Molina, Zephaniah English 9H, II October 19, 2012

Animal Farm Essay

The expectations and goals set forth to become an ideal society prove to be misleading and tyrannical. In the satiric novel, Animal Farm by George Orwell, the ambition to become independent and liberated escalates into something unimaginably worse. The predictable downfall of the totalitarian governed society was displayed in four major aspects of the story. First, the objectives the community wished to accomplish were too far out of hand for them to handle. Second, there was always an elite group, thus resulting in no balance in power. Next, with the citizens lacking necessary education to comprehend any of the given laws, those who are labeled as more educated use this to their advantage. Last, the never-ending desire for greed consumes one entirely and questions their humanity. Nothing more than the actions displayed by both leaders and citizens contributed to the inevitable demise of this dictatorial regime. The general publics inclination of a perfect nation was too unfathomable to even initiate. Intentions to become the dominant race circulated around the community, filling their inexperienced minds with corruption. One of the first goals the animals tried to accomplish was to completely annihilate any enemies so that they would be the only inhabitants remaining on the face of the earth. Next, was to give a standard education that consisted of basic reading and writing to those who were illiterate. Lastly, they wanted to establish a monumental object that could signify their hard work, determination, and modify their ways of living. These examples showed considerable attempts to broaden the communitys capabilities and intelligence. At several points, the animals managed to reach a pinnacle in establishing their ideal society. However, what naturally came with success was usually failure. All they did to transform their previous ways of life eventually retaliated back at them in a crucial and negative way. And for a little while they halted in sorrowful silence at the place where the windmill had once stood. Yes, it was gone; almost the last trace of their labor was gone! (109:1) Glittering generality is an appropriate method to represent that the ideals were too difficult to put into action. This is where the person is given pleasant sounding thoughts to be persuaded into doing something. In this case, the animals were always implanted with the idea that everything that was decided by the most intelligent group would benefit them in the utmost way. When they were convinced that rebellion against the humans would ensure them liberty, wealth, and a newfound sanctuary to reside in, they followed. When they were convinced to build a windmill, no matter how much toil and trouble they would endure, they were blindly motivated by the possible outcomes it would provide. In essence, no matter how many times the animals came up with a revolutionary proposition, there was always someone or something to grasp their accomplishments. The deficiency of a fair legal system to standardize the amount of power each individual could acquire was a major factor in the destruction of the community. First of all, this allowed a totalitarian government to develop, causing the so-called Comrades to sabotage each other. For this reason, the animals went as far as killing each other even if it was the fault of another.

Second, quarrels between neighboring farms began to erupt. Third, fear was forced upon citizens who would not obey the rules to get them to cooperate more easily. These three reasons displayed the complete misuse of absolute power and its inevitable effects towards the general public. Knowing that fellow comrades have turned against each other during their darkest hours, show that there are clearly no positive outcomes in a tyranny. Without a legal set of laws to stabilize a government, the citizens will use every ounce of their freedom to do anything they please, thus resulting in chaos. When they had finished their confession, the dogs promptly tore their throats out, and in a terrible voice Napoleon demanded whether any other animal had anything to confess. (92:2) Name-calling is the proper propaganda technique (plays around with the fears, hatred and prejudice of the listener) that will relate to the absence of a checks and balances system. Napoleon, being the leader of the farm, uses terror to govern his people. To get the animals to work harder, he reminds them if theyd like to go back to Jones time. There is a point where Napoleon orders his band of highly trained dogs to kill the animals that have been collaborating with Snowball. Referring to the fact that Snowball was proclaimed a traitor for supposedly destroying the finished windmill and scheming with Mr.Jones ever since the beginning. All in all, an overwhelming amount of freedom will necessarily lead a once stabilized society to its doom. A wise ruler will surely deceive his subjects to obtain the upper hand. The gullibility of the animals was largely due to the fact that most of them lacked the common knowledge to comprehend whether something was right or wrong. To start off with, the animals immediately believed that once they got rid of Mr.Jones, that all of them would prosper. Next, they all thought that if any dilemma arose within the community, that it was Snowballs fault. Sooner or later, they were all convinced that anything Napoleon said mustve been right. This includes the alteration of the initial Seven Commandments. These three factors exhibited the obvious imprudence of the animals under Napoleons rule. He took this opportunity to poison their minds and twist their beliefs both socially and politically, as any dictator would do. To bend every truth so that Napoleon would benefit in some way, was how he was able to skillfully dominate those living on the farm. Whenever anything went wrong it became usual to attribute it to Snowball. (87:2) The applicable propaganda technique that can be used is bandwagon; attempts to make the consumer follow the crowd. Since Napoleon was able to gain the trust of the animals, it made it easier for him to deceive all of them. Once Snowball left, Boxer got everyone to believe that Napoleon was always right. With this in mind, even if Napoleon changed the commandments in the most prejudiced way, the general public still conformed to anything he declared. The animals depended on and trusted those who were more intelligent. Given these reasons, being fooled without difficulty and not knowing the truth will certainly allow anyone to use this to their advantage. Greed will always end up corrupting those who desperately yearn for it. The pigs did not take into consideration that by being so self-indulgent, they began to truly lose who they were and who they shouldve been. First, the pigs managed to get the most out of the community and do the least amount of labor. Second, for Napoleon to gain control of the farm, he raised a band of highly trained dogs to drive Snowball away. Lastly, the pigs were the only animals that managed to break the commandments just to fit their needs. These three points proved that the pigs were entirely consumed by their desires to reach superiority. Absolute power has the ability to deprave even those with the purest of intentions.

