Hello there!
I try to keep up with my writing but, you know, it's summer and I'm on holidays and it's getting tougher and tougher this summer. Another holiday goal is to keep reading! This summer I revisited one of the classics, no other than Animal Farm by George Orwell.
Can you imagine a farm where animals, fed up with being enslaved and maltreated, rebel against their masters, become independent and start managing the farm by themselves? This is the riveting plot of this outstanding masterpiece. An old boar called Old Major realizes that human beings are cruel to animals. He accuses them of taking advantage of animals and, most importantly, of consuming without producing anything, misfeeding the hard-working animals. He urges animals to rebel or to work towards a rebellion and teaches the animals the song "Beasts of England", which they take as their anthem. After his death, the animals in Manor Farm rebel themselves against their cruel master and expel him off the farm and become independent, naming the farm: Animal Farm. From that day on, they write the seven commandments to lead their lives at the farm, the most striking one being: all animals are equal. Pigs, for some reason the cleverest animals on the farm, become the leaders and start managing the farm. Little by little the become greedier and greedier and start abolishing animal rights and making them work harder. They even slightly modify the commandments to their convenience, lying to the animal population. In the end, the situation is reversed given that pigs have gone back to the old human traditions, walking on two feet and carrying whips, maltreating the animals as the old master used to and making alliances with humans.
Even though this novel was written in 1945, it tackles current problems of today's society:
1. Animal rights
The story does not only deal with human violence, but also with human unnecessary cruelty. Humans do not only take advantage of animals, but they also maltreat them for no reason. As Old Major states, humans are the only animals that consume without producing anything. They benefit from the animals' work without giving practically nothing in return (except some rations of food). Horses pull carriages, cows are milked to the exhaustion; hens are constantly fed to ensure abundant egg-laying and pigs are overfed and then taken to the knacker. “Man is the only creature that consumes without producing. He does not give milk, he does not lay eggs, he is too weak to pull the plough, he cannot run fast enough to catch rabbits. Yet he is lord of all the animals. He sets them to work, he gives back to them the bare minimum that will prevent them from starving, and the rest he keeps for himself.”
What is more, men show unnecessary violence towards animals, for example, they whip them to increase productivity, they kill hounds when they are too old or they take animals to the knacker instead of giving them a proper burial. This book makes you reflect on the use of some current customs involving raging violence against animals, for example, bull-fighting, hunting, fishing, or horse-riding. In addition, it prompts you to wonder whether animals should be sent to the slaughterhouse or should have a more dignified life and death. Animals are used and when they don't have a purpose, we toss them like rubbish...
2. Abuse of power - Critique against governors and politicians
This is one of the main topics the book describes, - how power can be addictive and how exercising your power over others can spin out of control. After Old Major dies, Napoleon, the pig (political satire) takes over. Little by little he becomes a dictator himself. He reduces the portions of food for the rest of animals, except for pigs and dogs; he changes the law to his convenience; he abolishes general principles of Animalism; he modifies the commandments the animals make when they start the revolution and he takes advantage of the ignorance and lack o memory and wisdom of the other animals. He plots, he kills and he never works or fights. He is supported by the rest of pigs and dogs.
In my own interpretation, Napoleon is the political leader in charge. To make sure he (and the other pigs) have a good standard of living, he tricks the rest of animals into working harder and harder. He states that with humans in charge everything was worse and gradually he undermines the strong-will of some remaining animals and tricks them to fight each other. He makes new laws and changes things so gradually that no one notices and, in the end, the animal situation is much worse than it was at the beginning with humans.
Does it sound familiar? People in charge making the citizens fight each other so that they forget the real problems, while all politicians become richer and richer...Political strategy plays an important role in the plot of the story and Napoleon takes advantage of it quite well, inventing a scapegoat and spreading the hoax that he was a traitor to the cause.
Here you have a pretty good example of manipulation and brain-washing (much like current politicians do with citizens): “Comrades!' he cried. 'You do not imagine, I hope, that we pigs are doing this in a spirit of selfishness and privilege? Many of us actually dislike milk and apples. I dislike them myself. Our sole object in taking these things is to preserve our health. Milk and apples (this has been proved by Science, comrades) contain substances absolutely necessary to the well-being of a pig. We pigs are brainworkers. The whole management and organisation of this farm depend on us. Day and night we are watching over your welfare. It is for your sake that we drink the milk and eat those apples.”
3. Working conditions
The story clearly illustrates the petty working conditions of our current society. In the book, animals must work harder to keep the farm going. They are encouraged to work to help the community and this attitude is represented by the character of Boxer, a hard-working horse whose motto is "I will work harder". He struggles to have the windmill built soon working long hours only to die of exhaustion and end up slaughtered by the knacker. As expected, the idyllic working conditions promised by Napoleon worsen. “This work was strictly voluntary, but any animal who absented himself from it would have his rations reduced by half.”
Animals then decide to work even harder to build a windmill given that it would mean working less and retiring earlier. However, it all becomes a lie. Animals, under Napoleon instructions keep working and working (except for the pigs who are "writing memoranda"), and they only receive poor portions of food. Once the windmill is finally built, it is not used to reduce working hours, but to raise production and productivity. Animals end up more enslaved than before and none of them retires.
