Animal Farm Study Guide

Transcription

1 Name: Animal Farm Study Guide Chapter I 1) Who is Mr. Jones and, based on this introduction, what do you think about his ability to manage Manor Farm? Mr. Jones is the owner of Manor Farm. He is described as a drunken man who forgets his responsibilities. He is also described as someone who resorts to violence to solve a problem. The manner in which he is described makes his ability to manage Manor Farm questionable, at the least. He seems to be ineffective both due to his propensity for drunkenness, but also for violence. 2). In Major s speech, he divides the world into friends and enemies. How does he define each group? Friends are those who go upon four legs or has wings; enemies are those who go upon two legs namely MAN. 3) Why do you think Beasts of England is an immediate success with the animals? Beasts of England was an immediate success with the animals because of the simplicity of the lyrics. Additionally, the lyrics reinforce the intent and focus of Old Major s speech. Chapter 2 1.) Are the animals directly or indirectly characterized at the beginning of this chapter? How do you know? The animals are characterized directly, as Orwell as the narrator tells us specific details regarding the characters, rather than utilizing indirect characterization, which is only achieved through character's thoughts, words, and actions, along with how other characters respond to that character, including what they think and say about him. 2) Why don't the animals like raven Moses' stories? What might Sugarcandy Mountain symbolize? The animals dislike Moses because he tells stories rather than working. More specifically the pigs, dislike Moses s stories about Sugarcandy Mountain because it gives the animals a sense of something better than the current conditions they have under the pigs eventual rule. Sugarcandy Mountain is an allegory for the church and faith in God, so it is a direct threat to the pigs, who only want the animals to have faith in them. 3) What causes the animals to finally rebel against Mr. Jones and his four farmhands? What time of year is it? After suffering from being underfed and living in poor conditions on the unkempt farm, the animals finally rebelled against Jones when he got so drunk that he failed to feed them all day on Midsummer s Eve. The animals broke down the door of the store-shed and began helping themselves to food. When Jones and his men discovered this, they began whipping the animals, at which point the animals attacked their tormentors. 4) What are the seven commandments that Napoleon, Snowball and Squealer write on the barn wall after Major s speech? 1. Whatever goes upon two legs is an enemy. 2. Whatever goes upon four legs, or has wings, is a friend. 3. No animal shall wear clothes. 4. No animal shall sleep in a bed. 5. No animal shall drink alcohol.

2 6. No animal shall kill any other animal. 7. All animals are equal. 5) What do you believe happens to the milk? What might this event foreshadow? The pigs are helping themselves to the milk rather than sharing it with all the other animals. This foreshadows the pigs eventual disregard for the seven commandments, thus shaping them into an allegorical figure of the Communist government. Chapters 3 1) Examine the animals behavior in these chapters. Would you say equality is increasing or being diminished on Animal Farm? Consider the Sunday morning meetings, milk and apple to pigs only, and the Battle of Cowshed in your response. Equality is being diminished the Sunday morning meetings are required rather than voluntary and they are a time during which only the pigs put forth resolutions. The milk and apples to the pigs clearly indicates a diminished sense of equality, as the other animals are forsaking these items to the benefit of the pigs only. The Battle of Cowshed also indicates a decrease in equality, as Snowball is the only pig that seems to be involved in this battle. The majority of the physical effort is put forth by all the other farm animals. 2) What are Napoleon's ideas about education? How did he implement these ideas? Napoleon said that the education of the young was more important than anything that could be done for those who were already grown up Napoleon took them [the puppies from Bluebell and Jessie] away from their mothers, saying that he would make himself responsible for their education (Orwell 24). His ideas contrast with Snowball s, who expressed that education for all was to be valued and strived for. 3) How do the pigs justify their consumption of the milk and apples? Why do the other animals accept this unequal distribution of food? Squealer explains that the milk and apples are essential to the health and well-being of the pigs, as they are the brainworkers (Orwell 25). He also uses persuasive techniques to discourage the animals from protesting this by stating that it is better for them to give up the extra milk and apples to the pigs rather than take a risk of Jones returning to the farm. The animals accept this because the last thing they want to have happen is to have Jones return, especially since Old Major convinced them that MAN is the cause of all evil. Chapter 4 1) Describe the neighboring farms. What is their relationship with each other and with Animal Farm? One neighboring farm was Foxwood. Its owner was Mr. Pilkington, whose easy-going nature kept him occupied fishing or hunting rather than tending to the farm. Foxwood is an allegory for England, because it is a large, old-fashioned farm. The other neighboring farm was Pinchfield. Its owner was Mr. Frederick, who is described as a tough, shrewd man, perpetually involved in lawsuits and with a name for driving hard bargains (Orwell 26). Pinchfield is an allegory for Germany, with Mr. Frederick representing Hitler, because of its persistent pursuit of control. 2) Describe the Battle of the Cowshed. Snowball led the Battle of Cowshed and utilized Julius Caesar s military attack strategies. He hoodwinked the men into mistakenly thinking they had accomplished a victory when the 2

