Similarities Between Macbeth And Animal Farm

Improved Essays
Just as humans, dictators are not born evil but are influenced enough to gain power and abuse it. If one has the power to control all, then they could use it to their own advantage. Stories such as Macbeth by William Shakespeare and Animal Farm by George Orwell illustrate how such characters like Macbeth and Napoleon rise to power to use it for themselves as similarity to dictators like Adolf Hitler, Joseph Stalin, Benito Mussolini. By doing this, dictators blind the eyes of the people by stealing their freedoms through manipulation to gain innate superiority.

The purpose of manipulation in a dictator’s plan is to have people fooled into complete loyalty to gain power. In the play Macbeth, the main character Macbeth is a brave and honest person but becomes corrupted when he is exposed to prophecies from witches that show his future. In the play it states,”Know that it was he, in the times past, which he held you
…show more content…
The story Animal Farm, is about how one can gain power to be superior to others as such when the character Napoleon tries to gain authority from the animals by stealing. In the text it states, “Napoleon took them away from their mothers saying that he would make living responsible for their education” (Orwell 51). This passage means that Napoleon steals the pups from their mothers to raise them for his own use. He does this to obtain more control over the animals and the farm. Napoleon resembles a fearful dictator allowing him to take over much like Joseph Stalin who began the terrifying Soviet Union. In the Modern World History textbook it tells, “To realize his vision, Stalin planned to transform the Soviet Union into a totalitarian state” (441). Thus, Demonstrating that Stalin stole the people’s rights and freedoms by turning the Soviet Union into a totalitarian state to achieve complete control. By doing this he will have no limitations and extreme loyalty at all

Related Documents

  • Decent Essays

    Although Napoleon manages to gain the farm animals' trust at the beginning of the story, it is later evident that he is a ruthless and cunning dictator. Napoleon, along with the other pigs, assume leadership position a few days after old Major's death. They turn Old Major's dream into a philosophy and vow to make life better for the animals on Manor Farm. Eventually, Napoleon becomes corrupted by greed and breaks his promise. He takes away the animals' freedom by taking away the weekly debate so that no one may voice their opinion or turn the animals against him, living in luxury in his barn while the animals live outside, not doing any actual work on the farm, persuading the other animals to labor on the farm while he supervises, reducing…

    • 250 Words
    • 1 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Unit 2 Writing Assessment: Animal Farm The betrayal Has Animal Farm transcended its original context of the Russian Revolution and Joseph Stalin, making it relevant to readers today? Yes, Animal Farm has transcended its original context from the Russian revolution and Joseph stalin making it relevant to readers today.…

    • 682 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Animal Farm Essay Were the working animals the ones to blame for Napoleon's takeover? The working animals are to blame because they were still working for him even after he chased off Snowball and made them work like slaves. Some people might disagree because the animals do not know better, Napoleon was the one who brainwashed them on doing whatever he wants and they believe him because he is smarter. Napoleon makes the animals work like slaves and let’s the pigs have special treatment because they are smarter. Even though they know this is wrong they still work for him.…

    • 457 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    In Animal Farm, Napoleon is related to Josef Stalin in the Russian Revolution. Josef Stalin once said, “Ideas are more powerful than guns. We would not let our enemies have guns, why should we let them have our ideas.” Napoleon and Stalin both treated the people and animals unfairly and used protection they thought the needed, but actually didn’t. Both Stalin and Napoleon took over after Old Major and Karl Marx died.…

    • 249 Words
    • 1 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Manipulation How often do you see manipulation in your life? Will you know when its used? Are you aware of the consequences? Manipulation is a powerful tool, it is used to help accomplish one's goals but often comes with unseen consequences. People use manipulation to give themselves an advantage or to assist them accomplish their goals.…

    • 879 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    NAPOLEON “Napoleon is always right!”(p.64) Napoleon represents, in a general sense, the political tyrants that have emerged throughout human history. He forcefully expels Snowball in order to become the “Big Brother” of Animal Farm. The quote above shows the total, complete control he exerts over Animal Farm and how he justifies it to the animals. From the start, Napoleon emerges as a budding powermonger.…

    • 168 Words
    • 1 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    These fictional characters Macbeth, Emily Grierson, and Norman Bates, and one actual person Adolf Hitler, had many things in common with each other. They wanted power either over a country, or over the people they loved. The four of these people were all mentally ill and had very controlling tendencies. You actually are sickened by the crimes they committed, because in the beginning they showed great promise of what they could have been capable of.…

