[Orwell’s] greatest accomplishment was to remind people that they could think for themselves at a time in this century when humanity seemed to prefer taking marching orders…His work endures, as lucid and vigorous as the day it was written. The proper way to remember George Orwell, finally, is…as a man of letters, who wanted to change the world by changing the word. --Paul Gray, Critic

The device of using a character or story elements to symbolically represent an abstraction in addition to a literal meaning. Characters may personify an abstract such as freedom or dignity. The allegorical meaning usually deals with a generalization about human existence.

 A short, simple story designed to illustrate a moral lesson.  The characters are often animals who exhibit human characteristics, both strength and frailties.

 There are three kinds of irony, each of which involves some kind of contrast between expectation and reality.  Verbal irony—someone says one thing but means the opposite  Situational irony—an occurrence that is not just surprising but the opposite of what we expected  Dramatic Irony—when the audience knows what is in store for a character but the character does not

Power corrupts. Absolute power corrupts absolutely. Great men are almost always bad men. --Lord Acton, 1887

Karl Marx, in his The Manifesto of the Communist Party, attempted to rally the common man, revolutionaries and workers, to overthrow the rich in favor of the equality of the common worker. In Marxism, the state owns the land and the wealth. Everyone works hard and everyone gets a reward. There are no rich or poor. Naturally, rich people did not like his ideas, but it offered the poor people hope. In 1917, Czar Nicholas II gave up the throne, and the Bolsheviks took power during the October Revolution of the Russian Revolution. Vladimir Lenin was one of the leaders of the Revolution, and promised the people of Russia bread, land, and peace, basing his ideas on the writing of Karl Marx.

 Political writer and thinker  Became a journalist and wrote pamphlets about the plight of the poor – how poor people did most of the work, but rich people got most of the rewards  Many leaders adopted his ideas, including the former Soviet Union and China; however, many Marxist leaders hoarded the wealth just as the old leaders did  People could not make choices or disagree with their leaders  People worked hard, but could not make money for themselves

 Last Czar of Russia  Ruled from 1894 – 1917 when he was overthrown in a series of upheavals  Bolsheviks, a faction of the Marxist Russian Social Democratic Labor Party, killed him and his family in 1918 (Anastasia)

Pravda (Russian: "The Truth") was a leading newspaper of the Soviet Union and an official organ of the Central Committee of the Communist Party between 1912 and 1991.Russian During the Cold War, Pravda was well-known in the West for its pronouncements as the official voice of Soviet Communism.

The proletariat (from Latin proles, "offspring") is a term used to identify a lower social class; a member of such a class is proletarian.Latin Originally it was identified as those people who had no wealth other than their sons; the term was initially used in a derogatory sense, until Karl Marx used it as a sociological term to refer to the working class.

 Was Lenin’s assistant and helped create the USSR and the Communist Party.  Ruled the Soviet Union for more than 25 years.  Became one of the most feared dictators in history.  Believed in Marxism and hated the Capitalist countries of the West.  Known for his reign of terror, killing millions in key regions of the USSR.

 Leader in the Russian Revolution.  With Lenin and Stalin, helped create the Soviet state.  Popular with the people, wanting to industrialize the country.  After Lenin died, Trotsky and Stalin struggled for power.  Stalin won, exiled Trotsky.  Years later, when Stalin’s policies failed, he blamed Trotsky.  Trotsky settled in Mexico, but Stalin sent a secret police agent to kill Trotsky, for fear of being overthrown by him.

 The police force of Soviet Russia – secret and otherwise  They were responsible for:  Political assassinations abroad  Conducting mass executions  The Main Directorate for State Security (GUGB) ▪ Predecessor of the KGB ▪ Responsible for intelligence/counter-intelligence, internal security and protector of government communications  The Gulag – a system of concentration and labor camps resulting in 1.05 million deaths (officially) and up to 10 million by independent estimates. You could be put into the Gulag system for several reasons ▪ Political prisoners ▪ Petty crimes, criticizing the Soviet government or officials, making jokes  The NKVD conducted “purges” in which those deemed undesirable to the state or critical of it were executed with little to no evidence and without trial (often an anonymous tip was enough).  Purges included foreigners, ethnic minorities and those with religious beliefs.

