The Bolshevik Revolution In George Orwell's Animal Farm

In the early 1900’s, Russia was a country ripe for a revolution; with a dwindling tsar autocracy deteriorating due to poor leadership, overworked and poverty- stricken citizens, World War I in motion, and numerous attempts at economic, social or political reforms, the people of Russia had had enough and decided that 1917 was the proper year to create the Bolshevik (Russian) Revolution (Rosenberg).

In the years leading up to the establishment of the Bolshevik Revolution, the country of Russia had undergone multiple wars (Rosenberg). “These wars included: The Crimean War (1854-56), The Russo-Turkish War (1877-78), and The Russo-Japanese War (1904-1905)” (Fernholz). (Russia was defeated in all the wars listed above except for the battle against Turkey.) Battling in these wars required a lot from the government of Russia; the

Movies, poems, and books were/are made about the revolution. One book that particularly stands out is Animal Farm, which was written by George Orwell. The book Animal Farm is an allegory in which the animals in the book represent the different people that were very impactful during the revolution. Also, events in the book correlate with actual events that occurred during the revolution. For example, in chapter two George Orwell gives the reader a glimpse of how the animals are being poorly treated and overworked by their owner and farmer Mr. Jones. The animals, in chapter two, represent Russian industrial workers and citizens as a whole, which then leads to the deduction that Mr. Jones must represent Tsar Nicholas II. As the story develops, the animals go into their different categories and representations, categories being the different social classes and the representations being the different people. Also, during the progression of the book the animals go through the revolution and experience the relapse when Stalin, portrayed by Napoleon in the story, takes over and becomes a