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Corruption Of Power In Animal Farm By George Orwell

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Power has been the crux of humankind since its birth. Wherever power is found, corruption is sure to be near. In the Animal Farm, George Orwell expertly captures this corruption of power through the antagonist 's use of propaganda, manipulation, and deceit in order to benefit himself at the expense of his peers. From the start of his reign, Napoleon stressed how vastly superior the pigs intelligence was to that of the rest of the animals. The pigs "directed and supervised the others. With their superior knowledge it was natural that they should assume the leadership" (3.2). Any non pig was denied resources to teach themselves, and the pigs became the only source of information on the farm (3.3). Knowledge is power, and the pigs ensured
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To begin, in the stories of “Animal Farm” the book concludes on how the animals of Manor Farm turn into the owner of them by dictating each other, stealing ideas from one another, changing rules, overworking each other, and being just overall a communist farm. The author’s perspective and tone regarding intelligence explains how the pigs and Napoleon used their intelligence to trick and persuade the animals to their way of living. In the book “Animal Farm”, “The pigs did not actually work, but directed and supervised the others. With their superior knowledge it was natural that they should assume the leadership” (Orwell 12). The pigs dictate the animals and use them as slaves because they were not intelligent.

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In the satire, Animal Farm by George Orwell, the theme is that selfishness can lead to corruption. These bible verses have a correlation to the book Animal Farm like 2 Peter 2:19, Philippians 2:3, and Proverbs 29:4 The first reason selfishness can lead to corruption is in 2 Peter 2:19. “They promise them freedom, while they themselves are slaves of depravity—for “people are slaves to whatever has mastered them.” My first piece of evidence is “Almost overnight we could become rich and free”.(p9)

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One of George Orwell 's most noted themes or quotes for his book Animal Farm is power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely. I believe that Animal Farm Shirley represents the meaning of this quote. Naturally the pigs obtain all of the power on the farm because of their intelligence. When the pigs use their power they abused it by using the other animals to do their Injustice. Oppressed by mr. Jones and his negligence towards the animals well-being Old Major Lance the farmers rebellion of Manor Farm.

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“When they had finished their confessions, the dogs promptly tore their throats out...”. These executions show, the animals made false confessions because they were uneducated. In conclusion the author of Animal Farm, George Orwell, metaphorically explains that with knowledge and education comes great power, and this can be extremely dangerous if it falls into the hands of those who are self-serving. As you see throughout the story the pigs only benefit themselves, they get to kill their animals, and they break the rules for their own advantage.

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In Animal farm, Napoleon displays absolute power corrupt unquestionably by changing the commandments, satisfy himself, and by betraying his most faithful worker, Boxer. Napoleon changed use his power to gain more “power” aka a more higher status. He changed the law just so he could get drunk. The worst he had ever done was to betray his best worker for a couple of bottles. Napoleon is not a good leader.

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In Animal Farm, George Orwell warns how power will often lead to corruption. Napoleon was placed in a position of power after Major died, and he slowly starts to lavish in his power and become addicted to the lush life of a dictator. When Napoleon first becomes a leader, he expresses how everyone will work equally, but as his reign goes on, he shortens the work hours. At the very end of the novel, the observing animals even start to see that pig and man had become the same. The irony present in the above example, illuminates how regardless of how much a ruler promises to maintain equality and fairness, the position of power that they hold, will corrupt them.

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All major wars have occurred over the position or want of power. Napoleon Bonaparte, the French conqueror, conquered Europe for the power to rule it. Hitler started up slowly in his political career, and e started World War II, murdering 6 million Jews during the Holocaust. Napoleon in the political rankings of Animal Farm, up to the point which the desire for power corrupted him. Orwell shows how power corrupts a person by turning Napoleon, a good animal, into a monster.

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Martin Luther King Jr. said, “Nothing in the world is more dangerous than sincere ignorance and conscientious stupidity.” Luther’s statement about ignorance being dangerous is a recurring idea in Animal Farm, written by George Orwell. In this allegorical story, Orwell uses the animals of Manor Farm to represent the corrupted leaders of the Russian Revolution, as well as the people who stood by and let it happen. Through his characters, Orwell attempts to expose the seriousness of the dangers presented by Stalin and other totalitarian leaders at the time and the need for people to think for themselves and oppose the tyranny. George Orwell uses Napoleon to take advantage of the other animal’s hardworking, albeit ignorant and naive attitudes to gain power and provoke fear and manipulate the farm animals, proving that, without followers, leaders have no power.

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Animal Farm -the history of a rebellion that went wrong- is George Orwell 's brilliant satire on the corrupting influence of power. It was first published in 1945. According to Orwell, the book reflects events leading up to the Russian Revolution of 1917 and then on into the Stalin era in the Soviet Union. In the book, Mr. Jones, the owner of the Manor farm is so lazy and drunken that one day he forgets to feed his livestock.

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Power corrupts those who possess it. One who has power can lose the sense of right and wrong, so that morals do not matter. Absolute power corrupts those who possess it. This can be seen throughout history, such as during in World War II how Adolf Hitler’s power corrupted him, and proven by the actions of Napoleon in the allegory Animal Farm by George Orwell. Orwell shows the idea, power corrupts whose who possess it, in the novel through the characters of Farmer Jones, Napoleon, and Snowball.

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“Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Great men are almost always bad men...” said Lord Acton, a 19th century British historian, concerning the morality of men in power. This principle is largely evident to political leaders, especially Communist leaders in the 20th century. Animal Farm, written by George Orwell, is a political satire novella written to reveal the corruption of Communism in Soviet Russia. Orwell uses Communism and Animalism in Animal Farm to define the theme of corruption by explaining how one group is superior to others in an expected egalitarian society and by demonstrating how people in power without control or opposition abuse it.

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“It is not wisdom but authority that makes a low.” Thomas Hobbes’ quote reveals that the world is all about authority and how powerful people are. In other words, to be able to rule, wisdom is not essential. However, authority is crucial. This quote relates to George Orwell’s Animal Farm as it represents the theme of power by the pigs that use propaganda, intimidation and false informations to take over the farm and to control the animals.

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The less intelligent animals have for example not realised that the swine add conditions to the rules of Animalism, work in their favour. Animal Farm begins increasingly to resemble a dictatorship where the less intelligent animals working for the more intelligent animals, just as all animals that initially did for the people. The pigs begin to behave more human. At one point they even begin to walk on two legs, while one of the first rules of Animalism was that everything on two legs was the enemy. That change is really visible when Napoleon 'traitors ' openly off late slaughter by his dogs.

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“Animal Farm” by George Orwell, is a story to show how absolute power corrupts, just as Stalin’s power did during the Russian Revolution in 1917. In the allegory “Animal Farm” each character represents a political figure from the days around the Russian Revolution. For example, Joseph Stalin is represented by a pig named Napoleon, Squealer, another pig, represents Stalin’s propaganda department, and the dogs represent the Secret Police (KBG). Using the nine dogs that Napoleon raises (intimidation), Squealer (propaganda), and manipulation, Orwell illustrates how Napoleon was able to gain and maintain control of the farm. The nine dogs that stay by Napoleon at all times are useful for Napoleon to gain and maintain control of the farm because they scare the other animals, intimidating them so that they do not disobey Napoleon.

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