Power And Manipulation In George Orwell's Animal Farm

George Orwell’s Animal Farm is a dystopian piece of literature that serves as a microcosm of the situation that took place in Communist Russia under the rule of Joseph Stalin. This short novel narrates a story with animals in a farm who get rid of men to become independent. However, the pigs, having the highest level of intelligence in the farm, seem to gain power and control, and manipulate the other animals to their liking. Consequently, the main pig, Napoleon, becomes the ‘Leader’ of the farm and resembles to be a corrupt dictator who trashes nearly all the Commandments. Based on the context of the book, the overall theme of this novel is the rise of corruption through the use of power and manipulation. Since it is full of historical facts, the novel, apart from being short, is a great classic to be required in high school reading. Whenever Old Major, the Boar who was in charge of the animals of the Manor Farm, passed away, he clearly mentioned for the animals to never “live in a house, or sleep in a bed, …show more content…
The Animal Rebellion exemplifies the Russian Revolution of 1917 while Napoleon, the pig, resembles Joseph Stalin who was the dictator of Russia at the time. The book teaches the readers to beware of history repeating itself and that having a decent memory can be helpful. Taking this into context, Clover had many doubts of the pigs and the Commandments. But because she could not remember them exactly, “she lacked the words to express them” (Orwell 87). The pigs kept manipulating her and the other animals which is what can happen to us if we are not aware of our surroundings and the ideals of government. Overall, Animal Farm should be a required reading in high schools because it contains a lot of historical references, and it is not long, making it an easier