Olap@bookwyrm.social reviewed Animal Farm by George Orwell
Thinly veiled communism
3 stars
Well, power corrupts, and leaders are all evil. Short at least, and will stick with you. Would liked to have seen Snowball have a final say
Hardcover, 128 pages
English language
Published Jan. 6, 2021 by Pengiun Books Ltd..
When the downtrodden animals of Manor Farm overthrow their master, Mr Jones, and take over the farm themselves, they imagine it is the beginning of a life of freedom and equality. But gradually a cunning, ruthless elite among them, masterminded by the pigs Napoleon and Snowball, starts to take control. Soon the other animals discover that they are not all as equal as they thought, and find themselves hopelessly ensnared as one form of tyranny is replaced with another. Orwell's chilling 'fairy story' is a timeless and devastating satire of idealism betrayed by power and corruption.
Well, power corrupts, and leaders are all evil. Short at least, and will stick with you. Would liked to have seen Snowball have a final say
I first read this in year seven or year eight at secondary school. Back then, we would stop after each chapter and analyse what we had just read. I think back to those classes with much intellectual happiness and greatly miss being able to hear everyone's opinions about the different characters and their narrative directions. I asked a group of my friends the other day what they thought about Orwell and none of them knew who he was. I, then, mentioned Animal Farm and 1984 and got the same response. I'm not writing this to speak negatively on them (for I, still, have not read 1984) but I just think it's an interesting direction that society may be going towards. On another analyse of this same situation, I think it's also fascinating to understand the different books everyone had to read during their schooling. For me, it was predominantly Animal …
I first read this in year seven or year eight at secondary school. Back then, we would stop after each chapter and analyse what we had just read. I think back to those classes with much intellectual happiness and greatly miss being able to hear everyone's opinions about the different characters and their narrative directions. I asked a group of my friends the other day what they thought about Orwell and none of them knew who he was. I, then, mentioned Animal Farm and 1984 and got the same response. I'm not writing this to speak negatively on them (for I, still, have not read 1984) but I just think it's an interesting direction that society may be going towards. On another analyse of this same situation, I think it's also fascinating to understand the different books everyone had to read during their schooling. For me, it was predominantly Animal Farm and Of Mice and Men but, for others, it could be something different entirely. To actually talk on the book, it's brilliant. The allegorical nature of it's narrative means that everything can be understood on several layers and the application of contextual theory to the characters allows for an even deeper understanding each time. This is a book you can revisit several times throughout your life and get a different evaluation each time. I can't wait to read 1984 (which is next).
A much shorter and maybe even slightly more relatable dystopian story about a micro-society of intelligent farm animals turned authoritarianism. The story walks you through a process starting with great ideas for the common good, slowly perverted into one "persons" will.
A great, easy read that complimenets or perhaps precedes 1984. At least sets up the "early phase" of what 1984 portrays.