Animal Farm

Abstract

Animal Farm, by George Orwell, begins when Old Major, a wise boar on Manor Farm, calls a meeting with the animals, teaching them about revolution and singing them a song called Beasts of England. After Old Major dies, two pigs, Snowball and Napoleon, lead a rebellion, overthrowing the human farmer, Mr. Jones, and renaming the farm “Animal Farm”. They create Seven Commandments of Animalism, with the core rule: “All animals are equal.” Snowball educates the animals, while Napoleon secretly trains puppies. The farm prospers, but tension arises as Napoleon and Snowball vie for leadership. When Snowball proposes building a windmill, Napoleon drives him away using his trained dogs and takes over as leader. He gradually consolidates power, replacing democratic meetings with a pig-run committee and taking credit for Snowball’s windmill idea. After the windmill is destroyed in a storm, Napoleon blames Snowball, making him a scapegoat and purging the farm of supposed traitors. The pigs elevate Napoleon to a near-divine status, replacing Beasts of England with a song glorifying him. Over time, Napoleon and the pigs grow more corrupt, indulging in luxuries and behaving more like humans. When Boxer, the hardworking horse, collapses, Napoleon sells him to a slaughterhouse for money to buy whisky, lying to the animals about it. As the years pass, the pigs begin walking on two legs and living like humans, and The Seven Commandments are reduced to one: “All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others.” In the end, Napoleon forms an alliance with human farmers, and the animals realize they can no longer tell the difference between pigs and humans.