Propaganda Techniques  What are Propaganda Techniques? They are the methods and approaches used to spread ideas that further a cause - a political, commercial, religious, or civil cause.  Why are they used? To manipulate the readers' or viewers' reason and emotions; to persuade you to believe in something or someone, buy an item, or vote a certain way.

 Name calling: This techniques consists of attaching a negative label to a person or a thing. People engage in this type of behavior when they are trying to avoid supporting their own opinion with facts. Rather than explain what they believe in, they prefer to try to tear their opponent down.  Glittering Generalities: This technique uses important-sounding "glad words" that have little or no real meaning. These words are used in general statements that cannot be proved or disproved. Words like "good," "honest," "fair," and "best" are examples of "glad" words.  Transfer: In this technique, an attempt is made to transfer the prestige of a positive symbol to a person or an idea. For example, using the American flag as a backdrop for a political event makes the implication that the event is patriotic in the best interest of the U.S.  False Analogy: In this technique, two things that may or may not really be similar are portrayed as being similar. When examining the comparison, you must ask yourself how similar the items are. In most false analogies, there is simply not enough evidence available to support the comparison.  Testimonial: This technique is easy to understand. It is when "big name" personalities are used to endorse a product. Whenever you see someone famous endorsing a product, ask yourself how much that person knows about the product, and what he or she stands to gain by promoting it.

 Plain Folks: This technique uses a folksy approach to convince us to support someone or something. These ads depict people with ordinary looks doing ordinary activities.  Card Stacking: This term comes from stacking a deck of cards in your favor. Card stacking is used to slant a message. Key words or unfavorable statistics may be omitted in an ad or commercial, leading to a series of half-truths. Keep in mind that an advertiser is under no obligation "to give the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth."  Bandwagon: The "bandwagon" approach encourages you to think that because everyone else is doing something, you should do it too, or you'll be left out. The technique embodies a "keeping up with the Joneses" philosophy.  Either/or fallacy: This technique is also called "black-and-white thinking" because only two choices are given. You are either for something or against it; there is no middle ground or shades of gray. It is used to polarize issues, and negates all attempts to find a common ground.  Faulty Cause and Effect: This technique suggests that because B follows A, A must cause B. Remember, just because two events or two sets of data are related does not necessarily mean that one caused the other to happen. It is important to evaluate data carefully before jumping to a wrong conclusion.

1. Describe in detail what parallels can be drawn in this book between the animals' struggles and that of the Russian Revolution. Be specific and include at least 5 parallels. 2. Throughout the novel, the author uses clear, simple, and accessible language to construct the novel. Explain how this writing technique is useful for conveying the complex issues discussed throughout the novel. Include specific examples from the text to support your explanation. 3. Propaganda is continually used throughout this novel. Describe propaganda techniques you saw in the novel which you feel are still employed today. Then describe how you feel these techniques worked in the book and continue to work today. 4. As this story is a representation of the mindset of people in a country following an upheaval or revolution, each character represents a typical group of people. Choose two characters from the novel and describe which group of people they represent and how their actions in the novel support your opinions. 5. Write an essay about the concept of a puppet democracy in an Authoritarian government. Be sure to describe what it is and how it works. 6. Consider the character Boxer. Write an essay about this character and the decisions and actions he took throughout the story as well as his final fate. Make a judgment about these issues and use information from the text to support your judgment.

 A work that targets human vices or follies, or social institutions and conventions, for reform or ridicule.  A satirist often uses many devices, such as irony, wit, parody, caricature, hyperbole, understatement, and sarcasm.