly uses the address term ‘comrades’ regularly, as Old Major did. This tricks the animals into thinking he is as trustworthy as Old Major.
‘The animals gazed round them in the clear morning light. They rolled in the dew, they cropped mouthfuls of the sweet summer grass…’
Morning light - Positive light symbolism and imagery of hope. Morning suggests a fresh start and light suggests hope and a bright future (as promised by Old Major).
Rolled - verb with connotations of freedom and the animals feeling relaxed and carefree.
Sweet summer grass - summer is a symbol of positivity, hope and innocence - the animals are almost re-born now that they have rebelled.
Importantly, the weather/season would have been the same whether the rebellion had happened or not, but the animals’ new actions reflect their new positive mindset.
BUT, this newfound freedom and hope is short-lived.
This was the (short-lived) result of the promise of Animalism - just like the promise of Communism in Russia.
Links: Old Major’s inspiring promise in ‘Beasts of England’ - ‘bright will shine the fields of England’ and contrast with what animalism becomes later in the novella
‘I will work harder’
will - modal verb used to express certainty and Boxer’s determination to work hard - he is making a vow/promise and the mantra motivates him.
harder - comparative adjective used to emphasise Boxer’s willingness to push himself further each day and suggests he will be steadfast and not give up.
This quotation paints Boxer in a very positive light, but we as readers are worried about him as his willingness to work hard without question could mean that he will be exploited easily. He is too trusting and naive.
He is, indeed, exploited and he is later sent to be killed as soon as he becomes too weak to work. The pigs use him for their own gain, but quickly get rid of him when he is not useful to them anymore. His loyalty is not rewarded.
Simple sentence and basic language - reflects Boxer’s naivety and lack of intelligence (which the pigs exploit to their advantage)
Boxer represents the peasant workers of Russia. They were exploited and controlled by Tsar Nicholas II who ruled from 1894 until his expulsion in 1917. The workers were kept in a position where they never earned enough money to pay for food or accommodation. The Revolution of 1917 sought to address this problem but only led to more hardship and starvation under the rule of Stalin (links to Mr Jones and Napoleon)
Links: ‘Napoleon is always right’
‘The pigs did not actually work, but directed and supervised the others. With their superior knowledge it was natural that they should assume the leadership.’
actually - adverb emphasising to the reader the reality of the situation, versus the propaganda the animals are being fed.
directed and supervised - these verbs show the power that the pigs already have to dominate and control the other animals, whilst not doing any of the hard work themselves.
superior - adjective to, again, separate the pigs from the other animals and demonstrate their higher status and licence to pick and choose what they do and have.
leadership - seems ironic, given that the initial promise was one of equality for all animals. In a true communist (animalist) state, there should be no leader at all.
Orwell uses this to demonstrate how communist states gradually manipulate their rules and promises to suit the most intelligent/powerful/rich, which ultimately leads to authoritarian or totalitarian rule.
Links: The pigs having special treatment, being allowed to sit out of work and being in control all contrast heavily with the ideology of Animalism and the commandment that ‘all animals are equal’
‘nine enormous dogs wearing brass-studded collars came bounding into the barn… snapping jaws’
nine enormous dogs - noun phrase and adjective ‘enormous’ the dogs are presented as powerful, especially as there is a pack of them
brass-studded collars - noun phrase and connotations of the noun ‘collar’, intimidating and the collars have connotations of control and symbolise Napoleon’s ownership - dogs are extremely loyal animals
bounding - verb - the dogs are well-trained and intimidating, they will act instantly, on command
snapping jaws - adjective ‘snapping’ - they are aggressive and they help Napoleon to control through fear.
Napoleon uses the dogs as his bodyguards and to help him win power at times when he thinks he is losing it. Here, he uses them to exert power over Snowball and expel him from the farm, using force. Importantly, he doesn’t gain the animals’ respect and admiration; he only has control because they’re scared.
Context:
The dogs represent Stalin’s secret police, the NKVD. During the purges in the RR, the secret police helped Stalin round up everyone who was perceived as a threat and then carried out their exiles or executions. Like the nine dogs, they were the violent force that allowed Stalin to remain in power.
Links: “It was noticed that they wagged their tails to him [Napoleon] in the same way as the other dogs had been used to do to Mr. Jones” - foreshadowing that the pigs will be just as bad as the humans
‘suddenly he lifted his leg, urinated over the plans, and walked out without uttering a word’
urinated - verb which is a clear sign of disrespect, particularly as Snowball has spent weeks labouring over them.
without uttering a word - prepositional phrase - another way of showing disrespect and lack of care - it is dismissive and a snub (and it also emphasises Napoleon’s ignorance). Napoleon is not a good speaker, so instead he uses insulting actions and force/fear to get his point across.
Napoleon has no regard for the windmill plans because he is only concerned with establishing totalitarian rule, whilst Snowball actually wants to improve life for the animals.
Napoleon is jealous of Snowball as he has real influence with the animals and concrete methods to improve life, whilst Napoleon does not. This is why Napoleon has to resort to removing Snowball with brute force (the dogs) to enable him to gain power and become leader.
Context: Stalin (Napoleon) and Trotsky (Snowball) were rivals to replace Lenin after his death - Stalin won and exiled Trotsky with the help of the NKVD, who later assassinated Trotsky.
