Social Criticism in Animal Farm and A Tale of Two Cities Six Works Cited Many authors receive their inspiration for writing their literature from outside sources. The idea for a story could come from family, personal experiences, history, or even their own creativity. For authors that choose to write a book based on historical events, the inspiration might come from their particular viewpoint on the event that they want to dramatize. George Orwell and Charles Dickens wrote Animal Farm and A Tale of Two Cities, respectively, to express their disillusionment with society and human nature. Animal Farm, written in 1944, is a book that tells the animal fable of a farm in which the farm animals revolt against their human masters. It is an example of social criticism in literature in which Orwell satirized the events in Russia after the Bolshevik Revolution. He anthropomorphises the animals, and alludes each one to a counterpart in Russian history. A Tale of Two Cities also typifies this kind of literature. Besides the central theme of love, another prevalent theme is that of a revolution gone bad. Dickens shows the reader that it is human nature to be vengeful and overly ambitious. Both these books are similar in that both describe how, even with the best of intentions, our ambitions may get the best of us. Both authors also demonstrate that violence and the Machiavellian attitude of "the ends justifying the means" are deplorable. George Orwell wrote Animal Farm, "... to discredit the Soviet system by showing its inhumanity and its back-sliding from ideals [he] valued ..."(Gardner, 106) Orwell noted that " there exists in England almost no literature of disillusionment with the Soviet Union.' Instead, that country is viewed either with ignorant disapproval' or with uncritical admiration.'"(Gardner, 96) The basic synopsis is this: Old Major, an old boar in Manor Farm, tells the other animals of his dream of "animalism": " ... Only get rid of Man, and the produce of our labour would be our own. Almost overnight we would become rich and free.'" (Orwell, 10) The other animals take this utopian idea to heart, and one day actually do revolt and drive the humans out. Two pigs emerge as leaders: Napoleon and Snowball. They constantly argued, but one day, due to a difference over plans to build a windmill, Napoleon exiled Snowball. Almost immediately, Napoleon established a totalitarian government. Soon, the pigs began to get special favours, until finally, they were indistinguishable from humans to the other animals. Immediately the reader can begin to draw parallels between the book's characters and the government in 1917-44 Russia. For example, Old Major, who invented the idea of "animalism," is seen as representing Karl Marx, the creator of communism. Snowball represents Trotsky, a Russian leader after the revolution. He was driven out by Napoleon, who represents Stalin, the most powerful figure in the country. Napoleon then proceeded to remove the freedoms of the animals, and established a dictatorship, under the public veil of "animalism." Pigs represent the ruling class because of their stereotype: dirty animals with insatiable appetites. Boxer, the overworked, incredibly strong, dumb horse represents the common worker in Russia. The two surrounding farms represent two of the countries on the global stage with Russia at the time, Germany and England. Orwell begins his book by criticizing the capitalists and ruling elite, who are represented in Animal Farm by Mr. Jones, the farmer. He is shown as a negligent drunk, who constantly starved his animals. "His character is already established as self-indulgent and uncaring." (King, 8) Orwell shows us how, "if only animals became aware of their strength, we should have no power over them, and that men exploit animals in much the same way as the rich exploit the proletariat."(Gardner, 97) What was established in Russia after the Bolshevik Revolution was not true communism ("animalism"), which Orwell approved of, where the people owned all the factories and land. Rather, "state communism" was established, where a central government owned them. Orwell thought that such a political system, "state communism," was open to exploitation by its leaders. Napoleon, after gaining complete control, did anything he wished - reserved the best for the pigs, and treated the animals cruelly. The animals could not do anything, unless they again realized their strength in numbers against their own kind. Unfortunately, they were too stupid to realize this and accepted the "status quo." It began when the milk and apples were appropriated to the pigs, and continued to when the pigs could drink and sleep on beds, until finally the pigs were the "human masters" to the rest of the animals. Orwell criticized Germany, representing it as Pinchfield Farm, which betrayed Animal Farm by