ANIMAL FARM - plot, SUMMARY, PERSONS, THE MEANING

ANIMAL FARM

PLOT:

George Orwell write this book from November 1943 to February 1944, it is about a Farm where the animals make a revolution and chase away the farmowner with his family. For a while everything works great and everybody is happy. But on and on the pigs, who make the organization part on the farm, get more and more like humans. They even change 'the seven rules of Animalism' one by one and in the end the other animals can't divide them from humans, which used to be their enemies and then are the friends of the pigs.

THE AUTHOR:

George Orwell (whose real name was Eric Blair) was born in India in 1903, and was educated at Eton. From 1922 to 1928 he served in Burma in the Indian Imperial Police. For the next two years he lived in Paris, and then came to England as a school-teacher. Later he worked in a bookshop. In 1937 he went to Spain to fight fo

r the Republicans and was wounded. During the Second World War he was a member of the Home Guard and worked for the B.B.C. In 1943 he joined the staff of Tribune, contributing a regular page of political and literary commentary, As I Please. He later became a regualr contributor to the Observer, for which newspaper he went as a special correspondent to France and Germany. He died in London in 1950.

His publication include Down and Out in Paris and London, Burmese Days, The Road to Wigan Pier, Coming Up For Air, Keep the Aspidistra Flying and Homeage to Catalonia. Orwell´s name became widly known with the publication, in 1945, of Animal Farm, which has sold more than two million copies. Nineteen Eighty-Four had a similar success, and aroused extraordinary intrest as a film and on televison. Also he write Collect Essays, Journalism and Letters are print in four volumes.

SUMMARY:

Mr. Jones is the owner of the 'Manor Farm', he is often drunk and treats his animals badly. One night Major, an old boar, calls out for all animals to come to the big barn. He tells them about his vision of freedom and Animalism, and how their live would be improved. The main facts are that human beeings are the enemies, and they just can survive through rebellion, and all animals are comrades and equal, at the end he teaches them a song called 'Beasts of England' (page 13). He says that there is no special time for the rebellion but it will be, sooner or later. Three days later Major dies, but the animals keep his vision in mind. One day Mr. Jones comes home late and drunk and forgets to feed the animals. So in the morning the animals are starving and the rebbellion starts. They brake down the doors and feed themselves. Jones tries to control them but the animals are stronger and so he and his wife  have to leave. Now the farm belongs to the animals. There are two pigs Napoleon and Snowball who follow the thought of old Major and work out 'The Seven Rules Of Animalism', which they write in big letters onto the the barn, so that everybody can see them. They are the following: (page 23)

