Animal Farm Introduction Turner Network Television and Hallmark Entertainment present a revolutionary achievement in filmmaking. Through the remarkable technological and cinematic feats of Jim Henson's Creature Shop, The Best Movie Studio on Television brings to life one of the most important works of the 20th Century, the TNT Original, ANIMAL FARM. This adaptation of George Orwell's thought-provoking literary masterpiece is one of the most expensive and ambitious films ever created for television. But why--now that Soviet Communism has fallen and the Cold War is over--does ANIMAL FARM deserve our attention? The answer lies in the power of allegory. Allegorical fables, because they require us to make comparisons and connections, can be meaningful to any reader in any historical period. The story of Animal Farm will always have lessons. TNT's ANIMAL FARM rejuvenates Orwell's Cold War tale for the post-soviet era. It reminds us that the struggle between truth and propaganda, freedom and slavery is an ongoing one. Animal Farm American Issues Page 1
Characters in TNT's ANIMAL FARM Farmer Jones A drunk and a poor farmer, his cruelty towards the farm animals inspires their rebellion. 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. Pilkington Jones' neighbor, he finds a way to profit from Animal Farm by forming an alliance with the pigs. Napoleon A pig with a gift for techniques of control, he establishes most of the Farm s rules and eventually becomes its sole leader. The Sheep Not tremendously clever, the sheep remind themselves of the principles of animalism by chanting "four legs good, two legs bad." Jessie The farm's sheepdog, she keeps tabs on the pigs and is among the first to suspect that something is wrong at Animal Farm. Boxer A strong and hard-working carthorse, he shows tremendous faith in the rebellion and its leaders. Moses A raven with strong feelings of loyalty to Jones, he tells the animals that their reward awaits them at the "Sugar Candy Mountain." Old Major An elderly show pig whose instruction to the animals about "animalism" becomes the philosophical basis for the creation of Animal Farm.. Mollie One of the farms horses, she resists the animal rebellion because she doesn't want to give up the petting and treats she receives from humans. Benjamin The most cynical of all the animals, the farm's donkey doubts the leadership of the pigs but is faithfully devoted to Boxer. Animal Farm American Issues Page 2
Historical Backdrop: Orwell and the Times in Which He Lived "Every line of serious work that I have written since 1936 has been written, directly or indirectly, against totalitarianism and for democratic socialism as I understand it." -- George Orwell, "Why I Write" INTRODUCTION Animal Farm was published in August of 1945--a crucial moment in European and world history. In the previous four months, President Roosevelt, Mussolini and Hitler had died and Winston Churchill had been voted out of office. Germany had surrendered, and the U.S. had dropped atomic bombs over Japan. Of the big three Allied leaders, only Stalin survived. In some ways, Animal Farm stands at the very beginning of the Cold War. During World War II, Russia had been an ally of the U.S. and England. After the battle of Normandy in February of 1944-- when the Allies first began to beat back the German forces--western nations felt a strong feeling of solidarity with the Russian people. The Russian army had suffered great losses, but it had helped protect England from a German invasion. As a result of the pro-russian atmosphere, Orwell had a hard time finding a publisher for Animal Farm. However, in the years following Animal Farm's publication, Russia fell farther and farther out of favor. In this respect, the novel stands as a predictor of what would later come to pass. Sources: Jeffrey Meyers. A Reader's Guide to George Orwell. London: Thames and Hudson, 1975. Averil Gardener. George Orwell. Boston: Twain Publishers, 1987. George Orwell Homepage. http://www.k-1.com/orwell. Animal Farm American Issues Page 3
Animal Farm- Questions 1: Old Major is a: (a): sheep (b): horse (c): pig (d): chicken 2: Old Major encourages the animals to: (a): band together to fight their common enemy, Man (b): obey Man at all times (c): run away from the farm and find happiness in America (d): sing about how unhappy they are 3: Animal Farm is a satire on the: (a): French Revolution (b): Russian Revolution (c): American Revolution (d): World War Two 4: After Old Major dies, which animals emerge as the new leaders? (a): Boxer and Clover (b): Benjamin and Mollie (c): the humans, known as Man (d): Snowball and Napoleon 5: Old Major symbolizes: (a): The old animals (b): The adherence to dominance by Man (c): The intellectual and abstract vision of the revolution (d): nothing 6: The pigs create a set of tenets known as what? (a): Communism (b): Anthropomorphism (c): Animalism (d): Humanism 8: What do the pigs use to persuade the other animals? (a): Fear that Man will return (b): Anger that the animals are so dumb (c): Gifts to get them to work (d): Promises of a better life 9: Which animal becomes the "thinking" leader of the group? (a): Napoleon (b): Squealer (c): Snowball (d): Mollie 10: The revolution of the animals on Animal Farm has what effect on the rest of the animals in England? (a): We cannot be sure, but the humans believe that their animals may revolt (b): The other animals become afraid of what the humans will do to them (c): It inspires the other animals to try to revolt (d): The other animals try to run away from their farms 11: What does Napoleon do when the men attack the farm? (a): He fights valiantly (b): He kicks a farm hand and knocks him out (c): He joins with the men (d): He hides himself in the barn 12: Who is noticeably absent during the first war scene? (a): Mollie (b): Napoleon (c): Snowball (d): Boxer 7: In the first year, the pigs on the farm become: (a): hard workers (b): supervisors over the other animals (c): servants to the other animals (d): disillusioned with the revolution Animal Farm American Issues Page 4
