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A review by katieplanet
Animal Farm by George Orwell
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.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3oKznTu2hkE&pp=ygUbYW5pbWFsIGZhcm0gbm9TRlggYXVkaW9ib29r
---
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
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Violence, and Murder
Minor: Alcoholism