1. Whatever goes upon two legs is an enemy.

2. Whatever goes upon four legs, or has wings, is a friend.

3. No animal shall wear clothes.

4. No animal shall sleep in a bed.

5. No animal shall drink alcohol.

6. No animal shall kill another animal.

7. All animals are equal.

The pigs are more intelligent than the other animals and so they do the thinking part, the organization, on the farm. There are another main characters. Like the three horses Boxer the cart-horse, Cluver and Mollie the two mares, Benjamin, the donkey and some more. After they have milked the cows, which was necessary, they all together go to the fields to do the harvest. As they are finished the milk is gone. Later they find out that it is mixed to the food of the pigs, for keeping them healthy and do the brainwork, which, how Squealer, another pig good at talking, tells them is imported to prevent the coming back of Mr. Jones. This year the harvest was better than ever and all animals are satisfied. Each sunday there is a meeting in the barn and the solutions for the problems are decided by voting, and the song 'Beasts Of England' is sung. Snowball tries to teach the animals reading, and reduces the seven Rules into 'Four legs good, two legs bad' for the sillier ones. There are two farms next to the 'Animal Farm', how it is called since the rebellion has started. It's the Foxwood Farm and the Pinchfield Farm. One day Jones comes back, with a few men, leading an attack against the farm. But the animals led by Snowball defeat it bravely. That day is called then the day of 'The Battle Of Cowshed'. Everytime Snowball makes a suggestion for anything at the sundays meetings, Napoleon is against it. As Sowball has the idea to build a windmill, to have later on a better live, because of the electrical power, the light and the warm water, Napoleon disagrees and command his dogs to attack Snowball. He has to flee and just escapes with his life. Napoleon forbidds the sunday meetings and decides all problems by himself. Some animals are against it and ask why Snowball was driven away because he fought very brave in the 'Battle Of Cowshed'. But Squealer, who becomes more and more the right hand of Napoleon argues that Snowball was on Mr. Jones side, and they all don't want that Mr. Jones comes back. The dogs are like a security guard and every time any animal doesn't agree with the pigs, it is warned by the dogs. Napoleon even decides to let the windmill built, and says that it was his idea although he had stolen it from Snowball. During the next summer the animals work like slaves, building the windmill and working on the fields. Espacially Boxer works very hard. There isn't more food than before the rebellion, it is equal or even less, but the animals mostly don't recognize, and those who do, they say 'it's better having less food, than Mr. Jones coming back.' The pigs behave more and more like humans, and even move to the farmhouse. They also sleep in beds. And as the animals think about the fourth rule, they have to find it changed on the barnwall into 'No animal shall sleep in beds with sheets'. Napoleon, called the Leader, starts dealing with the humans of the other farms through Mr. Whymper. In Autumn the windmill is half-built, but then it is destroyed by a great storm. The Leader says it was Snowball who came back. There is less food in the winter and so the hens have to give away their eggs for selling. The animals start to rebuilt the windmill. One day four pigs are sentenced to death and killed by the dogs, because they alleged have been on Snowball´s side. A few days later the animals find the sixth rule changed into 'No animal shall kill any other animal without cause.' In autumn the windmill is finished and named 'Napoleon Mill'. Some days later it is destroyed by the farmer of the neighbourfarm and about a dozen men with guns and dynamite. A lot of animals are killed, but they win again. One day a pig finds some whiskey and so they drink it. And from now on the fiftth rule is changed into 'No animal shall drink alcohol to excess.' And again the animals start rebuilding the mill. There also should be built a school for the young pigs. As theOne day boxer, who is twelve years old, brakes down. Instead of bringing him to a hospital as he said, Napoleon gets Boxer to a slaugtherhouse.

Years later only some of the animals are alive who where there before the rebellion. The farm is richer than before and the windmill has been finished, but isn't used for electrical power, but for milling corn, which is sold. One day Squealer takes some sheeps and teaches them the new rule 'Four legs good, two legs better.' From that day on the pigs walk on their hind legs. Clover and Benjamin, who are both very old, go to the barn and find that also the seventh rule is changed into 'All animals are equal, but some are more equal than others.' A week later some humans come to the farm to celebrate a feast with the pigs, and as the other animals look through the windows into the farmhouse they cant divide the pigs from the humans.

PERSONS:

Old Major, the pig:

Without him there wouldn't have been any revolution. He gives the other animals a vision, a hope for a better life and for that he is very respected. Even as he is dead the animals often think of him.

Napoleon, a pig:

He always tries to make everything better just for himself. He rarely works and even when he does it is only for his own advantage. There is nothing he want do to suppress the others.

Snowball, a pig:

He really tries to change anything, to make a better living for everybody. He is not selfish and does the brainwork because it has to be done.

Squealer, a pig:

He is a very good talker, and thats why he is responsible for the propaganda. He changes the bad things into good things just by telling them different. So the animals mostly believe that everything is alright.

Boxer, the cart-horse:

He is the type of guy who is not really intelligent. His two mottos are 'I will work harder' and 'Napoleon is always right'. For him that seems to be enough to solve all the problems.

Benjamin, the donkey:

He is the type of guy who is very intelligent but is not interested in anything, because he thinks that nothing will change, everything will stay as bad as it is.

Moses, the raven:

He stands for the Religion and is always preaching about Sugar candy mountain, which is making them happy and they think it is something like heaven.

THE MEANING:

George Orwell describe the ideology of communism in form of an animal-story. He shows, that it is impossible that all people are equal, because some people always want the best for themseves and so they must suppress the others. If someone become a leader he will think he is more important and wants more advantages, so the others have to work for him.