Animal Farm by George Orwell

1. Animal Farmby George Orwell Background Information Modified from a Power Point Presentation found on the website www.bchs.ppsb.org/uploads/150/10/Intro_to_Animal_Farm.pps From teacherweb.com/MN/PineIslandSchools/.../Intro_to_Animal_Farm.ppt

2. Characteristics Length: 50,000 to 75,000 words Prose: In paragraph form Fiction by Nature: Not true Uses: entertainment, propaganda, and expression of a personal philosophy

3. Elements • Characters: the personalities in a novel • Developing Character (Round): a character who changes in some way during the course of the story; usually a major character who has several sides or traits to his personality • Static Character (Flat): a character (usually a minor character) who does not change during the story; this kind off character generally has only one or two personality traits. • Protagonist: a character who is trying to achieve some goal (usually the main character) • Antagonist: a character who is trying to stop the protagonist

4. (1903-1950)

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

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

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

8. At eighteen, he passed the Empire’s Civil Service Exam and became a police officer in Burma.

9. 1927 Returned in Europe

10. 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.

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

12. Orwell was a Socialist Socialist:someone who believes that the government should own businesses so that everyone will be equal

13. Two Things That Influenced Orwell To Write Animal Farm: His hatred for: Injustice Political Lying

14. He desired a society in which separate classes would not exist.

15. His second famous book:

16. It's a Fable It's an Allegory Most fables have two levels of meaning. On the surface, the fable is about animals. But on a second level, the animals stand for types of people or ideas. The way the animals interact and the way the plot unfolds says something about the nature of people or the value of ideas. Any type of fiction that has multiple levels of meaning in this way is called an allegory.

17. It's a Satire A composition making fun of something, usually political. Animal Farm makes fun of political society after the Bolshevik Revolution.

18. Historical Context Russian society in the early twentieth century had two social classes: a tiny minority (bourgeoisie) controlled the country’s wealth. The working class was called theproletariat.

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

20. This was based on Karl Marx and his

21. The call for action was . . .

22. Tsar Nicholas II, monarch of Russia, was forced to abdicate the throne.

23. His daughter, Anastasia, was lost.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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