Links: ‘Snowball often won over the majority with his brilliant speeches, but Napoleon was better at canvassing support for himself in between times’ - Snowball was a stronger leader; Napoleon was better at deceiving the unintelligent animals, using Squealer (propaganda)
‘a mysterious country called Sugarcandy Mountain…situated somewhere up in the sky’
mysterious - adjective implying that the mountain is another world, which is intriguing and tempting for the animals
Sugarcandy - hyperbolic description to exaggerate the place and make it seem like a blissful utopia - sugar and candy sound tempting - (possibly also unrealistic)
situated somewhere up in the sky - sibilance used to imply that it may be deceptive (links to serpents and biblical imagery - the devil)
somewhere - pronoun is vague - also implying that it may not actually exist
Context: The mountain symbolises heaven and Moses represents the religious leaders (hence his religious name), whom Orwell satirises and criticises for promising heaven as a reward, as a means of controlling people’s behaviour
Links: ‘just on the other side of that dark cloud’ - this is motivating for the animals, as they are promised that although their lives are currently difficult, they will be rewarded in Sugarcandy Mountain if they work hard (light/dark symbolism)
‘Napoleon was a large, rather fierce-looking Berkshire boar… not much of a talker, but with a reputation for getting his own way.’
fierce-looking - compound adjective to emphasise that Napoleon uses fear as his main tool of control. The other animals are intimidated by him.
not much of a talker - this phrase reveals that he is not as intelligent as Snowball, but also foreshadows that he may become secretive and deceptive. He is opportunistic and likes to scheme and plan behind the scenes.
reputation for getting his own way - noun ‘reputation’ demonstrates the status Napoleon already has on the farm, due to his self-importance. Foreshadows that Napoleon will end up leader - he has power over the other animals. `
Context: Represents Stalin, who used fear and secretive methods himself in order to become leader and oust Trotsky (Snowball)
Links: Napoleon took the puppies away from Jessie and ‘made himself responsible for their education’ - an example of his scheming and plans to use fear as a means of gaining power.
‘Snowball was a more vivacious pig than Napoleon, quicker in speech and more inventive, but was not considered to have the same depth of character.’
more vivacious - comparative adjective to suggest his passion and positivity - makes him a likeable and charismatic character, in comparison to Napoleon. Perhaps Orwell is suggesting that Snowball would have been a better leader.
quicker in speech and more inventive - comparative adjectives again - Snowball is introduced after Napoleon and all of this descriptions compare him to Napoleon which, again, suggest Napoleon’s greater power. Snowball is clever and resourceful, so has better leadership qualities, but this is no match for Napoleon’s scheming.
not considered to have the same depth of character - the noun phrase ‘depth of character’ this is a hint from Orwell that Napoleon is not genuine and that he has the ability to trick and deceive. It sounds positive, but in reality it is not. Snowball does not have this ‘depth’, which implies that he is trustworthy.
Context: Snowball represents Leon Trotsky, who was eventually ousted by Stalin because Stalin saw him as a threat to his power.
Links: ‘At the Meetings Snowball often won over the majority with his brilliant speeches, but Napoleon was better at canvassing support for himself in between times’.
‘All animals are equal but some animals are more equal than others’
equal - this adjective is not relative, it is absolute, so it is actually impossible for someone to be more equal. When Old Major speaks of ‘equal’, he truly means it, but it quickly becomes qualified by ‘but’.
The animals have been misled for so long that this seems to make perfect sense to them when, in reality, it is utterly senseless and is a paradox. All of the core ideals of Animal Farm have gradually been corrupted, and this is the final abuse of language and logic.
all - determiner is inclusive and in keeping with Old Major’s original plan, but the addition of the determiner ‘some’ introduces the concept of a selected few privileged animals.
The pigs clearly envision themselves as this privileged ‘some’; under their totalitarian regime, the working animals exist only to serve the larger glory of the leadership, to provide the rulers with food and comfort, and to support their luxurious and exclusive lifestyle.
This is what Orwell calls ‘doublethink’ (the act of holding two opposite, individually exclusive ideas or opinions and believing in both simultaneously and absolutely)
Context: In Russia, the workers were kept in a position where they never earned enough money to pay for food or accommodation, while the ruling class had privileges - this is hypocrisy.
Links: Back to the original commandment (to contrast)
‘The creatures outside looked from pig to man, and from man to pig, and from pig to man again; but already it was impossible to say which was which.’
from pig to man, from man to pig - parallelism and repetition of this prepositional phrase emphasises the disbelief and confusion of the animals as they realise that the pigs now look just like the humans. The phrases also link the pigs and the men to make it clear that they are now the same, and the corruption becomes clear.
outside - adverb - The other animals are all outside in the cold while the pigs are living it up inside, in luxury and warmth, but ‘outside’ also emphasises the separation between the 2 groups.
It has gone full circle (arguably now worse, as the pigs have now turned on their fellow animals)
Context: Final warning from Orwell about the problems with communism and how it can be easily corrupted, and the dangers of the controlling of the masses through propaganda which enables the abuse of power. He believes that the educated must eradicate this propaganda and not allow totalitarianism to flourish.
Links: ‘Man is the only creature that consumes without producing.’ (now it is the pigs)
