Animal Farm 

by George Orwell

Yes, I read it back in the seventh grade, but it was short and about communism, so I thought it was a good a book as any to start with.  My first thoughts after finishing: who would think making twelve year olds read this would be a good idea, do they even know what communism and/or allegories are?

In short, Orwell’s classic work is about animals who uprise against their oppressive human masters with the promise of utopia only to be forced back into the tyrannical slavery that they once endured, but only this time, it was by pigs.

The piece was a bit more transparent than I remember, though I suppose I can see how something like this would be quite controversial back in it’s day.  It starts out by siding with the animal’s revolution — where all the animals were equal to one another and if they all put in hard work they would all reap the benefits together.  They work for no master, only themselves, but of course, as human nature works (or our animalistic nature works, if you will) someone will always exploit the hardworking people to benefit themselves. Napolean, the dictator of the piece, exploits the dumber, but loyal hardworking animals such as the horses, for his own gain while simultaneously assuring them that it was for their benefit.  It makes no difference that he was changing the rules of the game the entire time because no one could remember the original ones, much less prove anything, not to mention, one negative word lead to execution.

There are obvious parallels to communism including Napolean as Stalin down to the flag that was described eerily similar as that of the hammer and sickle. And Orwell makes it pretty obvious where he sits on the matter.  There are also some slightly less specific references and allusions to outside forces such as the Nazi Party and the United States.  This book actually makes me wish that I was a little bit more up on my modern world history, so that I could take in it’s full meaning instead of merely being able to spot that it’s being referenced.

Overall, I enjoyed rereading this book and even if one isn’t completely up to speed on their USSR history, it is a pretty fair glimpse into human nature and their ability to exploit and be exploited.  It’s an easy read, coming in at less than a hundred pages, and involves fluffy animals, so really there’s no excuse not to pick it up and give it a go.

So, onto book number two? Suggestions?  I think I’ve narrowed it down to “the abuse of the mental health institution, ² ” “the inherent racism of the south, ³” or “the oppressive society of the 1950’s. ⁴”

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