3 animals began to retreat, only to next be ambushed by the full force of the animals. and Napoleon were notably absent from this battle. Molly 3) What is Snowball's part in this battle? Napoleon s? What can you infer about both of these characters based on this chapter? As mentioned above, Snowball was the strategist who devised the plans of attack and led the charge. Napoleon was conveniently absent during the battle. One can infer that Snowball is more dedicated to the cause and more likely to be actively involved in achieving the desired goals, whereas Napoleon is the one who lets everyone else do the work and comes in at the end to steal all the glory and honor for himself. Chapter 5 1) Why does Mollie run away from the farm? Mollie runs away from the farm after being confronted by Clover for being friendly with MAN (namely one of Mr. Pilkington s workers). It is discovered that she was hiding ribbons and sugar cubes in her stall. It appears that she runs away so that she can continue to enjoy the niceties of life, rather than suffer in the equality that is expected on Animal Farm. 2) Windmill Controversy: Explain from each character s point of view. Snowball It could light the stalls and warm them during the winter It would run a circular saw, a mangel-slicer, and an electric milking machine It would be hard work to build It could be built in a year s time Napoleon Stated that he was against the windmill from the beginning and even urinated on Snowball s plans Stressed that the need for food production was paramount Felt the windmill would waste time and cause the animals to starve to death Animals would save so much on labor that they would only need to work three days a week. 3) What other issues do Snowball and Napoleon debate about? Napoleon though weapons were the answer to defense of the farm and wanted the animals to obtain and learn how to use firearms. Snowball felt that spreading the rebellion and having more animals overtake their own farms would be a more solid direction for defending the farm. 4) What changes does Napoleon make after his dogs chase Snowball off the farm? After Snowball is chased off the farm, Napoleon declares that Sunday morning meetings will end animals will only gather on Sunday mornings to receive their orders for the week, to 3

4 salute the flag, and to sing Beasts of England. He also states that all decisions will be made by a committee of pigs that he will oversee personally. 5) What is Boxer s new maxim? Why does he say this? He adopted the maxim, Napoleon is always right, in addition to his private motto of I will work harder (Orwell 40). Chapter 6 1) How much work are the animals now doing compared to what they used to do? The animals were doing more work they ever, for less rations. The harvest was less successful and Napoleon was coercing the animals to work on their day off on a voluntary basis, or have their rations cut. 2) Why does Napoleon decide to engage in trade with neighboring farms? Napoleon decides to engage in trade with neighboring farms in order to obtain certain materials which were urgently necessary (Orwell 44). He made arrangements to sell both hay and eggs in order to achieve this trade in order to obtain materials for the windmill. 3) How is the windmill destroyed? Why does Napoleon blame Snowball? The windmill is destroyed by a very windy storm late one night in November. Napoleon places the blame on Snowball rather than accept any blame for faulty construction in the building itself. Chapter 7 1) Why does Napoleon order that the hens' eggs be sold? Napoleon ordered that the hens eggs be sold in order to get enough money to pay for enough grain and meal to keep the farm going till summer came on and conditions were easier (Orwell 53). 2) How does Napoleon react when the hens rebel against his orders? Napoleon reacts to the hens rebellion against his orders to sell their eggs by stopping their rations and having the dogs monitor/control any access to the hens. He decreed that any animal giving so much as a grain of corn to a hen should be punished by death (Orwell 53). 3) Why does Napoleon continually suggest that the farm is being sabotaged by Snowball? Napoleon is using Snowball as a scapegoat for any negative happenings be they every day occurrences, such as a drain being blocked, or problems that might indicate his ineffective leadership. 4) Dramatic irony is when the reader understands or realizes something the characters do not. Find an example of dramatic irony from Ch. 6 or 7. 4

