Reviews with content warning for Murder - Animal Farm

For a while I couldn’t understand what Communism was and, even though they don’t outright say it is, I’ve finally learned (Excuse my ignorance, we’ve only brushed through it in class).

Through a fable story perspective, it was easy to digest. I easily followed along even with such a deep topic.

All the animals wanted was freedom, which they thought for the longest time was right there, until the very end. From how the pigs at the started added milk and apples to their meals, “not because of selfishness”, but because, “Milk and apples (This has been proven by Science, comrades) contains substances absolutely necessary for the wellbeing of a pig”, adding with clear fear mongering, “do you know what would happen if we pigs failed our duty? Jones would come back!”, all the way to where the same pigs who “tried to do better for the animals” end up breaking “The Seven Commandments” and becoming the very thing they hated the most; a Man.

The fear mongering happened constantly: Snowball stole Napoleon’s idea and ruined the windmill, he was working for the men the whole time, constantly switching between farms he was hiding in to which Napoleon wasn’t on good terms with… How they switched the rules to fit their narratives/benefit themselves until it ultimately led to them devolving back into what they fought against at the start, how they treated people who basically gave their lives to them till the very end and how they brutally murdered any animal who spoke against them, made me think more of the modern world we live in. And even though this is a fictional story, it is based on real life events, have we changed?

This book was a 5 star read, I’ll recommend it to everyone, no matter what they’re into.

Knowledge is power!

Content Warnings

pey333's review against another edition

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dark reflective tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

Content Warnings

katieplanet's review against another edition

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dark emotional sad tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

I "read" Animal Farm through a dramatized audio book by Steve Parker, which I highly recommend to anyone interested. It can be found free on YouTube here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3oKznTu2hkE&pp=ygUbYW5pbWFsIGZhcm0gbm9TRlggYXVkaW9ib29r

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A satire on the corruption of communism, Animal Farm parodies real events in communist history such as the rise of Stalin and the original hopes and dreams of the communist ideal. Through corruption, manipulation, greed, and violence, Animal Farm's once perfect communist ideal is transformed into a dictatorship that leaves them worse off than before.

In reading Animal Farm, many misinterpret Orwell's novel, reading it as either a critique to communism or the inevitability of greed. Although Orwell touches on these points, I believe Orwell has greater message in Animal Farm, a warning that can be in 1984 as well. Orwell's true message is not to fear the oppressor, but to fear becoming a population that can be easily oppressed.

Orwell's work may hold the belief that greed and corruption are an inevitability, but the true danger lies in the passive, cowardly, and uninformed population which chooses to let is flourish. It is when we fail to take action against our oppressors, fail to bravely speak our minds against the masses, and let fear control our actions that we become a controllable population ripe for manipulation. Orwell warns us of the danger of, "Letting the beast grow" until one day it grows far too big for us oppose. Even worse, far too big to even see it for what it truly is.

Content Warnings

realistic's review against another edition

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dark reflective tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

Content Warnings

a_random_fangirl's review against another edition

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challenging informative reflective fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Content Warnings

vibingjaren's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

It was an okay book. I had to read it for a class, but it did have me interested at some parts. Wish the ending was more exciting, but the ending makes sense for the story. Boxer deserved better.

Content Warnings

lethargicbat's review against another edition

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dark reflective tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

Content Warnings

cielosiluminado's review against another edition

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dark informative reflective fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

“All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others.”

comrade orwell is a genius with the metaphors in this. just wow.

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