A NIMAL FARM BY G EORGE O RWELL

The Theme of Animal

Farm

The most profound theme in this

novel is “Power corrupts, and
absolute power corrupts
absolutely.”—Lord Acton

Corrupt: to damage, make something bad

Absolute: possessing unlimited power, total
 V OCABULARY USED IN
REFERENCE TO A NIMAL
FARM
 Satire: This novel is considered a political satire, or work
that uses ridicule to expose wickedness or stupidity.

 Fable: This story is also considered a fable because it

shows animals talking and behaving like humans. It isn’t
really about animals, it is about us. The audience is
amused by the story and more likely to pay attention to
its real point.

 Allegory: This story, as we have discussed before, is an

allegory—it symbolically substitutes the events on the
farm for actual events in history. It causes readers to
make a deep comparison between events in the story
and the parallel events in history.
 KEY HISTORICAL FIGURES,
ORGANIZATIONS, AND PLACES

Tsar Nicholas II: The last Russian tsar. He was an ineffective ruler that was
overthrown and executed along with his family by the Bolsheviks.

Joseph Stalin: A Bolshevik leader who became prominent only after

Lenin’s return. He succeeded Lenin as leader following Lenin’s death.

Vladimir Lenin: The founder of the Bolshevik Party, organizer of the

October Revolution. He was the first leader of the Soviet Union. He was a
devout follower of Marxism. He other Marxists believed Communism
would catch on and become a worldwide movement.

Leon Trotsky: A Bolshevik leader and one of the most prominent figures
of the revolution. Trotsky was closely aligned with Lenin.
 O VERVIEW OF THE R USSIAN
R EVOLUTION OF 1917
The Bolsheviks—led
Russian tsar, Civil war broke out by Lenin and
Nicholas II, is between Trotsky—come out
overthrown revolutionaries on top

Stalin turns against After Lenin’s death,

By 1929, Stalin had
his colleagues—he Stalin and Trotsky
complete control of
sentences them to fight for power—
the party
death Stalin wins

Russia became
known as USSR, or
Soviet Union until
1991
 Historical Figures and
their Allegorical Parallels

Relating factor=“is represented as”

Pravda—
propaganda
Lenin Stalin Trotsky newspaper

Old Major Napoleon Snowball Squealer

The
proletariat
—ordinary Secret Tsar The “Five
workers Police Nicholas II Year Plan”

Boxer Farmer The

The Dogs Jones Windmill
 “General” Level of
Allegory

Wise leader, More idealistic “Spin

philosopher Any dictator doctor”
& better leader
propagandist
Squealer
Old Major Napoleon Snowball

A loyal
follower Any
who’s overthrown Pointless goal
Government
taken ruler to keep citizens
police
advantage focused
of
Boxer The Dogs Farmer Jones The Windmill
 And A Few More…
Relating factors: “can be generalized as” and “is represented
as”

Those who
watched RR Mindless
Russian skeptically, The White
but didn’t
followers of
Revolution fight it Russians Stalin

Those that
would say, “I
Any change liked it the
Mindless
of way it was…” Followers of
Skeptics or Loyalists any leader
government

Taking Over Benjamin Mollie The Sheep

Animal Farm