Animal Farm di George Orwell, Sintesi del corso di Inglese

Scarica Animal Farm di George Orwell e più Sintesi del corso in PDF di Inglese solo su Docsity! Animal Farm - Plot summary Animal Farm is a novel about a group of animals who take control of the farm they live on. The animals get fed up of their master, Farmer Jones, so they kick him out. Once they are free of the tyrant Jones, life on the farm is good for a while and there is hope for a happier future of less work, better education and more food. However, trouble brews as the pigs, Napoleon and Snowball, fight for the hearts and minds of the other animals on the farm. Napoleon seizes power by force and ends up exploiting the animals just as Farmer Jones had done. The novel ends with the pigs behaving and even dressing like the humans the animals tried to get rid of in the first place. Social and historical context Animal Farm was written by George Orwell and published in 1945. This novel is an allegory - even though it is set on a farm and stars a cast of farm animals, it reflects the events of the Russian revolution of 1917. The animals are all clever representations of Russian politicians, voters and workers. Orwell used the novel to make his opinions on Russian leaders heard. 1. Old Major, the prize boar, calls a secret meeting of all the farm animals on Manor Farm. He states that a rebellion against their human master, Mr Jones, will one day come. 2. A cow starts the rebellion by walking into the store-shed. The animals end up chasing Mr Jones off the farm. 3. Now they are free, the animals all agree on the Seven Commandments that they will live by. The farm is renamed 'Animal Farm'. There is hope for a better future. 4. The pigs start to order the other animals around and take more food than they should. 5. The animals bravely fight off a human attempt to retake the farm, this becomes known as 'The Battle of the Cowshed'. 6. The animals set to work building a windmill and Napoleon takes charge. 7. Napoleon reduces the rations and rights of the animals and starts breaking the commandments. There is another invasion by the men and the windmill is blown up. Boxer collapses whilst rebuilding it for the second time. 8. Napoleon and the other pigs learn to walk on their hind legs, wear human clothes and carry whips. Despite all their hard work, the animals of the farm are right back to where they began, hungry, scared and exploited by those in charge. Detailed plot summary - Part 1 Old Major inspires the animals to rebel Old Major delivers a speech to all the farm animals. He points out that their lives are difficult, full of hardship and that they live in slavery because of the way Farmer Jones treats them. According to Old Major 'All men are enemies. All animals are equal' and one day there will be a rebellion. He then teaches the animals a song called 'Beasts of England'. The song is about animals overthrowing man and being free. Animalism is established Old Major dies three nights later and three pigs, Snowball, Napoleon and Squealer take Old Major's teaching and turn it into a way of thinking called 'Animalism'. The animals rebel The rebellion comes when Mr Jones forgets to feed the animals and a fed-up cow pushes her way into the store-shed to look for food. The rest of the animals go in to help themselves and Mr Jones and his men try to get the animals back in line but the animals chase them off the farm - it belongs to them now. The animals rejoice in their victory. They change the name of the farm to 'Animal Farm' and decide on seven commandments to live by that focus on animal equality and avoiding behaving like Jones. Life is good after the rebellion The animals are happy, they work well together and more efficiently than Mr Jones ever did. Boxer the horse always makes a huge effort, his motto is 'I will work harder!'. The pigs begin to teach the others to read and write. It is hinted though that Napoleon steals some milk for himself after the first day's harvest. Detailed plot summary - Part 2 The pigs learning to count, from the 1954 film Two pigs, Snowball and Napoleon, often argue during the meetings. Snowball sets up 'committees' focused on education, reading and writing. He reduces 'Animalism' to one idea for the simpler animals - 'four legs good, two legs bad' - and the sheep regularly chant it. Napoleon however, thinks educating the old animals is a waste of time, he focuses on the youngsters; in particular a litter of nine puppies that he takes away from their mother to educate them himself. The pigs begin to take more food At this stage, the pigs start taking any extra apples and milk for themselves, some animals complain but Squealer