Pre-reading

1. The key term of this chapter is ‘***Democracy***’. What does democracy mean?

ANSWER:

a. Democracy is a system of government in which laws, policies, leadership, and major

undertakings of a state are decided by the people.

2. List some democracies.

3. How is democracy better than other forms of government?

a. Democratic governments prevent rule by dictators.

b. Democratic governments guarantee fundamental individual rights.

c. Democratic governments allow for a relatively high level of political equality.

d. Democratic governments rarely make war on each other.

e. Democratic governments provide more prosperity for their citizens, and ensure a

broader range of personal freedoms.

4. With all that being said, are democracies perfect?

OPEN TO INTERPRETATION:

a. Personally, I think democracies are perfect in theory, but the human element screws it

up. It’s not as bad now, but in the past, democracies were often exclusive. For

example, in Athens, the city where democracy was founded, only men could vote.

And in America, at one point, only rich white men could vote, so racism, sexism, and

classism were all at play. And even after voting became a universal right, those in

power still used loopholes to disenfranchise people. During the Jim Crow era, black

people and poor white people were given literacy tests before they were allowed to
 vote. That’s not necessarily bad, but the questions were structured in such a way that

you passed or failed according to the supervisor’s discretion.

5. Now, lately, many countries have seen a decrease in voter turnout. What do you think

causes people to not take part in the democratic process?

POSSIBLE ANSWERS:

a. Previously-elected leaders were corrupt.

b. They think their vote has no impact on who wins.

c. They think the major parties are one and the same.

d. They feel defeated by the system.

i. What measures do you think should be taken to fix that issue?

POSSIBLE ANSWERS:

 Make it easier to actually cast one’s vote.

 Make voting mandatory.

* * * It can be argued that it’s good to know if people don’t want to

vote because low turnout can be a sign of inadequacies in the

democratic process or some other area. We’re going to see some of

those inadequacies in this chapter. Let’s begin. ***

Recap & Analysis

1. So, in this chapter, we see that Animal Farm is drastically different from Manor Farm.

How do the two farms differ in terms of:

a. Management - The animals work as hard as they want. They plan out what would be

done days in advance.

b. Productivity- The animals are able to produce more food in a shorter amount of time.

c. Happiness levels - Nobody stole, nobody grumbled over his rations, the quarrelling

and biting and jealousy which had been normal features of life in the old days had

almost disappeared.

2. So, with that being said, would you call Animal Farm a utopia?

POSSIBLE ANSWERS:

a. YES – The animals have food, a sense of freedom, and a sense that they are profiting

from their own work.

b. NO – Some of the animals do not contribute to the work of the society, nor do they

all enjoy the fruits of their labour. For example, Mollie continues to rise later than the

others and abandons work sooner on the pretext of an injured hoof. The cat, too, has a

way of disappearing during work time and reappearing for food. The pigs award

themselves benefits the other animals do not enjoy under false pretences. The

meetings at which the animals are supposedly able to voice opinions are ironic in that

the pigs are the only ones to present any resolutions because no one else has anything

to present. Of course, all of the pigs’ resolutions serve the pigs’ best interests. Thus,
 the animals still exist under a ruling class that does not really seem to have the

animals’ best interests at heart.

c. NO – There is an educational gap between the pigs and other animals. The pigs are

not working. The pigs stole the milk and took the apples for themselves, and lied

about needing them. Napoleon took the puppies.

3. In one of the opening paragraphs, Orwell says “And not an animal on the farm had stolen

so much as a mouthful.” What’s significant about that line?

ANSWER:

a. It is ironic because Napoleon stole the milk in the previous chapter, and the pigs kept

this from the other animals.

4. Orwell mentions that the cat is never around when work is to be done but always present

during dinner time. Which group of people does she remind you of?

ANSWER:

a. The cat is similar to the rich elite, getting away with petty crimes like being late to

work, yet still receiving benefits. In Animal Farm, these benefits are food, while in

the real world this includes money, tax evasion, and other sorts of economic fraud.

5. Whenever Benjamin is asked if he’s happy with how things are now, he gives a very

strange response. What does he say?

ANSWER:

a. “Donkeys live a long time. None of you has ever seen a dead donkey.”

i. What is he suggesting?

POSSIBLE ANSWERS:
  With his age have come experience and insight. As a result, there are

few surprises for Benjamin. He could not be enthusiastic about the

Revolution because he had seen such efforts fail before.

 He has seen other promises of improvement to the animals' lives but

has also seen how those promises came to nothing.