Once a person gets ahold of it, they wont be able to let it go without a fight. Provided that, soon the pigs became accustomed to being motivated by greed. All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others. (133:3) The big lie can be a relevant technique to the pigs greed. This attempts to convince by a very large untruth. That if the statement is big enough, it must be true. When the animals noticed that the pigs have been taking all of the milk and apples, they questioned why they would need it more than the others. Squealer then says that the milk and apples are required for the pigs to stay healthy and to help manage the farm. If the pigs failed to keep their brains working, then Mr.Jones might return. So with this said, all the animals agreed to keep providing the food necessary for the pigs to function properly. Once the pigs began moving into the farmhouse, the animals recall the decision they made long ago to never use it under any circumstances. Of course, Squealer led them to believe that they were only imagining such things. To sum up, greed will change a person completely and motivate them to stop at nothing until they get what they want. One of the significant real world lessons George Orwells bestseller has to offer is corruption power. The correct way of governing a society is to create a basic foundation of equality, to never falsify what the citizens should rightfully know, and using that new found power in ways it could benefit all. What this novel subliminally shows is that authority and happiness are often mistaken for each other. Another point learned from the book was totalitarianism, where the state had absolute control over each individuals life and molded it to fit the expectations of government. Last, fear successfully awakens paranoia amongst the populace. To remind someone of a time of panic and anxiety will always motivate them to do anything to avoid ever going back to that position again. Though the novel by George Orwell may seem like an enjoyable book about the life of talking creatures without the presence of a human around, there is a greater story behind it all. It references the Russian Revolution of 1917, where Napoleon represents Joseph Stalin (the tyrannical leader of the totalitarian Soviet government), Snowball is Leon Trotsky (chief rival of Stalin), and Mr.Jones is the Russian Czar (last tsar of Russia). Once Lenin passed away (Old Major), Stalin and Trotsky went against each for complete control of the Soviet people. As shown in the book, this was where Napoleon drove Snowball away and began to dictate all of their comrades. During 1936 and 1938, Stalin and his secret police (the trained dogs) murdered those who were declared traitors, no matter their merit. Afterwards, he went from siding with Britain and France, to the Germans (referring to when those disloyal hogs began having secret meetings with the owners of neighboring estates). The Russians were formerly major Western allies during World War II, but turned into adversaries quickly after. This produced the Cold War between Russia and the United States. Even after the death of George Orwell, his tale still managed to be a gigantic success across the globe. Relating to Lord Actions quote Power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely, it is a definite reference a future leader should acknowledge. Creating the ideal society cannot and will not be assured, but governing with guaranteed equality can be. Power should be limited and divided in the form of a stable system of checks and balances. Citizens should be able to have individual freedom and rights as long as they obey the laws set forth upon them. Those who have committed crimes should surely be penalized, but only given a punishment that coincides with the magnitude of the problem. As long as there are laws for the people to follow, tyranny or totalitarianism shall be no worry. [word count: 1885]