persuades them that if the pigs don't get the extra food they need, Jones might return. This is enough to make the other animals agree with him. The inequality between the pigs and the others begins here. Mr Jones tries to take back the farm Jones and his men try to retake the farm but the animals fight against the invasion. The fight becomes known as 'The Battle of the Cowshed'. Awards are given for bravery to Snowball and Boxer. The animals vote on the windmill Snowball suggests building a windmill. Napoleon thinks they should spend their time building up food stores instead. As the animals are about to vote on the matter, Napoleon calls his dogs into the barn. They are now fully grown and they chase Snowball away. Detailed plot summary - Part 3 Napoleon and the pigs break the commandments Supplies and food run short and the pigs start trading with the humans. They move into the farmhouse, sleep in beds and get up an hour later than the other animals. An incident occurs with some hens who protest against unfair treatment and refuse to hand their eggs over. Napoleon stops their food and nine of them die as a result. After this, Napoleon holds show trials, where any animal that had spoken against him has to publicly confess their 'crimes' and is then killed. The men invade and blow up the windmill The animals finish the windmill for the second time, but with longer working hours and less food. During another attempted invasion by the men the windmill is blown up. The pigs then break another commandment by drinking alcohol to celebrate the victory of the invasion. The farm is proclaimed a republic and a president is 'elected' - but there was only one candidate to vote for, Napoleon. Boxer collapses and is sold to the horse slaughterer Boxer falls whilst re-building the windmill. The pigs claim they will look after him but sell him to a horse slaughterer. Squealer lies to the other animals, telling them that Napoleon ensured that Boxer got the best treatment possible. The pigs use the money from the sale of Boxer to buy whisky. The pigs become just as bad as Mr Jones Time moves on and the pigs grow fatter whilst the other animals work harder and are given less food. They now can't remember if they were better or worse off under the rule of Mr Jones. The pigs learn to walk on two legs and have adopted all of Mr Jones' bad habits that Old Major told them to avoid in his speech. They invite the humans they once fought against to the farm. Napoleon declares that the farm will be called 'Manor Farm' again, the animals watching the meeting cannot tell the difference between the humans and the pigs. • The sheep - they interrupt debate on the farm with chants of "four legs good, two legs bad". They play a crucial role in Napoleon's rise to power. • Mr Pilkington - an 'easy going' gentleman farmer who spends most of his time hunting. • Mr Frederick - a tough farmer who fights to get what he wants. • Mr Whymper - a lawyer that the pigs hire. Old Major Old Major is Mr Jones' prize boar. He gathers all the animals together in the big barn to make a speech. He tells the animals that mankind and Mr Jones are the 'enemy', it is their fault that the animals' lives are miserable. He points out how cruel the men are to the animals - consuming without producing. He says that one day a rebellion will come - the animals will overthrow mankind and live in harmony. Old Major is very intelligent, well-respected, an excellent speaker and an inspiration to the animals. He ends his speech by teaching the animals a song called Beasts of England. It is about a time when animals are free and humans are overthrown. He dies shortly after giving his speech and the other pigs take what they learnt from him and create 'Animalism', a set of rules for animals to live by. Social and historical context Old Major is partly based on Karl Marx and Vladimir Lenin. Karl Marx was a German philosopher who lived during the 19th-century. His ideas formed the basis of communism - his ideas are collectively known as 'Marxism', like 'Animalism' in the novel. He developed theories on how power structures in society keep people under control. Vladimir Lenin was a Russian revolutionary who established a form of Marxism in Russia in the early 20th-century. Napoleon Napoleon is a threatening and 'fierce looking' Berkshire boar. He is one of the three pigs that take Old Major's ideas and turn them into 'Animalism' - a system of thought that encourages the animals to rebel. He is not a gifted speaker but is known for getting his own way. He also manages to get the support of the sheep, he encourages them to chant 'four legs good, two legs bad' during debates, preventing others