13: What happens when Snowball and Napoleon disagree over the future of Animal Farm? (a): Snowball emerges as the new leader after winning an election (b): Napoleon calls out nine dogs and has them chase Snowball off the farm (c): Napoleon emerges as the new leader after winning an election (d): Snowball calls out five dogs and has them chase Napoleon off the farm 14: Everything bad that happens during Napoleon's reign is blamed on: (a): the revolution (b): Man (c): the harsh winter (d): Snowball 15: Napoleon is able to put through his changes by employing: (a): Moses the raven (b): Squealer the pig (c): Mollie the mare (d): Snowball the pig 16: Napoleon slowly changes the commandments to serve his purposes. He changes the fifth commandment to read: (a): No animal shall drink alcohol (b): No animal shall drink (c): No animal shall drink alcohol in excess (d): No animal shall drink alcohol in excess unless they are a pig 19: As the years pass, does the animal population increase or decrease? (a): Increases (b): Decreases (c): There is no change (d): We cannot be sure 20: What single commandment replaces all the other commandments? (In the last song) (a): "Pigs above all others" (b): "Four legs good, two legs better" (c): "All animals are created equal, but some animals are more equal than others (d): "The lower classes work, the upper classes eat" 21: Which of the following would be considered a dominant theme of the movie? (a): Horse power (b): Loss of social memory (c): Aging (d): War 22: What former name does Animal Farm assume at the end? (a): The Hope Farm (b): The Republic of Animals (c): The Manor Farm (d): The Major Farm 17: As time goes on, who announces all laws for Napoleon? (a): Napoleon himself (b): Squealer (c): Napoleon's nine dogs (d): A neighboring farmer 18: What is called into question as more of the laws are changed? (a): The laws themselves (b): The collective memory of the animals (c): The enforcement of the laws (d): The inequality of the laws Animal Farm American Issues Page 5
ANSWERS The correct answer to question 1, Old Major is a:, is (c): pig The correct answer to question 3, Animal Farm is a satire on the:, is (b): Russian Revolution The correct answer to question 6, After Old Major dies, which animals emerge as the new leaders?, is (d): Snowball and Napoleon The correct answer to question 7, Old Major symbolizes:, is (c): The intellectual and abstract vision of the revolution The correct answer to question 8, The pigs create a set of tenets known as what?, is (c): Animalism The correct answer to question 10, In the first year, the pigs on the farm become:, is (b): supervisors over the other animals The correct answer to question 12, Which animal becomes the "thinking" leader of the group?, is (c): Snowball The correct answer to question 13, The revolution of the animals on Animal Farm has what effect on the rest of the animals in England?, is (c): It inspires the other animals to try to revolt The correct answer to question 14, What does Mollie do when the men attack the farm?, is (d): She hides herself in the barn The correct answer to question 15, Who is noticably absent during the first war scene?, is (b): Napoleon The correct answer to question 16, What happens to Mollie the mare?, is (d): She is lured away by a man with sugar-lumps The correct answer to question 17, What happens when Snowball and Napoleon disagree over the future of Animal Farm?, is (b): Napoleon calls out nine dogs and has them chase Snowball off the farm The correct answer to question 21, Everything bad that happens during Napoleon's reign is blamed on:, is (d): Snowball American Issues Animal Farm Page 6
The correct answer to question 23, Napoleon is able to put through his changes by employing:, is (b): Squealer the pig The correct answer to question 24, Napoleon slowly changes the commandments to serve his purposes. He changes the fifth commandment to read:, is (c): No animal shall drink alcohol in excess The correct answer to question 25, As time goes on, who announces all laws for Napoleon?, is (b): Squealer The correct answer to question 26, What is called into question as more of the laws are changed?, is (b): The collective memory of the animals The correct answer to question 32, What single commandment replaces all the other commandments?, is (c): "All animals are created equal, but some animals are more equal than others" The correct answer to question 33, Which of the following would be considered a dominant theme of the book?, is (b): Loss of social memory The correct answer to question 35, What former name does Animal Farm assume at the end?, is (c): The Manor Farm American Issues Animal Farm Page 7