One of the central themes in Animal Farm by George Orwell is the exploration of how a new social or political regime can fail to live up to the original idealism that inspired its introduction. In the modern world there are many examples of this occurring, such as in Iraq and Zimbabwe where their leaders were originally welcomed by their people but now their regimes have failed or are in the process of disintegration.
Animal Farm shows examples of a communist regime throughout (the equality in food, work and living conditions) and how communist regimes often fall apart, in this case into a dictatorship, when Napoleon becomes the absolute leader and completely changes the core values of the farm.
The first example of communism is at the beginning of the book, when Old Major recounts his dream and rallies the animals to the idea of equality: "Is it not crystal clear, then, comrades that all the evils of this life spring from the tyranny of human beings? Only get rid of man and the produce of our labour would be our own."
Napoleon Crossing the Alps
Animal Farm - Rebelión en la Granja
Figure 1He then goes on to say that "almost overnight" they would become "rich and free". This gives the animals the thought of equality and that they would be much better off without Man and, therefore, the thought of a revolution.
For the first few months after the revolution every one is getting along, sharing food, and generally feeling much better now that Mr. and Mrs. Jones are no longer controlling the farm, "the animals were happy as they had never conceived it possible to be ⦠with the worthless parasitical human beings gone there was more for everyone to eat." This is often the case in communist regimes, that for the first while it seems to be going...
Animal Farm - George Orwell - Political Regimes (Idealism)
Sadly, this essay shows the result of inadequate research into literary history. George Orwell fought in the Spanish Civil War, and was an essayist and journalist throughout World War Two. From these experiences, he was painfully well aware of the tendency not merely of communism but of all idealistic/totalitarian schemes to sink into dictatorship.
I am not aware of Orwell having any significant interest in Iraq or Africa, but he was well aware of the history of the Soviet Union, and "Animal Farm" is based on the events in the Soviet Union, with Old Major being a metaphorical recreation of Marx; Napoleon being modeled on Stalin; Snowball on Trotsky, who was initially one of the most powerful figures in the Soviet government, but was later disgraced and then hunted down and murdered by Soviet assassins. This historical metaphor is a key part of the understanding of the novel, and by remaining unaware of it, this writer fails to understand a great deal about the novel.
3 out of 3 people found this comment useful.