ANIMAL FARM QUOTES THEMES AND DISCUSSION QUESTIONS ADAPTED

ANIMAL FARM – QUOTES, THEMES, AND DISCUSSION QUESTIONS ADAPTED FROM http: //www. shmoop. com/animalfarm

QUOTES – POWER: LEADERSHIP AND CORRUPTION Throughout the spring and summer they worked a sixty-hour week, and in August Napoleon announced that there would be work on Sunday afternoons as well. This work was strictly voluntary, but any animal who absented himself from it would have his rations reduced by half. Apparently, power means that you get to redefine language so that "strictly voluntary" means "in order to eat. " Twelve voices were shouting in anger, and they were all alike. No question, now, what had happened to the faces of the pigs. 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. Before you start blaming the pigs for being evil and patting yourself on the back for all the bacon you get, notice that when the pigs are at their absolute worst, they… look the most like humans. Ouch.

THEME – POWER: LEADERSHIP AND CORRUPTION There's a reason you don't want your prom queen to also be your school president: absolute power corrupts absolutely, and pretty soon she'll besending out her minions to stake out the best parking spot. In Animal Farm, the pigs no sooner weasel their way into power than they start taking milk for themselves—and pretty soon, they've moved on to harder stuff. Like whiskey. So, is there any hope? Does Orwell offer any model of government that doesn't just get corrupted? 1. Are the pigs self-serving from the start, or are they corrupted by their power? (By the way, the world has never been able to agree on this. ) 2. What qualities allow the pigs to gain power in the first place, and what qualities enable them to keep their power? Are these different? 3. How do you define power, anyway? What does it mean to have power on Animal Farm? Is it possible for leaders to have this kind of power without abusing it?

QUOTES – POWER: CONTROL OVER THE INTELLECTUALLY INFERIOR At the Meetings Snowball often won over the majority by his brilliant speeches, but Napoleon was better at canvassing support for himself in between times. He was especially successful with the sheep. Of late the sheep had taken to bleating "Four legs good, two legs bad" both in and out of season, and they often interrupted the Meeting with this. It was noticed that they were especially liable to break into "Four legs good, two legs bad" at crucial moments in Snowball's speeches. Napoleon has trained the sheep to ignore Snowball's clever and probably half-decent ideas to bleat his simplistic slogan over and over. But just at that moment, as though at a signal, all the sheep burst out into a tremendous bleating of"Four legs good, two legs better!" It went on for five minutes without stopping. And by the time the sheep had quieted down, the chance to utter any protest had passed, for the pigs had marched back into the farmhouse. This is the end of Animal Farm and the return of Manor Farm. We'd like to blame the pigs—but we can't help feeling the sheep are partly to blame, too. And we think Orwell probably agrees with us.

THEME – POWER: CONTROL OVER THE INTELLECTUALLY INFERIOR American conservative William F. Buckley once said that he'd rather be governed by the first 2000 names in the Boston phonebook than the 2000 faculty members of Harvard. (Somewhat ironic, coming from a guy who went to Yale and then founded an intellectually rigorous journal. ) But our point is, Orwell might have agreed: in Animal Farm pigs take control because they're the smartest animals on the farm and then turn right around and start abusing that power. But you can't just blame the eggheads. The pigs would never have succeeded if they other animals hadn't blindly gone along with it. Moral of the story: you don't need to go to Yale, but you do need to form some opinions of your own. 1. Truth: the sheep seem completely useless. But are they, really? At the end of the day, do we actually need these less intellectual workers to keep everyone all nice and cozy in merino sweaters? 2. Do the sheep have a certain power? You know, the kind of power that only a numerous group of brainwashed and brainwashing individuals can have? 3. Is Orwell suggesting that intellectuals are inherently untrustworthy, or does being smart just make people susceptible to thinking other people are abuse-worthy? 4. The pigs and sheep are both to blame for the disaster on Animal Farm—both the intellectuals and the people who are happy to let others do the thinking for them. What say you? 5. Orwell isn't saying that intellectuals are evil, but he is saying that being smart tends to make people believe it's okay to be unethical. What say you?

