Allegory in Animal Farm, by George Orwell

George Orwell wrote the novel Animal Farm. Orwell uses the genre of

allegory to illustrate his satirical views of the Russian Revolution. As

Britain and Russia were allies during the War, Orwell was forbidden to

straightforwardly express his opinion.

During the Second World War, George Orwell wrote the novel “Animal

Farm”. Orwell uses the genre of allegory to illustrate his satirical

views of the Russian Revolution. As Britain and Russia were allies

during the War, Orwell was forbidden to straightforwardly express his

opinion of Stalin and the Russian Regime so he uses animals as their

representatives, instead.

“Animal Farm” opens with the description of Jones’s neglectful

attitude towards the farm and its inhabitants: “he was too drunk to

remember to shut the pop-holes”. Jones can immediately be seen as a

representative of Tsar Nicholas the second whose selfishness and lack

of consideration towards the needs of his people led to Lenin’s

Revolution.

When Old Major summons the other farm animals to the barn, he gives

them hope of a happier, more worthwhile future. His ideology is:

“remove man from the scene and the root cause of hunger and overwork

is abolished forever”. He then tells them they must abide by “Seven

commandments” and must refer to one another as “comrade”. The pigs

later title this system “Animalism”. Old Major’s behaviour is symbolic

of Lenin’s. When the Russian civilians stopped supporting Tsar

Nicholas the second, they turned to Lenin who provided them with hope.

Before Lenin died he established the USSR just as old Major

established “Animalism” before his death.

Orwell shows us just how callous Jones is when he doesn’t feed the

animals. The animals later break down the door ...

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...urveying the pigs and men through a window of the

house: “it was impossible to say which was which”. This shows us that

the pigs do not only copy Jones by the way they act but have also

adopted his appearance as well. Their power has transformed them from

liberators to dictators.

George Orwell successfully shows us in “Animal Farm” that power is a

very difficult thing to control. For ten years, Britain was forced to

endure the Conservatives but then Tony Blair became Prime Minister. He

was elected in to this position by promising beneficial things to the

whole of Britain. However, when he realised the extent of his power he

didn’t do half the things he promised he would. It is on very seldom

occasions that leaders do not create a dystopian environment. Even the

recent expulsion of Saddam Hussein cannot guarantee that Iraq will

ever enjoy true democracy.