I finished the book “Animal Farm” today. Having heard of this classic by George Orwell, who published it on 17 August 1945, I finally seized the chance to fully experience the story and absorb the main ideas presented in this book, while also occupying myself with the right thing to do instead of all the stuff on the internet, from which I told myself it was time to stand at a distance now.
Under Orwell’s pen, we saw a farm first belonging to Mr. Jones being taken over by his animals, who drove their human master away, dreaming that their lives would become better than ever. The animals, inspired by a speech delivered by a boar named Major, called on them to prepare for rebellion against their human enemy. They stood up to provoke their rebellion simultaneously after Mr. Jones frequently got drunk and left them hungry and extremely enraged. The liberation was actually so smooth and successful that these animals couldn’t believe what they had fought for themselves. Among them stood out two pigs, Snowball and Napoleon. Snowball was excellent at making plans, while the latter was cunning and raised nine dogs as his own weapons, forcing Snowball to leave the farm. Later, the principles approved by all the animals were gradually ignored by Napoleon, who managed to grant privileges to the pigs with the help of another pig skilled at deceiving the animals and convincing them that what their leader, Napoleon, had done was always right. As days went by, the animal farm was blanketed in terror, as Napoleon ordered his dogs to publicly tear apart the animals who disagreed with him, ensuring his absolute power and superiority over the rest. Soon came the moment when all the pigs stood on their hind legs and walked around like human beings. In the fields where the animals worked, the pigs supervising them carried whips, turning the animals they had once called “Comrades” into slaves. The animals’ living conditions were no better than before the Rebellion.
This book demonstrates how the fruits of rubidium are robbed by the traitors. In this allegory, the characters of various animals are well depicted. Boxer, a devoted but simple-minded horse, gave all his strength to farm work and won the respect of his companions, but he was betrayed by the leader he fully trusted. Once he became useless, a knacker took him away. The cats, however, serve as the wicked, detached, and self-serving characters. They rarely worked on the farm, vanished when work was distributed, and appeared again only to have their meal. Their excuses always worked, allowing them to continue exploiting the efforts of others for quite some time until the situation worsened, after which they ran away from Napoleon’s rule. The pigs definitely belong to the privileged class; owing to their cleverness, they mastered writing and took up the job of setting plans for the farm’s management. They could have led the farm in a different direction, achieving the dream every animal longed for—plenty of food, no worry about being killed, and completely working for themselves instead of humans. However, once they gained power, they desired more. Under these circumstances, they deceived the animals and educated them to obey the pigs’ orders unless they wanted their human enemies back, as the animals were not able to manage as effectively as the pigs did. They were easily convinced and manipulated by the pigs, losing chances again and again to stop things from getting worse.
I’ve read 1989 by the same author in high school, which is the reality version of Animal Farm. Both of them serve as a reminder for us that democracy comes at a high cost. As individuals in society, we shouldn’t be susceptible to any propaganda; we must continually learn about new things and think independently. As citizens, maybe we are deprived of the energy to check how power is used by busy lives. We should actively stand out to voice our concerns and wish to investigate relevant incidents that have occurred. Here’s a line I want to share: Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Blind loyalty is never what keeps a society progressing. Whatever happens, we should not forget that statements or even facts from one side are far from enough to determine our perspectives.
Be independent, be patient, and be inclusive.