5 Dramatic irony is evident when the reader realizes, as noted above, that Napoleon is only blaming Snowball so as to avoid any responsibility for problems himself. The animals seem vaguely aware that something is eschew but are unsure what and fear questioning anything with the ever-present menacing dogs. Chapter 8 1) How is Napoleon becoming more and more like a typical dictator? List several behaviors. Napoleon is becoming more and more like a typical dictator by covering up the food shortage, rarely appearing in public, being guarded at all times by his dogs (the KGB), issuing orders through Squealer (Pravda/Propaganda), and, when he did come out in public, doing so in a ceremonial manner. Additionally, he separated himself from the other pigs and obtained his own private accommodations. He took meals alone and ate from plates. He had dogs act as his servants during meals. Napoleon even changed the manner in which he was addressed from simply Comrade Napoleon, to our Leader, Comrade Napoleon or Father of All Animals, and a number of other majestic titles that the pigs instilled upon him. 2) Compare and contrast the poem "Comrade Napoleon" to "Beasts of England." How are they similar and how are they different? Comrade Napoleon is, obviously, centered only on Napoleon and his purported role as watcher over all of the animals. Beasts of England focuses on the animals and their equality and the joy that will come from it. 3) Describe the whisky incident. Why would Orwell make this scene somewhat humorous? After a night spent drinking, Napoleon thinks he is dying yet, it is simply a hangover. Squealer announces that Napoleon is dying, yet Napoleon s condition miraculously improves as the effects (or after effects) of the alcohol wear off. It is also comical that Napoleon originally states that anyone who drinks alcohol should be put to death, yet later changes it to decree that animals should not drink to excess. 4) Why are the animals so easily fooled, even when they find Squealer with a ladder and white paint beside the barn at night? The animals are easily fooled by Squealer because they are not very intelligent and, more importantly, because Napoleon s guard dogs immediately form a ring around Squealer and use intimidation to prevent any further discussion. Chapter 9 1) How are living conditions becoming increasingly different between the other animals and the pigs/dogs? The pigs and dogs are continuing to receive increased rations over the other animals. Pigs were allowed to wear ribbons and expected other animals to step aside when they crossed on a path. The pigs also restricted barley for the purpose of making beer, and drank a ration of a pint of beer daily. 2) Why does Napoleon allow Moses to return and to tell his stories about Sugarcandy 5

6 Mountain? Although neither he nor any of the other pigs originally cared for Moses and his tales about Sugarcandy Mountain, the animals are now in desperate need of something to take their mind off their endless, tireless labors. The distraction created by listening to these tales acts to do that for the animals. 3) What happens to Boxer? How do the animals accept it? After Boxer fell and was unable to return to his feet, Squealer spoke with Napoleon and made arrangements to send Boxer to be treated in a hospital (Orwell 82). Boxer was actually taken away by a vehicle marked Alfred Simmonds, Horse Slaughterer and Glue Boiler, Willingdon. Dealer in Hides and Bone-Meal. (Orwell 84). The animals were convinced by Squealer that Boxer had actually gone to the hospital and that he himself had been by Boxer s side during Boxer s last few hours of life. Squealer also stated that the van had previously been the property of the knacker, and had been bought by the veterinary surgeon, who had not yet painted the old name out. The animals were easily convinced due to both Squealer s persuasive nature and emotional description of Boxer s hospital stay, but also by the simple fact that it was easier to accept something good than the horrible realism that went along with Boxer s ultimate demise. Chapter 10 1) What changes have the years brought to the farm? Many of the original animals of the farm are now dead, yet no one has ever managed to retire. The farm had become more profitable, but the animals still existed on meager rations and lived in deplorable conditions; yet, the animals still naively believed their condition to be no worse than it ever was. 2) All seven commandments are erased. What is the new commandment and how has it been true from the beginning? The new commandment is All animals are equal; but some animals are more equal than others (Orwell 93). This has always been true since the beginning when the pigs assumed leadership roles and responsibilities after the animals ran off Jones and his men. The pigs, upon this change in the farm, immediately began to consume the extra milk and windfall apples themselves rather than sharing them with the population as a whole. 3) What happens to the pigs' appearance in the closing card game scene? How is this symbolic? At the end of the novel, the pigs so closely resemble MAN, the supposed evil cause of all unhappiness felt in an animal s life, that even the animals cannot tell pig from MAN. It is symbolic of one of the running themes of the novel watch what you wish for, you might just get it. The animals got what they asked for, a farm free of MAN, but with all the same consequences befalling them under the leadership of the pigs, Napoleon in particular, they were actually, at least marginally, better off under MAN [Jones]. 6