Animal Farm by George Orwell Russian Revolution, Part 2: Allegorical Symbolism Behind Supporting Characters and Other Elements of the Novel

What type of citizen does Boxer represent?  Allusion: Boxer Rebellion –A rebellion in the early 1900s that signaled the beginning of Communism in Red China.  Boxer represents lower class proletariat that were drawn to Stalin, because they thought they would most benefit from his rule.

What type of citizen does Mollie represent?  Not interested in politics, rather simply interested in satisfying her own superficial desires.  She represents citizens who are only interested in maintaining the status quo – perhaps the nobles who were sympathetic to Tsarist rulers.

What does Benjamin represent?  A cynical citizen  Never embraces the revolution  He does not fall for the propaganda of Napoleon, but does not have the charisma to teach other citizens about this.

The Windmill  Snowball (Trotsky) eventually proposes the plan for this industrialization, which will benefit the country.  Napoleon (Stalin) eventually makes this plan his own. The 5-year plan  The Windmill stands for Russian industry, the culmination of a five-year-plan executed by the working class.

The Farmhouse  The farmhouse is essentially the center of “government”  The farmhouse is at first preserved as a “museum” of sorts – the animals cannot even enter.  Later, it becomes home to Napoleon and the other pigs.  The farm stands for the Kremlin.  In the early days of the USSR there were sightseeing tours through the Kremlin. Later it became the residence of Stalin.

Old Major’s Skull Old Major on Display “The skull of old Major, now clean of flesh, had been disinterred from the orchard and set up on a stump…[T]he animals were required to file past the skull in a reverent manner.” Lenin on Display When Lenin died in 1924, Stalin ordered the best doctors and scientists in the Soviet Union to preserve Lenin’s body. Lenin’s mummy was placed in a specially constructed crypt on Red Square.

Farms and Farmers  Foxwood –“a large, neglected, old- fashioned farm…in a disgraceful condition”  Mr. Pilkington –“an easy-going gentleman farmer”  Pinchfield –“smaller and better kept”  Mr. Frederick –“a tough, shrewd man…with a name for driving hard bargains” Nations and Leaders  Foxwood=England  Pinchfield=Germany  Frederick=Hitler Stalin exiles Trotsky in 1929; Hitler comes into power in 1933.

Other Characters or Elements?  Are there other animals/characters in the novel that you feel reflect the history of the Russian Revolution or its aftermath? –Minimus (the poet pig)? –The other pigs? –Other ideas?