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Explain the theme of leadership and corruption in the novel Animal farm by George orwell
A critique of animal farm by George Orwell
Issues of leadership and inequality in George Orwell animal farm
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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)
Looking back in international history, there is one thing that leads to an ultimatum within a leader or leaders ruling: power. Depending on what they do with their granted authority to create laws, laws and acts may be created for the people’s needs or their own selfish benefit. Every deceased or retired leader carries on a legacy that is to be challenged or benefited by the newest power’s control, rather it be in the democratic society the United States issues, where the people are the main voice of the state and its government, or a polar opposite such as Russia where leaders are solitary and decide what’s best for society within their own judgement and personal views. Placing authority within one person can cause a domino effect to its society. Within Animal Farm written by George Orwell on his standpoint of communism, there is a dream of equal opportunities and work for the animals residing on the farm prior to Major, a
He leads Animal Farm after Old Major had died, although he does not receive full power until after he forces Snowball off of the farm. Napoleon slowly and subtly changes the original idea of Animalism. He believes that in Animalism, “The truest happiness, he said, lay in working hard and living frugally” (Orwell 107). Animal Farm describes Napoleon as “a large, rather fierce looking Berkshire Boar… not much of a talker, but with a reputation for getting his own way”(Orwell 16). Stalin’s speech was considered by many to be quite “ponderous and graceless” (“Joseph Stalin” Encyclopedia of World Biography).
In 1932, Adolf Hitler slowly gained power over Germany, becoming the country’s chancellor, and eventually head of the government and armed forces. He used his position of power to manipulate the citizens of Germany and used propaganda to his advantage. He was the leader of his country, and his followers were faced with the ultimatum of death or loyalty. In George Orwell’s novella, Animal Farm, Napoleon rises to lead the entire farm; using his own methods of propaganda and administration over the animals. Like Hitler, he uses his leading position to scare his followers into fidelity.
We see time and time again in history where communism fails. Communism will always fail due to people being people. We see greedy leaders in the novel by George Orwell “Animal Farm”. Which are the pigs and they want the other animals to be oblivious to them changing the laws/rules. We see this happening in Russia with the communist leader Putin.
In George Orwell's Animal Farm, Napoleon, a pig leader that represents Stalin from the Russian Revolution plays a big role in the book as the pig leaders are a superior group among the population of Animal Farm. In the story Napoleon is representing Stalin in Animal Farm as the main leader after Mr.Jones is ran out of the farm and Old Major died, resembling how Stalin took over rising to power in Russia. Napoleon started as a seemingly good leader but that soon changed… Napoleon, just like Stalin started to have problems with citizens of their own community and tried to hurt people and take things away. Both leaders can be shown using their superiority and power to their advantage to get everything they wanted and felt was necessary.
George Orwell’s Animal Farm demonstrates that humans with out proper authority or government to rule over them, everything collapses. George Orwell himself was a humanist and believed in no God but rather that humans could exist themselves in some sort of perfect utopia. However, major world event happening at the time of publishing for this book suggested otherwise. The discovery of Hitler’s concentration camps and attempted genocide proved, very much so, that humans left to themselves can be horrible, twisted up being. From a Christian perspective, human nature is sinful and, with no God, can not live in harmony.
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.
Furthermore, Napoleon gives the other animals the impression he was the sole leader of the rebellion on Animal farm and makes Snowball -a leader who wanted what was best for the animals- seem like an enemy who was in cahoots with Farmer Jones since long before the animals took over the farm. Napoleon and Squealer (another “fat cat” pig.) always put the blame on Snowball whenever something went wrong in the farm to avoid having the blame fall on them. Napoleon is an exemplary example of just how selfish and hypocritical people can be in furthering their own aims because he continued to subtly but purposely change the seven rules put in place as the pillars of animalism. For example, Napoleon and the other pigs move into Farmer Jones’s house and sleep in his bed after commanding “No animal shall sleep in a bed”, so he changes the commandment to read “no animal shall sleep in a bed with sheets”.
The judgement on leaders differ depending on from whom perspective we see the leader. In George Orwell’s Animal Farm, there are two totally different types of leaders, Snowball and Napoleon. In the end, Napoleon, rather than Snowball, is thought as a leader. Although Napoleon is drawn as a self-centred, tyrannical leader, he is an effective one and has a great impact on animals.
Me As Your Leader “A leader is one who knows the way, goes the way, and shows the way.” Quoted by John C. Maxwell an American author, speaker, and pastor, who’s written many books about leadership. Eva is a futuristic novel written by Charles Dickinson which is about a young girl whose world is overpopulated by humans, she becomes badly injured, and the only way the doctors could save her was by transplanting her brain neurons into a chimp’s brain. She decides to help the chimps escape from being future tests subjects; Eva must earn their trust to be able to bring them to one of the last remaining jungles.
George Orwell’s novel ‘Animal Farm’ is an tale about a farm full of animals who start a rebellion, they have many problems and it doesn’t always end well. The moral of the story is, “Authority is great unless it is in the wrong hands.” Napoleon states that Jones’s and Snowball’s leadership was unsatisfactory but, he is doing the same things and worse. Animals are willing to work vigorously and believe whoever is leading them because they aspire to be free. Humans and animals do not get along in the beginning, but as the story goes on they become more and more alike.
Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely” (Lord Acton) This quote is telling us that when people get into roles of absolute power they tend to become corrupt, as a result of that power. This quote can be applied to Napoleon from the book Animal Farm by George Orwell, because at the beginning of the novel Old Major’s words inspired Napoleon. As a result, he believed that humans were evil for forcing animals to work for them and that animals should be able to live freely, not under anyone’s control; however, as the story progresses his belief changed and the animals did not get to live their utopian dream. At the start Napoleon and the other pigs strongly believed that all animals were equal and had the right to live in a place that took care of their well being.
“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.
Back in history, many leaders are overthrown and killed because corruption of power. Due to the fact, power was not distributed properly to the people they often feel uncomfortable and leads to rebellion. Yet, power corruptions are common these days, it is proven that power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely by history and in modern days. In George Orwell’s Animal Farm, Lord Acton’s statement, “Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.” applies to much of the rulers in Animal Farm that show dictatorship and violence.