paying for lumber with counterfeit money. In real life, this represents the Soviet-Germany non-aggression pact during World War II which Germany eventually broke. Eventually, towards the end of the story, the term, "absolute power corrupts absolutely," is proven, as the pigs, who retained all the privileges for themselves, have evolved into a different caste from the other animals. Orwell's implication is that "real" communism cannot exist in the countries which claim to be communist. The ruling class - politicians - own everything and ironically are therefore in total control. A Tale of Two Cities is a love story which chronicles the lives of Charles Darnay, a Frenchman who renounced his link with the aristocracy, and Sydney Carton, a wastrel who lived in England. Both these characters fall in love with Lucie Manette, the daughter of Dr. Alexandre Manette, unjustly imprisoned in France for 17 years. Though Lucie marries Darnay, Carton still loves her and in the end, gives his life to save Darnay for her. Dickens, who was fascinated with French history, especially the French Revolution, begins by criticizing the aristocrats' treatment of the poor people of France. In the seventh chapter of book two, the Monsieur the Marquis had accidentally driven his carriage over a young child, killing him. Instead of worrying about the child's welfare, the Monsieur's reaction was to worry about his horses: "One or the other of you is for ever in the way. How do I know what injury you have done to my horses."(Dickens, 111) He deemed their lives inferior and insignificant, as illustrated when he threw a gold coin to the child's devastated father as compensation. The Monsieur the Marquis revealed his true sentiments to his nephew: "Repression is the only lasting philosophy... fear and slavery, my friend, will keep the dogs obedient to the whip..."(Dickens, 123) Dickens makes it abundantly obvious that the aristocrats are to meet doom, with symbolic references to fate and death. For instance, as the Monsieur the Marquis rides through the country, a glowing red sunset appeared over him, signifying his bloody death. In the words of the author, "... the sun and the Marquis going down together..."(Dickens, 114) Madame Defarge's knitting is also a symbol of impending doom, as she records the names of all those who are to die when the revolution takes place. Dickens also expresses his disillusionment with some of the outcomes of the French Revolution. He believed that the people did not just liberate themselves, but also took vengeance towards the aristocracy. This is confirmed in the conversation between the revolutionaries: " Well, well, but one must stop somewhere. After all, the question is still where?' At extermination,' said madame."(Dickens, 341) Madame Defarge embodies this attitude, as she wants to have Charles Darnay killed, not because he has done something wrong, but because he is related to the Evrmonde family, which killed her relative. Though "Dickens seems almost to regard violence as the one way to bring about social change,"(Lucas,288) he then began to denounce the actions taken by some of the revolutionaries. The citizens let their righteous cause turn into vengefulness. Even servants and maids to the aristocrats were beheaded, although they had not really done anything wrong. Animal Farm and A Tale of Two Cities were written to express their authors' disenchantment with the state of evolution of human nature. They seem to be saying, that even when we begin with honourable intentions, there will be some of us who will let their base instincts take control. Orwell, in Animal Farm portrays this nature by parodying events in real history. Given the right conditions, those events could happen anywhere - a leader becoming overly ambitious, to the point of harming his people for morepower. In A Tale of Two Cities, Dickens examines the inner soul, and shares with us how people are driven to the valley of human emotions, where desperation and anger reign, and what could happen afterwards if we let these emotions build up inside. Every human being is capable of becoming a ruthless, opportunistic being like Napoleon or Madame Defarge, if placed in the right place, at the right time. Works Cited Coles Editorial Board. Coles Notes: Animal Farm. Toronto: Coles Publishing Company, 1996. Dickens, Charles. A Tale of Two Cities. London: Orion Publishing Group, 1994. Gardner, Averil. George Orwell. Boston: Twayne Publishers, 1987. Kaplan, Fred. Dickens: A Bibliography. New York: William Morrow & Company, Ltd., 1988. King, Martin. Students' Guide to Animal Farm. Scotland: Tynron Press, 1989. Lucas, John. The Melancholy Man: A Study of Dickens' Novels. London: N.P., N.D. Orwell, George. Animal Farm. London: Penguin Books, 1985. Shelden, Michael. Orwell: The Authorised Biography. London: Mandarin Paperbacks, 1992.