This clearly illustrates one of the problems of today's society. We keep working and working to make ends meet and our health sores. The plot also made me think about the our yougsters' working conditions. Much like the animals in the book, they are made to work for long hours, for little salary and they should do so happily.
4. Passivity
One of today's more worrying problems. When an injustice is committed, we decide to turn a blind eye on it. Today, there are not many demonstrations against injustices and we barely fight for our rights. This is exactly what happens in the book. When Napoleon starts exercising tyranny, animals turn a blind eye to it and look for a justification of the injustice instead of fighting back.
Today's controversial political decisions are hardly ever contested or even questioned. We prefer to be egotistic and think of our own personal benefit instead of the benefit of the community. Remaining silent is probably the greatest evil in our society. Our passivity gives wing to more and more tyranny. If we stay still, it will happen as happened in the novel. The situation will get worse and worse until we can't do anything to prevent any injustice at all.
5. Control of the media
The book analyzes the control that the media exert upon us. The media can brain-wash us and make us think what they want us to think. This is exemplified by the sheep. Every time, Napoleon makes a controversial decision and someone is wiling to contest it, the sheep repeat the words: "four legs good, two legs bad" to remind the population at the farm that the humans are the true enemy and to prevent them from thinking about Napoleon's decision. The sheep are like the hoaxes spread to cover another event (for example, these days when people thought about the situation in Catalonia, they didn't think about corruption in the government). In time, the sheep will change their motto to please their leader by saying "four legs good, two legs better" when pigs start walking on their two legs.
The press is also criticized. The press in the book is represented by the seven commandments that summarize the doctrine of Animalism. However, when animals question these commandments, they have been slightly changed to benefit the people in charge, aka the pigs. Here you have the seven commandments at the beginning and after some small changes:
Commandments at the beginning
1) Whatever goes upon two legs is an enemy.
2) Whatever goes upon four legs, or has wings, is a friend.
3) No animal shall wear clothes.
4) No animal shall sleep in a bed.
5) No animal shall drink alcohol.
6) No animal shall kill any other animal.
7) All animals are equal.
Commandments after some time on the farm
1) Four legs good, two legs better (said by the sheep)
2) This commandment is not modified but the pigs state that animals with wings are considered inferior
3) This commandment is not modified but the pigs end up wearing clothes
4) No animal shall sleep in a bed with sheets.
5) No animal shall drink alcohol in excess.
6) No animal shall kill any other animal without cause.
7) All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others.
This states that blindly believing what the media state is a mistake and that we should not trust everything we read. The media can be used as a powerful weapon to ignite rebellion but also to deceive other people into believing what someone wants.
6. Unequal social classes
One of the book's commandments and mantras is the one stating that "all animals are equal." This is also what our Constitution says. However, this is far from the truth.
In the book, society is divided into:
- High classes: represented by the pigs and dogs. They have privileges. The have bigger food portions including more apple and milk, fewer working hours and all the animals must show respect towards them. They are the ones making decisions, with money and property. They can sleep in a bed or wear clothes and the leader Napoleon has statues and effigies showing his bravery and leadership.
- Working classes: Practically represented by all the animals in the book but especially by the horses. They just work and work and their work only reinforces the high classes dominion. They must build a school for the pigs, they must eat very little and they can't complain about their situation. They are the ones really sustaining the farm, but they are not really rewarded for their job. They work until they die of exhaustion.
- Lower classes (the illiterate): This includes the rats, the birds and the hens (among others). They are not well regarded because they are illiterate (they can't read or write). They are very easy to manipulate and, much like the rest, they receive very little portions of food.
Our society is practically the same: high classes are the people ruling over us, with power. The middle classes are the working classes, they can get by but they work really heard to get it and the lower classes are people without resources, disregarded by the rest. The book perfectly illustrates the hierarchy in today's society.
7. Religion
The book subtly attack religion and extreme behaviour. All animals on Animal Farm follow the precepts of Animalism, a religion that states that “all men are enemies. All animals are comrades.” This overgeneralization makes the animal hate all human beings without exception. The author wants to show us that religions are usually filled with extremism that makes us hate. No religion should be based on extreme behaviour.
On top of this, religion makes it easier to brain-wash people: all animals on the farm buy the lies that their leader tells them without questioning them and those who question them are killed. This makes me think of today's cults: a leader is capable of erasing the thoughts and ideals of the different individuals and undermine their Resistance.
Wow! In less than 100 pages, Animal Farm has made me realize some of the problems of today's society. This is why I consider reading it is a must.
P.S. If you're interested in more book reviews, why don't you revisit my entries on Christmas short stories; my review on William Golding's The Lord of the Flies, my analysis of Defoe's Robinson Crusoe, my post on Dickens's Oliver Twist, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain, my entry about Hemingway's The Old Man and the Sea; Dumas's The Count of Monte Cristo; The Time Machine by H.G. Wells; the Invisible Man by H.G. Wells; George Orwell's Animal Farm.
