Animal Farm, by Geopge Orwell

1266 Words3 Pages

“The pen is mightier than the sword”, a popular saying, and one that is unequivocally true. Although physical force and power can manipulate someone into acting a certain way, it is not as effective as intelligence. Intelligent people can use the force of their words to extents that physical strength does not extend. Furthermore, intelligent people can use things like propaganda, lies, and deceit to get whatever they want. This is clearly proven by the actions of the pigs in the Animal Farm. Because of their high levels of intelligence compared to the other animals of the farm, the pigs are able to manipulate everyone else to achieve their own personal means through the use of propaganda, lies, and deceit. Propaganda can be seen clearly in the role of the pig Squealer, although it is prevalent throughout the story. In this case, propaganda is used by the pigs to tell the other animals exactly what they want to hear, and to cover up any sort of mistakes on the parts of the pigs. Lies are used to further the personal agendas of the pigs, as well as damage the name of Snowball in the eyes of the animals. Propaganda is used as a defensive measure on the part of the pigs, whereas lies are used as an offensive maneuver by the pigs to strengthen their positions. Deceit is used by the pigs to placate the animals, a maneuver that can be seen as neither offensive nor defensive. Deceit is most prevalent in the maxim of “All animals are equal, but some are more equal than others”

Propaganda has long been used as a tool to defend institutions and organizations. It was used during World War One and World War Two to placate the masses and to protect the governments at the time. Simply put, propaganda is a tool used by the intelligent to ma...

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...onclusion, propaganda, lies, and deceit are all used by the intelligent in a society to achieve whatever they want, this is showcased by the actions of the pigs in Animal Farm.

Works Cited

Below are websites and videos I used to confirm and gather some of my information. I have read the book before and studied the Russian Revolution in history classes so a lot of it is based off of prior experience with the subject.

Orwell, George. Animal Farm;. New York: Harcourt, Brace, 1954. Print.

Istencsaszarhu. "Animal Farm Trailer." YouTube. YouTube, 08 Mar. 2007. Web. 25 Apr. 2015. .

"Animal Farm Chapter 7 Clip." Youtube. YouTube. 10 Jan. 2011. Web. 25 Apr. 2015.

Animal Farm The Book. Web. 25 Apr. 2015. .

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