George Orwell's goal in writing the novel Animal Farm was to portray the events surrounding the Russian revolution that took place in 1917. Orwell's tale of Animal Farm is seemingly a story of how a group of farmyard animals plot to overthrow their owner and seize control of the land. The novel seems to be a simple story, however Orwell wrote this book as an allegory, a story that has a clear secondary meaning beneath is literal sense. Everything in Animal Farm is used to represent people and events that took place during the Russian revolution from 1917-1939. Orwell chose to represent Russia's three famous leaders during this time with three pigs. Each three are drastically different and have dissimilar beliefs. Snowball representing Leon Trotsky, Napoleon by Josef Stalin and Old Major by Karl Marx. Orwell wrote this and many other books as warnings. The warning is that people must change their ways, or we are most surely doomed.
Animal Farm by George Orwell is a novel based on the lives of a society of animals living on the Manor Farm. Although the title of the book suggests the book is merely about animals, the story is a much more in depth analysis of the workings of society in Communist Russia. The animals are used as puppets to illustrate how the communist class system operated and how Russian citizens responded to this. And also how propaganda was used by early Russian leaders such as Stalin, and the effort this type of leadership had on the behavior of the people of Russia.
One of Orwell's main reasons for writing Animal Farm was to show how the Russian (or Bolshevik Revolutionaries) Revolution of 1917 had resulted in turning a benevolent ideal of equality into a government of an even more oppressive, totalitarian, and dominating to the people, than the aristocratic one it had recently ousted. Many of the main characters (animals) and synapses of Orwell's parody, run parallel to the event of the Bolshevik Revolution: In Orwell’s novel, The Farm is a representation of Russia and its people, and the most important characters such as Old Major, Snowball, and Napoleon parody the central figures that shaped it into the nation it came to be.
Ebay is an American corporation with an online auction and shopping website that allows people to engage in the business of selling and buying goods. It is headquartered in San Jose California, and is a multi-billion dollar company managed in thirty countries. Many people mistake ebay.com for a free website, but that is false. Ebay makes money by charging an invoice seller fee on the basis of if they have sold or listed any items.
The thought provoking ‘Animal Farm’ by George Orwell is an interesting book that allegories the Russian Revolution. It reincarnates the main politicians of the Russian during that time and shows them as pigs on a farm called ‘Manor Farm’ although the pigs soon change the name to ‘Animal Farm’ when taking it over from the opprobrious Mr Jones. The pigs quickly become corrupted by their power and begin to bend their own rules and great ideas of equality. They used the animals’ basic intelligence against them and the pigs became greedy and selfish much like many other dictators.
George Orwell’s “Animal Farm” is a political allegory based off the Russian Revolution of 1917, where the author explores the cruel dictatorship of Napoleon, and his comrade Snowballs views on Animalism. The value that both Snowball, and Napoleon share is mainly the factor of pig’s superiority, however, there are attributes they both contrast in; Snowballs goal to create egalitarian communism while Napoleon is in favor of gaining power over the animals.