    • 1585 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Orwell used his novel to observe all of the terrors that were occurring in his time. It was so controversial because, at the time, novels were mainly positive in an effort to distract from the horrors of the world. Orwell skipped over that idea and wrote a novel that will transcend time. That is the most horrific idea of Animal Farm: events like those the book parodied will occur over and over because humanity will never learn from its mistakes. Napoleon’s traits are dangerous because they don’t just match the traits of Stalin; they match the traits of leaders all over the world, even…

    • 697 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Manipulation is a popular trope used in various amounts of literature; titles from William Shakespeare are an example. Many of Shakespeare’s works involves scheming and thorough plans to take someone out or betray someone for personal gain. There are numerous cases of this in Shakespeare’s tragedy, Macbeth. In Macbeth, there are certain characters who either are manipulative in their own way to get what they want or bring everything back to its natural order. This manipulation in Macbeth is portrayed through the characters Macbeth, Lady Macbeth, and Malcolm.…

    • 704 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Lord of Macbeth Even though both Jack from Lord of the Flies, and Macbeth from Macbeth have the same drive for power, the same obsession with blood, and the same guilt, there are some differences. The differences between them is that Macbeth does everything because he thinks it’s his fate and that he needs to, but Jack does it for the thrill of it. In both Macbeth, and Lord of the Flies the author is trying to show that greed kills all. In both novels the drive to be the leader results in either the death of himself, or the death of others. Both Macbeth and Jack could have lead peacefully, but their fear of not having power led to their eventual downfall.…

    • 1802 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    In the short allegory Animal Farm by George Orwell, it’s apparent that the novel is not a regular fairy tale despite its fairy tale like qualities. The novel is really a warning for it’s readers and politicians. This novel shows how people are taken advantage of by others. In Manor Farm where Animal Farm takes place, a rebellion occurs which leaves the animals to fend for themselves and eventually thrive as a society until a series of critical events leaves only a group of a few pigs led by Napoleon controlling the rest of the animals. The result of this is a totalitarian society which leaves the pigs in control of the common animals.…

    • 1174 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    “Napoleon was a large, rather fierce-looking Berkshire boar, the only Berkshire on the farm, not much of a talker, but with a reputation for getting his own way” (Orwell 16). Evidently, this foreshadows the fact that Napoleon, who was rather smart, will make himself dictator and have complete control of the farm by using authoritarian and totalitarian tactics just as Stalin did. Napoleon was extremely thirsty for power and got what he wanted by using terror as well as propaganda that none of the animals on the farm could fight against. He was a stern and harsh boar who manipulated the animals on the farm through cruelty, deception, and treachery to get his ways. It is without a doubt that Napoleon was a dictatorial leader who was obviously…

    • 1217 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    In George Orwell's novel, Animal Farm, Napoleon started out as an ordinary pig, but when given the opportunity to take power he turns into an evil dictator. During his time as leader he brought slavery and many deaths to Manor Farm due to his need for power and success. Even with all the power he had he didn’t trust the animals, he feared they would turn against him. For example, when Jessie had 9 puppies he took it upon himself to train them to scare other animals and to consolidate his power.…

    • 265 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Importance of Education Essay: “All animals are equal but some are more equal than others” the previous quote found in George Orwell’s acclaimed novel Animal Farm; that criticized the Soviet government in Russia showcases the importance of manipulating and limiting education in order to achieve full power and control over others. The novel contains characters that are symbolic of the communist leaders and were able to manipulate the other animals by limiting the quality of education which then led to the animals becoming ignorant and closed minded. Napoleon (who was symbolic of Joseph Stalin) the dictator, found out the animals’ weakness and used it against them throughout the novel while only educating specific animals. To begin with,…

    • 1056 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Napoleon is a selfish, greedy and ambitious pig who can not endure share power with Snowball, thus, he opposed Snowball’s every suggestions and arguments due to stronger desire he have, he also killed other animals who did not support his idea and always contributed to contacting with the ‘’betrayer” Snowball. The sentences from novel “he pissed the blueprint of snowball’s plan for windmill” “If you have your lower animal to contend with,’’ he said, “we have our lower class!” and Mr.Pilkington once again congratulated the pigs on the low rations, the long working hours, and the general absence of pampering which he had observed on Animal farm (animal farm page 138). These kind of sentences vividly depict his ambitiousness reveal his rudeness to readers, Napoleon also reflect there a people like him in real world who believe they are noble and distinguished than others, some people always think they are different with other dominator, but finally they will being as same as “Mr. Jones”, betray primary principles and make friends with enemies, they do not work but just enjoy other’s labor fruits, they are absolutely…

    • 1162 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays