Kenneth Anderson
2/22/07
1st period

Essay:
Animal Farm

The story of Animal Farm takes place on what is called the Manor Farm, which is owned by a farmer that goes by the name of Mr. Jones. Old Major is one of the first animals introduced in the book of Animal Farm. Old Major shares a somewhat premonition-like dream with the rest of the animals that refers to the upcoming revolution. The animals take into Old Major’s words and adopt him as their beacon of light, along with his dream, which is the dream that, one day (possibly soon) the animals would be free to do as they please and live as they please without being under the supervision of humans and being bound to the shackles of slavery. After Old Major’s speech, the animals begin to sing a song that represents freedom and liberty for all animals alike, not just the ones residing on Manor Farm.

Soon enough, the day of the revolution comes, when the animals, after having taken enough of Jones’ mistreatment toward them and having swallowed their pride for far too long, ride up and run Jones and his wife out of their own farm. After the farm is taken over by the animals, it is then renamed and addressed as Animal Farm, which is a most-fitting title. A list of commandments, named the Seven Commandments (similar to the Ten Commandments), are put into place by the three major pigs on the farm, who’re named Snowball, Squealer and Napoleon. After the Animal Farm government and rules are put into place, the animals on the newly named Animal Farm begin to realize that the working conditions are not in their favor, but the government’s favor. Of course, there is always an excuse for something that should happen to go wrong at the farm, which is why the pig, Squealer, is sent to explain about the working conditions and what not. The animals are always kept in line with, “Surely, you do not want Jones to come back?” This question always leaves the animals on the farm speechless.

When word gets around about the Animal Farm, Jones becomes successful in gathering a group of men in order to stop the revolution of animals against humans. However, Jones fails in stopping the revolution at the Battle of Cowshed, where he is driven away and one of his men are killed. Jones does not return to the Animal Farm after this mishap. Later on in the book, a feud between Snowball and Napoleon becomes apparent. The two believe there is only room for one leader. Napoleon, while Snowball is in the middle of giving a speech, reveals his plan to get rid of Snowball for good. Dogs raid the farm and attack Snowball, driving him out of the farm just as Napoleon planned. With Napoleon as the new leader, the Animal Farm becomes just what most people view the outside world as, a circus, filled with animals that act just like animals.

Under Napoleon’s hoof, more animals become rebellious to the new ideas that are brought on to Animal Farm. When the animals show no tolerance for Napoleon’s ways, they are exiled. Some are killed, of course. As the book progresses and finally ends, the pigs in the book begin to resemble to humans a little too much in their ways. At the very end of the book, the animals can not tell the pigs from the humans or the humans from the pigs, and Napoleon is similar to what he swore he hated, humane.