Orwell became social conscious around the same time the Soviet Union began to rise. Witnessing what it was meant to be and what it became Orwell became very critical of the sociopolitical state of the USSR, prompting him to write such novels. His desire to criticize the Soviet Union and Joseph Stalin was conceptualized into Animal Farm. Using gluttonous pigs to portray Stalin’s greed and how disastrous its effects can be. Napoleon is the head pig running the farm that is a symbol for Joseph Stalin. Napoleon’s behavior is consistently self-motivated and constantly detrimental to his constituents as were Stalin’s. Napoleon continues to mirror Stalin’s behavior and its destructiveness; Orwell wanted to accurately portray the state of the Soviet Union and the effects on its people. Orwell also used Animal farm to express his aggressions with Hitler’s war crimes and disgusting acts against humanity. He felt the need to show how lying to constituents and manipulating them appears without any media manipulation. The Russian Revolution was also another factor in this novel, a historical event marking the beginning of the Soviet Union. However, Orwell seemed to have qualms with the violent nature of its initiation, thus showing the animal’s violent takeover. Essentially Orwell used this
The parallels between characters of Animal Farm and important figures of the Russian Revolution make this novel a satire of said revolution. This satire denotes the dangers of Stalinism to a society. Although he claimed he was for the helpful ideas of Leninism, he twisted his own thoughts and changed the ideas of communism itself. The main idea of George Orwell’s Animal Farm may seem to be a creative story, but his true goal was to inform people of a major crisis occurring in Russia at the time by the means of satire.
In Orwell's Animal Farm, the animals revolt against the cruel human leaders and set up a better method of farm management where all animals are equal. As time passes, the new leaders become greedy and corrupt, and the other animals realize conditions are just as miserable as before. There is a major connection between Animal Farm and Russian communism. The pigs are one of the most significant of these connections, representing the communist rulers of Russia, like Joseph Stalin and Leon Trotsky. Their traits, personalities, and actions are similar to the actual men in power. In the novel Animal Farm, the pigs represent the communist leaders of Russia in the early 1900s.
eBay helps people trade practically anything on earth. eBay was founded with the belief that people are basically good. They believe that each of their customers, whether a buyer or a seller, is an individual who deserves to be treated with respect. eBay will continue to enhance the online trading experiences of all - collectors, hobbyists, dealers, small business, unique item seekers, bargain hunters, opportunistic sellers, and browsers. The growth of the eBay community comes from meeting and exceeding the expectations their customers.
Animal Farm is an excellent allegory of the period in Russian history between 1917 and 1944. George Orwell symbolizes the characters, places, objects, and events of the Russian revolution superbly. His symbols not only parallel those of the Russian revolution, but any revolution throughout history. The fable Animal Farm relates not only to the Russian Revolution, but also to any revolution where an absolute dictator emerges.
This story Animal Farm by George Orwell is a novel about an animal revolution over an oppressive farmer. The irony in the story comes when the pigs turn into the very thing revolted against. They exhibit the same cruelty by treating the other animals the same or even worse than previous owners. This cycle of cruelty is shown in the Russian revolution by Joseph Stalin who is represented by Napoleon in the story. Cruelty in animal farm is shown by the human’s treatment of the animals, and the animal’s eventual treatment of each other and the ironic characteristics of the two.
The e-commerce industry has become a major player in the global retail environment. E-Bay's large operating history has allowed the company to build a social capital of internet buyers and sellers that has now become its competitive advantage. However, intense competition in e-commerce has lead major players to lead expansion efforts in foreign markets where growing economies exist and the number of internet users is abundant. As a facilitator of online buyer-seller transactions, the only obstacle the company needs to overcome is quickly introducing its presence in new foreign markets where growth opportunities have been identified.
Animal Farm, a novella by George Orwell, tells the tale of the downtrodden animals of Manor Farm, who after much oppression from their master, take over the farm for themselves. In the beginning it seems like the start of a life of freedom and plenty, but a ruthless and cunning elite emerges and begins to take control of the farm. The animals find themselves ensnared once again as one form of tyranny gradually replaces the other. The novella is a critique of revolutionary Russia and idealism betrayed by power and corruption. Orwell uses allegory between Animal Farm and the Soviet Union to highlight the corruption of socialist ideals in the Soviet Union, the power of language and propaganda, and the dangers of a naive working class.
This report will attempt to critically analyse and assess the internal and external factors which effected the strategic decisions made by eBay. These strategic decisions consisted of the acquisitions with Skype and PayPal coupled together with an analysis on why eBay failed may have failed in expanding their online presence in eastern parts on the globe such as China.