(1903-1950)

Real Name: Eric Blair British Political Novelist Born: To English parents in India

After his father retired, Eric and his family moved back to England.

1911 He was sent to a boarding school at the age of 8 to prepare for Eton, an exclusive prep school. Because he had a scholarship, he was teased and humiliated frequently.                                      

*Whose rules was he enforcing?                                           1921-At 18, he passed the Empire’s Civil Service Exam and became a police officer in Burma.           *Whose rules was he enforcing?

1927 Returned in Europe * What life lessons can you learn while dishwashing?

He chose to live in poverty because he felt guilty for the job he had done in Burma - for having been a part of an oppressive government.

oppressed and helpless He saw poverty as a way to understand the problems of the oppressed and helpless by becoming one of them.

(This is not the same as communist.) Orwell was a Socialist (This is not the same as communist.) Socialist: someone who believes that the government should own businesses so that everyone will be cared for. Government can *Redistribute $$$$ *Make the “game” more fair

2 Things That Influenced Orwell To Write Animal Farm: His hatred for: Injustice & Political Lying

He desired a society where separate classes would not exist.

His second famous book:

It's a Fable It's an Allegory Fables have 2 levels of meaning. On the surface, the fable is about animals. On 2nd level, animals = types of people or ideas. The way the animals interact & the way the plot unfolds helps us understand the nature of people or the value of ideas. Fiction with multiple levels of meaning is called allegory.

Why Animals? In explaining how he came to write Animal Farm, Orwell says he once saw a little boy whipping a horse and later he wrote, “It struck me that if only such animals became aware of their strength we should have no power over them, and that men exploit animals in much the same way as the rich exploit the [worker].”

It's a Satire In satire, vices, follies, abuses, and shortcomings are held up to ridicule, ideally with the intent of shaming individuals, and society itself, into improvement.[ Animal Farm is a satire of political society after the Bolshevik Revolution.

Historical Context PRE 1900’s ---Russian society had two social classes: a tiny minority (bourgeoisie) controlled the country’s wealth. The working class was called the proletariat.

1917---Communism arose in Russia when the nation’s workers & peasants rebelled against and overwhelmed the wealthy and powerful class of capitalists & aristocrats.

This was based on Karl Marx 1818-1883 and his

The call for action was . . .

1868-1918 Nicholas II, monarch of Russia, was forced to abdicate the throne.

Romanovs Old Russia had been ruled for 300 years by a family called the Romanovs. They were called czars (or tsars) and ruled as kings and queens. They lived a fantastic life in their palace, surrounded by all kinds of luxuries.

His daughter, Anastasia, was lost.

Lenin, a Russian revolutionary, took power in the name of the Communist Party.

When Lenin died, Joseph Stalin & Leon Trotsky competed for control of the Soviet Union.

Stalin banished Trotsky & took control. He began his brutal killings, overseeing the deaths of approximately twenty million Soviet citizens.

Themes 1. Freedom & individual dignity must be guarded very carefully.

Themes 2. Language is a powerful tool; used improperly, it can enslave and confuse us.

Themes 3. Weakness can be dominated by strength, fear, and trickery.

Themes 4. Hope & vision must be kept alive, or we might live like the animals of Manor Farm.

Themes 5. Power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.

Animalism = Communism Animalism Communism Taught my Old Major No rich, but no poor Better life for workers All animals are equal Everyone owns the farm Communism Invented by Karl Marx All people are equal Government owns everything People own the government

Farmer Jones = Czar Nicholas II The irresponsible owner of the farm Lets his animals starve and beats them with a whip Sometimes shows random kindness Czar Nicholas II Weak Russian leader during the early 1900s Often cruel and brutal to his subjects Displays isolated kindess

Characters Snowball A clever pig with a head for ideas,                                Snowball A clever pig with a head for ideas, he becomes one of the main leaders of Animal Farm and the author of its central commandments.

Characters Napoleon A pig with a gift for techniques of control,                        Napoleon A pig with a gift for techniques of control, he establishes most of the farm’s rules and eventually becomes its sole leader.

Characters Old Major An elderly show pig whose                        Old Major An elderly show pig whose instruction to the animals about "animalism" becomes the philosophical basis for the creation of Animal Farm.

Characters Squealer A pig with the ability to make any                        Squealer A pig with the ability to make any idea sound reasonable, he is Napoleon's side-kick and is in charge of communicating to the animals.

Characters Boxer A strong and hard-working carthorse,                        Boxer A strong and hard-working carthorse, he shows tremendous faith in the rebellion and its leaders.