making their points. He takes two litters of puppies from their mothers and brings them up himself. Once they have grown up he uses them to take control of the farm. After he has done this, he and the other pigs start to break the Seven Commandments that the animals agreed to live by. He eventually becomes as much of a tyrant as Mr Jones ever was and exploits the other animals. Social and historical context Napoleon is based on the Soviet dictator, Joseph Stalin. Stalin was involved in the Russian Revolution of 1917 and came to rule Soviet Russia after the death of Vladimir Lenin in 1924.He ruled until his death in 1953. During his time in power, the country was gripped by famine and fear, millions of people starved to death and those who opposed him were imprisoned or killed. The name also evokes the French military leader, Napoleon Bonaparte (1776-1821), who seized power after the French Revolution, crowned himself Emperor and ruled France until 1815. Snowball Snowball is one of the key pigs who take the teachings of Old Major and turn them into a way of thinking called 'Animalism'. He is an intelligent and animated pig. He comes up with new ideas and cares about the working animals. His plans and ideas revolve around providing education and better conditions on the farm. He is also a brave fighter, organising the animals during 'The Battle of the Cowshed'. Napoleon does not like Snowball's ideas and so has him chased off the farm by his guard dogs. We do not see Snowball after this incident. He is used by Napoleon as a scapegoat - anything that goes wrong on the farm is blamed on him. Napoleon also convinces the animals that Snowball was never brave during the battle and was actually on Mr Jones' side. Social and historical context Snowball represents Leon Trotsky. Trotsky was a political theorist, revolutionary and a leader of the Red Army. After the Revolution he was involved in Russian foreign affairs and policy making. He opposed Stalin's decisions and eventually was forced into exile from the Soviet Union in 1929. He resided in Mexico. He was assassinated by a Soviet agent in 1940. Most of the family members he left in the Soviet Union were arrested and killed. Boxer Boxer, a horse, is a tragic hero. He is a hard worker, strong, loyal and caring. He also fights bravely against the humans. Unfortunately, he is too loyal, the pigs take advantage of this and work him until he collapses. Then they sell him to the horse slaughterer so that they can buy more whisky. Whenever something goes wrong, he blames himself and vows to work even harder. His favourite sayings are 'Napoleon is always right' and 'I will work harder'. He is the strongest animal and could easily fight off the pigs and dogs. He never does though, as he is too used to taking orders. Social and historical context Boxer represents the peasant workers of Russia. They were exploited by the Tsar Nicholas II who ruled from 1894 until his expulsion in 1917. The workers were kept in a position where they never earned enough money to pay for food or accommodation. The Revolution of 1917 sought to address this problem but only led to more hardship and starvation under the rule of Stalin. Mr Jones Mr Jones is the owner of Manor Farm. He neglects the animals, spends most of his time drinking and reading the newspaper and not feeding them. He is taken by surprise by the animals when they fight back against him and his men, so much so that he is thrown off the farm. He tries twice to take back the farm but both attempts fail. He ends up dying in a home for alcoholics. Mr Jones could be likened to Tsar Nicolas II. Jones is the reason for the Rebellion in the same way Tsar Nicholas II was, in simple terms, the cause of the Russian Revolution. Squealer Squealer is another of the three most important pigs. Like Snowball he is clever and a good speaker and he is excellent at persuading the other animals. He ends up being Napoleon's spokesperson - he delivers his orders, explains his choices and tells lies to support Napoleon. He delivers propaganda to the other animals. It is also hinted that he reports back to Napoleon about what the other animals say. Benjamin Benjamin is an old and pessimistic donkey. No one on the farm knows exactly how old he is but it is hinted that he has been around for a very long time. He is never enthusiastic when things go well for the animals; likewise, he is never surprised or upset when things go wrong. He often gives vague answers. Some might say that he is a realist. He is close friends with Boxer and plans to spend his retirement with him. He calls all the other animals to help when Boxer is being taken away by the horse slaughterer.