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The Animal Farm: A Review of the Significance of the Title and Political Figures
No matter how one perceives matters, society will always be based on class, (in)equality, and the dynamics of power and control. In Animal Farm, George Orwell uses the themes of class power, control, and corruption to in an allegory of the Russian Revolution and the crowning of Joseph Stalin. Class struggles, rebellion, and some form of order and equality are represented by the animals’ lives, but the actions of the pig bring back inequality. Ultimately, the revolution brought more oppression and stronger government control, a clear representation of the political system of the time which is mirrored in today’s society.
Animal Farm, previously called the Manor Farm, is used as a symbol for Russia and the previous Soviet Union single-party dictatorship. In the context of the novel, the title is important because it represents not just the Russian society and what it became, but also the human society, whether using communist, capitalist, or socialist ideologies. The title Animal Farm is representative of change, especially the negative outcomes that emerged as a result of the pig’s actions. The farm started off as the Manor Farm, switched to Animal Farm, and later returned to Manor Farm. The title shows the idealistic dreams held by the animals. The farm symbolizes the different functions of a society, and the animals in it are the people. Overall, the title is important because it brings out a society and its ideas.
In Animal Farm, Orwell brings out the story in a political allegory fashion. Each of the characters in the novel are representative of a figure from the Russian Revolution and related events of the time. Therefore, Orwell portrayed political figures differently, similar to what was and still is in the ruling class. Mr. Jones, for example, the original farm owner represented the incompetent and highly ineffective Czar Nicholas. The pigs were used to show the main members of the Bolshevik group. Joseph Stalin was played by Napoleon, Vyacheslav Molotov was Squealer, and Snowball represented Leon Trotsky. All other animals were the ruled and the working classes in Russia. The later were passionate of a revolution supported and sponsored by cunning political elements. The end result was that the new rulers were just as ineffective but undoubtedly more ruthless than the previous regime. The importance of the inclusion of these political figures is that they showed how the Russian Society was structured, including the totalitarianism ideology that the pigs introduced.
In conclusion, the pigs sponsored and manipulated other animals to passionately support a revolution in order to gain more control and rule the farm in their favor, ignoring the seven commands and introducing new ones in their favor. The new political system introduced corruption, classism, power, and total control, all in favor of the ruling political figures. The revolution was meant to introduce new parameters on labor for the benefit of every animal on the farm, yet the revolutionary leaders used the opportunity to introduce new forms of incompetence and corruption. The pigs collude to become just like the humans and introduce negative changes.
