Pig Napoleon example essay topic

295 words
The novel is a satire in fable form of Revolutionary and Post revolutionary Russia and in a way, of all revolutions. Mr. Jones' animals of Manor Farm revolt against their human masters because they mistreated them. The pigs on the farm became the new leaders and eventually we see they become as corrupt as the humans had been. The animals idealism is fueled at first by Old Major who convinces them to revolt, and gives them an anthem and 7 commandments. After his death, Snowball, a pig (who represents the Russian idealist named Trotsky) becomes the force behind positive change and he has the vision for a better future. Eventually Snowball is driven away and discredited by the pig Napoleon (who represents Stalin).

Napoleon is ruthless and cynical and his leadership is as corrupt as the humans. In the novel, we see all the rules being bent, the truth replaced with lies, the animals starved, slaughtered and worked to death while they cling to the false hope that things will change. By the end of the book, hope is gone and they realize the awful truth that they exist only to improve the lives of people at the top and that "some animals are more equal than others'. The book was written in 1945, just after WW II and the pessimism and despair is easy to understand given the circumstances. The movie was produced in 1999, some 50 years since WW II and; after the Cold War and the fall of communist Russia.

The technology that the animals hoped would improve their lives had become reality by 1999 and its possible that new tools and new leaders might improve the lives of the masses.