The Squealing Pig
Would you like to learn about communism in such a way that you receive a clear picture of what it is? The Novel Animal Farm by George Orwell gives you somewhat of who Stalin was and what communism is. It portrays Stalin as a pig named Napoleon and the other animals as the people under Stalin’s rule, oblivious to what was actually going on. Napoleon used another pig named Squealer to spread lies about what the pigs were actually doing so that the other animals would stay under his command. Through the whole book lies were told so that the animals would not revolt, thus the pigs remained in command. In many ways, Squealer tricked the other animals into believing that what the pigs were doing was correct. When they were gathering apples. When the pigs started to use the farmhouse beds to sleep in. and when napoleon decided to build the Windmill. Squealer convinces the animals in all three situations.
When the first apples began to fall of the tree, the pigs had the other animals collect them. The other animals thought that they would be shared equally between them but the pigs had other ideas. The pigs declared that all milk and apples would go to them only. When the other animals complained the pigs sent Squealer to explain. “Milk and apples (this has been proved by Science, comrades) contain substances absolutely necessary to the well-being of a pig. The whole management and organisation of this farm depends on us. Day and night we are watching over
There are instances in Animal Farm when the spin of information avails to build a more preponderant sense of community amongst the animals, heightening their sense of kinship and the notion that they are accomplishing the goals that they first set out to achieve in ousting Mr. Jones. This occurs most efficaciously when the animals’ spirits are at their lowest, such as during the rigorous winter when supplies are dwindling and morale is down. Squealer engenders statistics that contradicts the authenticity of their situation by proving that they are much better off. His figures ‘prove’ “that they lived longer, that a more astronomically immense proportion of their adolescent ones survived infancy, and that they had more straw in their stalls and suffered less from fleas. The animals believed every word of it” (33).
In the story, Squealer shows he is the propagandist in many different situations. His ability to use language, gaslight, and persuade others is very effective. This ability affects specific animals and the events that occur. A specific example is when Squealer sneakily attempted to gaslight the animals into believing something that they truly did not see.
In a speech given by Squealer to justify this claim, he uses rhetorical questions, juxtaposition, and ideas far beyond most animals to strengthen his pathos and logos; his argument that defines that pigs are the most adept animals and deserve only the best. As the animals find out that the pigs have been stockpiling and enjoying luxuries that the other animals have not, they rightfully feel gulled. Squealer addresses this early on in his speech, “You do not imagine, I hope, that we pigs are doing this in a spirit of selfishness and privilege?”. This is the hook that intrigues the animals and lures them into the argument through curiosity. He then states that, “Many of us actually dislike milk and apples.
An element of propaganda the animals used to influence others is the scare tactics technique. The scare tactic technique is when one is trying to warn the audience that some disaster will overtake them if they do not do what is suggested. To illustrate this method, the author writes “It is for your sake that we drink that milk and eat those apples. You know what would happen if we pigs failed in our duty?
Shortly after this was passed, the pigs began to use barley to make alcohol and they had gotten drunk for the first time, resulting in Squealer having to change the
The Extinguished Hope Imagine a single, lonely flame. Its vitality, its survival, depends on you. Now imagine the emotional commitment you have set forth to preserve this oscillating light, this sliver of hope. Now imagine that it wisps out of existence, from one moment to another.
At the heart of a seemingly simple, unassuming novella lie political issues that occurred in Russia during and after the Russian Revolution in 1917. George Orwell’s allegorical ‘masterpiece’ as some would say, stems from his own opinions and detestation of the class divide. He shows that an egalitarian society is unachievable, when some characters that exercise power within Animal Farm use forms of both psychological warfare and physical threats in order to keep the ‘lesser’ animals under their control in order to maintain their society which supposedly follows the principles of Animalism; that ‘all animals are equal’. The pigs employ various tactics and express ways of thinking that convince the animals that they are better off than they had
The rulers of the farm take advantage of the low reading skills that the rest of the animals possess and use that weakness against them, as the animals just believe whatever the pigs tell them to, as they have no reason not to. The pigs’ goals seem intact and they do
Animal Farm- Lies and Deceit The book Animal Farm by George Orwell portrays the theme of how someone can lie and deceive others to get what they want just like how the two pigs Napoleon and Squealer used lies and deceit to gain power over Animal Farm. Napoleon lied to other animals, Squealer lied to other animals and they both deceived the other animals, but the sad part is that neither of them lied for the better of the other animals. They both lied to get what they want- power over the animals and the farm.
Right after Squealer defended the pigs sleeping in the farmhouse, the pigs were given another special benefit. “...it was announced that from now on the pigs would get up an hour later in the mornings than the other animals…”(Page 62). Why can’t the other animals wake up later? This announcement proves that the pigs were given more benefits than all the other animals. Another example of this discrimination is how all the pigs and dogs have comfortable beds and enough food to feed their large community.
George Orwell portrays Napoleon as Stalin in many similar ways. Just as some leaders use dictatorship to control political aspects, pigs also use dictatorship to control animals. Animal Farm uses characterization to suggest that although cruel leadership can be effective, it will lead to
One dominant theme in animal farm is totalitarianism and abuse of power. Totalitarianism is defined as a political system in which the state possesses complete authority over the society and controls all aspects of public and private life whenever necessary. The author criticized totalitarianism and believed that it was inevitable in a communist system, as those put in charge will result in the abuse of their power. The theme Orwell intended to get across was that all totalitarian regimes are the same and those who hold power will do anything to maintain it. The pigs, who were the leaders, frequently displayed this throughout the novel.
He makes them believe everything he and the pigs are doing is for the greater good of the whole farm despite the fact that it is not. Squealer controls them in many ways but the strongest or most apparent are telling the other animals Mr. Jones their neglective abusive owner will come back, lying about Boxer the horse’s death, and finally changing the unalterable commandments into one that reads “All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others”. One of the very first and most used techniques Squealer uses is instilling fear in the animals. He does this by threatening Jones’s return.
Revolutions are fundamentally unavoidable when democracy fails to exist. Revolutions occur when people feel unjust and mistreated. In Animal Farm, George Orwell writes of a revolution by farm animals against their human leader, Jones. The lack of a democracy and harsh inequality is the root cause of this revolution. In December of 2010 large uprisings and revolutions started around the Middle East and Northern Africa known as Arab Spring.
George Orwell’s novel, Animal Farm, was a great example of political satire and allegory. One of the main ideas in this novel was how each event paralleled events from the Russian Revolution. The novel was written to criticize tyrannical rule and particularly Joseph Stalin's corrupt rule in Russia. The characters, settings, and plot described the social disturbance during this period and proved how the good nature of communism could be turned into something atrocious from an idea as simple as greed.