Half #1- Animal Farm

Half #1-Animal Farm

Synopsis

·         Gathering in the big barn to discuss Old Major's dream (all the animals get introduced)

·         Old Major tells the other animals that “man” is their enemy

·         The singing of “Beasts of England” bonds the animals together

·         The death of Old Major

·         The Rebellion

·         The pigs learn how to read and write so they could create “The Seven Commandments”

·         Snowball makes a green flag to represent the future Republic of the Animals

·         Napoleon takes responsibility of nine puppies and keeps them in a loft ( the puppies become Napoleon’s bodyguards)

·         Foxwood and Pinchfield farms are introduced

·         Rebelliousness activities take place across the countryside

·         Mr. Jones tries to take back his farm (Battle of the Cowshed)

·         Pigs are given the power towards farm policy

·         Napoleon urinates on the windmill plans. This portrays his disrespectful side of him

·         Disagreements between Snowball and Napoleon about the windmill and the defense of the farm

·         Snowball is chased off the farm by Napoleon’s dogs

·         Mr. Whymper is hired as an intermediary for trade between Animal Farm and the outside world, possibly other farms

·         The windmill is overthrown by Snowball during a stormy night

Characters Introduced

Mr. Jones is a drunk and the owner of "Manor Farm" before it became "Animal Farm". He is a flat and static character.
Major is a Middle White boar who dies early in the book. He is a round and static character.

Bluebell, Jessie and Pincher are the three dogs. Bluebell and Jessie give birth to nine puppies. They are flat and static characters.

Boxer and Clover are cart-horses. Boxer is a round and static character and Clover is a stout motherly mare who is a flat and static character.

Muriel is the white goat. She is a flat and static character.

Benjamin, the donkey, is the oldest animal on the farm and is a round and static character.

Napoleon is a pig who tries to run the farm and succeeds when Snowball is chased off. He is a round and static character.

Snowball is a pig and disputes with Napoleon. He gets chased off the farm by Napoleon’s trained dogs. He is a round and static character.

Mollie is a pretty white mare who loves to chew lumps of sugar. She is a round and static character.

Squealer is the pig who spreads influencing speeches and words to the other animals about what Napoleon says. Squealer also alters “The Seven Commandments”. He is a round and static character.

 Point of View

The story is told in the point of view of the animals in omniscient third person. As the reader, we get to experience the animals’ thoughts and feelings through their journey  and struggles of creating an Animal Republic.

Setting

The story takes place on a farm in England. The setting shows their isolation on the countryside, away from any big cities and how they must fend for themselves and build their own civilization.

Notables about George Orwell’s Style

Orwell uses allusions in the book for some of the characters. Napoleon relates to Hitler and how he gained so much power that no one would try to stop him. Anyone who opposed him was disposed of.

Statement of Themes

The theme for the first half of this book would be the power omitted by Napoleon and the naiveness of the animals. The animals try to think that something is wrong, which clearly is, but they can’t get their heads around the fact that Napoleon is taking over. Another theme could be the hypocrisy in the story.