QUOTE – LIES AND DECEIT It had come to his knowledge, he said, that a foolish and wicked rumour had been circulated at the time of Boxer's removal. Some of the animals had noticed that the van which took Boxer away was marked "Horse Slaughterer, " and had actually jumped to the conclusion that Boxer was being sent to the knacker's. It was almost unbelievable, said Squealer, that any animal could be so stupid. Surely, he cried indignantly, whisking his tail and skipping from side to side, surely they knew their beloved Leader, Comrade Napoleon, better than that? But the explanation was really very simple. The van had previously been the property of the knacker, and had been bought by the veterinary surgeon, who had not yet painted the old name out. That was how the mistake had arisen. How ironic: the one time the animals are actually being smart—by noticing that the van is painted with "Horse Slaughterer"—Squealer actually tries to convince them that they're being stupid. Apparently, he succeeds.

THEME – LIES AND DECEIT Animal Farm runs on pig fat and lies. By the end, "truth" has become so malleable that the animals can't even remember what actually happened. 1. What specific tools does Squealer use to deceive the animals, and why do they work so well? 2. The animals are dumb, but they're not that dumb. Well, the sheep are. But the rest have an inclination that something is rotten in the state of Animal Farm. So why don't they do anything about it? 3. The pigs' ability to alter the official record of the past is their most powerful tool of control.

QUOTES – FOOLISHNESS AND FOLLY The stupidest questions of all were asked by Mollie, the white mare. The very first question she asked Snowball was: "Will there still be sugar after the Rebellion? " "No, " said Snowball firmly. "We have no means of making sugar on this farm. Besides, you do not need sugar. You will have all the oats and hay you want. " "And shall I still be allowed to wear ribbons in my mane? " asked Mollie. "Comrade, " said Snowball, "those ribbons that you are so devoted to are the badge of slavery. Can you not understand that liberty is worth more than ribbons? " Mollie agreed, but she did not sound very convinced. Mollie refused to learn any but the six letters which spelt her own name. She would form these very neatly out of pieces of twig, and would then decorate them with a flower or two and walk round them admiring them. Mollie basically symbolizes every foolish, vain bourgeoisie idiot who's more concerned with how the Revolution is going to help him than how he can help the Revolution. Fools!" shouted Benjamin, prancing round them and stamping the earth with his small hoofs. "Fools! Do you not see what is written on the side of that van? " Well, they do… they just can't read. But being illiterate doesn't exactly mean that they're foolish. In fact, we're thinking Benjamin might be the real fool here: he's known all along that the Revolution is going nowhere good, but he can't be bothered to do anything about it.

THEME – FOOLISHNESS AND FOLLY Talk about blaming the victim: it sounds a lot like Orwell is faulting the lower-class animals for not being smart enough to realize what's going on. Either they fail to recognize their oppression, or they ignore it because they want to wear ribbons in their hair (ahem, Mollie). But you could also see the pigs as having follies of their own. A drunk pig stumbling around on two legs? Sounds pretty foolish to us. 1. Are these foolish animals born foolish, or made foolish by the actions of others? If you are born a fool, are you stuck that way or can you learn to stop being such a fool? Do the animals? 2. Is Old Major's dream foolish, or does it just get ruined by the foolishness of others? 3. The lower-class animals end up oppressed not just because the pigs are mean to them (although they are) but because they're inherently idiots.

QUOTE – CUNNING AND CLEVERNESS "What victory? " said Boxer. His knees were bleeding, he had lost a shoe and split his hoof, and a dozen pellets had lodged themselves in his hind leg. "What victory, comrade? Have we not driven the enemy off our soil— the sacred soil of Animal Farm? " "But they have destroyed the windmill. And we had worked on it for two years!" "What matter? We will build another windmill. We will build six windmills if we feel like it. You do not appreciate, comrade, the mighty thing that we have done. The enemy was in occupation of this very ground that we stand upon. And now— thanks to the leadership of Comrade Napoleon— we have won every inch of it back again!" "Then we have won back what we had before, " said Boxer. "That is our victory, " said Squealer can make black into white, and he can also make "not being utterly destroyed" into "victory. " But we still think that having to take our shoes off at the airport means that the terrorists have already won.