 Donkeys are hardy and will survive and endure no matter what is

inflicted on them.

 He is the oldest animal on the farm and he plans to do whatever is

necessary to stay alive.

 He does not expect the changes promised by the rebellion to have any

lasting impact.

 His will outlive this latest change in the farm's leadership.

***Honestly, there’s no right answer because we can’t know what

Benjamin has seen in the past. ***

6. During the Sunday meetings, the pigs pretty much decide what happens. The other

animals don’t actually participate. Why?

a. The pigs are understood to be the most intelligent of all the animals.

i. Can you blame them for having that mentality? Should smart people make all

the decisions?

OPEN TO INTERPRETATION:

 Personally, I don’t think only smart people should vote. BUT, I think

voters should be educated so they can make informed decisions.

7. Now, to the pigs’ credit, they actually attempt to close the educational gap. But the

animals all have varying degrees of literacy. In addition to that, different animals have

different interests.

ANSWER:

a. For starters, what do the pigs read? – Educational books

b. What do the dogs read? – The Seven Commandments

c. What does Muriel read? - Newspapers

d. What does Benjamin read? – He doesn’t read.

8. What does each animal’s reading material of choice says about them and their future

role?

ANSWERS:

a. The pigs’ choice to read educational books suggests that they will become the explicit

leaders of the farm.

b. The dogs’ choice to read only the Seven Commandments suggests that they’ll become

loyal to the cause and are uninterested in truly educating themselves and that they will

be the ones who enforce the commandments.

c. Muriel’s choice to read newspapers suggests an interest in the outside world and

possibly, in other ideas of how life should be.

d. Benjamin’s refusal to read suggests that he will be a fence sitter to the bitter end.

9. For convenience sake, Snowball compresses the commandments to “Four legs good, two

legs bad.” What’s your opinion of it? Is it effective or not?

POSSIBLE ANSWERS:
a. YES – It helps the more simpleminded animals remember the core message of Old

Major’s speech.

b. NO - The shortened commandments do not provide a truly accurate translation of the

original. It also confuses the birds.

i. On that note, compare how the birds and Snowball interpreted the meaning of

‘Four legs good, two legs bad.’ Can you really blame the birds for thinking

they were being excluded? What problems did that scene highlight?

POSSIBLE ANSWERS:

 Slogans can be easily misinterpreted.

 The ruling class will interpret the rules as they see fit.

 Orwell is also illustrating the importance of education in establishing

and maintaining a democracy. If the animals had been able to read and

understand the law for themselves, they would not have needed any

simplification.

ii. I also want you guys to pay attention to the sheep. With their incessant

bleating of ‘four legs good, two legs bad,’ what kind of people do the sheep

remind you of?

ANSWER:

 Fanatics

iii. What makes people like the sheep so dangerous?

POSSIBLE ANSWERS:

 They prevent civil debates.

 They support leaders no matter what.

10. What do you think of Napoleon’s decision to teach the dogs in secret?

ANSWER:

He’s going to use them to stage an uprising of his own.

i. Possibly! And besides being very suspicious, the decision to teach the dogs, and

ONLY the dogs, is also a violation of the rules of Animalism. Which rule do you

think was violated?

ANSWER:

 Once again, the rule that was violated was “All animals are equal”.

Napoleon is dictating who is able to move up the class system and gain

power.

ii. How does Napoleon's decision to take and raise Jessie's and Bluebell's puppies

contradict Old Major’s vision?

ANSWER:

 A large part of Old Major's speech in Chapter 1 addresses the familial

losses many animals face as a result of the humans' greed, as in when

Jones takes away eggs that might have been chicks and sells Clover's

foals. Presumably after the rebellion, animals will be able to keep their

offspring and form the family bonds denied by their human masters. Yet

when Jessie and Bluebell whelp nine puppies, Napoleon immediately

takes them away from their mothers. He presents his action as a decision

in the puppies' best interests, saying he will educate them, but the action

still runs counter to Old Major's early ideas, as the puppies will be raised

to serve Napoleon rather than form connections with their dog families.
11. When the animals complain about the pigs taking the apples, how is Squealer able to

convince them to accept it?

ANSWERS:

a. He uses outright lies.

b. He appeals to the animals’ patriotism.

c. He guilt trips the animals for thinking the pigs were acting selfishly.

d. He ends with the threat that Jones will return if the pigs are not obeyed.

***The worst part of Squealer’s spiel is that he’s using basic tricks, but the animals aren’t

educated enough to see through his deception. Now, let’s have a little test. ***