How is the purpose of Animal Farm meaningful?

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akannan's profile pic


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The original question had to be edited.  I think that one way in which Orwell's work is meaningful is that it reflects how dangerous governments can be.  Orwell's depiction of the leadership of the pigs is one in which the tenets of the revolution were embraced in their ascent to leadership.  Yet, once they had clearly assumed power, leaders like Napoleon and Squealer cast aside the revolutionary ideals and simply lived to exert and consolidate their power over the other animals.  This is meaningful in a couple of ways.  The first is that it has an obvious historical connection to the Russian Revolution.  The display of Napoleon's brutality is akin to Stalin's, forever reminding the reader that political control has a way of making something that theoretically had promise devolve into the most vile of political realities.  The other connection is the idea that all governments have the potential to abuse public trust in the name of substantiating their own power.  This has relevance and purpose to the modern setting, where political control and desire for more of it has resulted in some of the most heinous of actions.

Another reason why the central purpose of the novel is meaningful is that it calls attention to how citizens cannot be passive recipients in the modern political setting. Boxer is a beautiful character. He is noble, honorable, and decent, with impulses only designed for redemption.  However, his trust of Napoleon and his failure to effectively raise questions seals his doom.  Benjamin, a cynic who fails to see any need to take action, only realizes too late, when his best friend is being taken to his death, that the only way to stop government abuse is to speak out against it.  Clover recognizes the need to read and the need to be vigilant for so much in her mind does not seem right with it comes to the pigs' leadership.  In the end, Orwell is telling the reader that modern politics is a cut throat game for which citizens must be prepared. As Ralph Nader said it, "If you don't get turned out to politics, politics will turn on you."  For Orwell's work, one of the central purposes that proves to be meaningful is to ensure that individuals do get "turned on" to being politically aware.

ar13tie's profile pic

ar13tie | Student, Grade 10 | (Level 1) eNoter

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l think Orwell is trying show how revolutions fail when they have decided upon what would guide them after being victorios.l also think that George tries to show effects of power,how leadership is used by those who lead.As the animals hear many changes that Napoleon did they kept quiete they could not rebell as they did to Jones because they started facing more hard times than they had with Jones.Boxer being known as loyal,strong and hardworking shows his  foolishness by his motto"l will work haed,Napoleon is always right,".This can be clear that to Napoleon"s death he would also pass on............

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