THEME – CUNNING AND CLEVERNESS Keep an eye on your local Mensa chapter: they may look like harmless nerds, but they're just waiting for the right opportunity to oppress us all. Or, something like that. In Animal Farm, the communist revolution quickly sours when it turns out that the animals all have different innate gifts—and some of those gifts, like cleverness, are particularly good at oppressing animals with other gifts, like brute strength. Is Orwell suggesting that smart people are always going to end up oppressing us because they understandfinancial derivatives and we can barely balance our checkbook? 1. One of the coolest things about Animal Farm, besides the talking pigs, is the fact that we know all these things the animals don't. Unfortunately, the real world doesn't work that way—usually. Look around: do you feel like you're being oppressed? Are you a pig or a sheep? Or a horse? Or a cynical donkey? 2. The animals are really concerned about controlling the image of their farm in the outside world. Is this the same kind of manipulation that the pigs perform within the farm? Are the working class animals also responsible, in some ways, for the attempted deception of the outside world? 3. Is Orwell suggesting that we need to be extra suspicious of clever people?

QUOTE – PRIDE But if there were hardships to be borne, they were partly offset by the fact that life nowadays had a greater dignity than it had before. There were more songs, more speeches, more processions. Napoleon had commanded that once a week there should be held something called a Spontaneous Demonstration, the object of which was to celebrate the struggles and triumphs of Animal Farm. At the appointed time the animals would leave their work and march round the precincts of the farm in military formation, with the pigs leading, then the horses, then the cows, then the sheep, and then the poultry. . by and large the animals enjoyed these celebrations. They found it comforting to be reminded that, after all, they were truly their own masters and that the work they did was for their own benefit. So that, what with the songs, the processions, Squealer's lists of figures, the thunder of the gun, the crowing of the cockerel, and the fluttering of the flag, they were able to forget that their bellies were empty, at least part of the time. Clever Napoleon. The farm is going to ruin, but Napoleon cheers everyone up with a pep rally. Our football team might be ranked last in the state, but by golly they're our football team!

THEME – PRIDE The animals in Animal Farm don't have much in the way of food, dignity, or leisure—but they do have pride. They take pride in banding together to overthrow their first oppressive leader, and that common feeling makes them willing to endure their second oppressive leader. Napoleon is smart enough to use that pride to manipulate the animals into obedience and then to convince them that the whole system isn't just failing and corrupt. And… it seems to work. 1. In general, is pride beneficial or harmful to the animals? For the pigs? For the humans? And for us? 2. Boxer takes a lot of pride in his work. But isn't that supposed to be a good thing? When does taking pride in your work go wrong?

QUOTE – RELIGION 1. Friend of fatherless! Fountain of happiness! Lord of the swill-bucket! Oh, how my soul is on Fire when I gaze at thy Calm and commanding eye, Like the sun in the sky, Comrade Napoleon! Thou are the giver of All that thy creatures love, Full belly twice a day, clean straw to roll upon; Every beast great or small Sleeps at peace in his stall, Thou watchest over all, Comrade Napoleon! Had I a sucking-pig, Ere he had grown as big Even as a pint bottle or as a rolling-pin, He should have learned to be Faithful and true to thee, Yes, his first squeak should be "Comrade Napoleon!“ Every religious leader needs a song, right? Quick Brain Snack: Stalin's department of propaganda commissioned a lot of paintings of Stalin that drew on the conventions of Russian Christian iconography—paintings that glorified a saint. In other words, they made Stalin out to be a religious figure. Looks to us like the same thing is happening here.

THEME – RELIGION Karl Marx may have said that religion was the opiate of the masses, but he also said that it was the "sigh of the oppressed creature, the heart of a heartless world, and the soul of soulless condition. " In other words, it just might be the only thing that gets you out of bed in the morning—if you're an oppressed laborer, that is. So, what does Animal Farm do with this? Moses might be a manipulative liar, but his little tale about "Sugarcandy Mountain" is also the only thing that keeps the animals going after a long day of hauling hay. We don't blame them for wanting to believe it—but we can blame the pigs for using it against them. 1. Why would Orwell choose a raven as the main proponent of religion? What associations do we have with ravens? 2. Why call the raven Moses? It sounds like a biblical reference, i. e. , Orwell beating you over the head with the club of literary significance. Yet Moses the raven doesn't do anything resembling Moses the man (leading a great big horde of people out of oppression and into freedom). What do you think? 3. What's going on with Moses and the Joneses? Is there really a connection between corrupt power and religion? Although they play very different roles, Moses and Napoleon derive power from and interact with the other animals in similar ways, making clear a connection between dictatorship and religion. 4. Orwell is suggesting that the only reason religion exists is to make people feel better about their horrible conditions. Do you agree with this? Why or why not?