animal farm

George Orwell satirizes totalitarian regimes in his novel, Animal Farm. The novel was aimed primarily at the Soviet Union and the oppressive nature of Stalin's regime. It uses animals rather than people to depict uninformed masses blindly following charismatic leaders desperate to keep their power. Orwell warns that world leaders must be held accountable for their actions, and provides a possible scenario in which too much power is in too few hands. He does not, however, offer a solution.
The novel starts out with the animals under the dictatorship of Mr. Jones who owns the farm. Pigs lead the farm animals in a successful revolt against the humans of the farm. Assuming power, the pigs set rules for the animals to follow including, all animals are equal and "four legs good, two legs bad." The animals work extremely hard to ensure that Animal Farm is prosperous, but the pigs rapidly infringe on their rights and freedoms. They lie, manipulate, steal and exploit the loyalty of the animals to keep their precious power. By the end of the novel, the hard working horse, Boxer, is murdered by the pigs, and they are walking on two legs just like the humans.
Because the animals are ignorant, most of them cannot read, and do not question the authority of the pigs they are easily taken advantage of. Orwell uses the depressing fate of the animals as a warning of the dangers of uninformed masses. Leaders must be held accountable for their actions. or the power will make them desperate for more. Freedom and equality are not guarenteed, and Orwell calls for the people to protect them.
The novel's warning is too important to be ignored. The tragic ending, Boxer's death and the animals' realization of their oppression, makes the novel effective because it is an example of what could happen in the real world. After reading Animal Farm, it is clear that there must always be an awareness of inherent human rights to equality, and a fight to protect them from the abundant human versions of George Orwell's swine.
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