The Role Of Ignorance In George Orwell's Animal Farm

“Nothing in the world is more dangerous than sincere ignorance and conscientious stupidity” (Martin Luther King Jr.). People’s ignorance can contribute to political and social oppression. In the book Animal Farm, by George Orwell, the animals are attempting to work together to break free from mankind. What the animals on the farm don’t realize is that they are becoming persecuted due to the fact that they have very little knowledge, they are being tricked by the pigs, and they had not been willing to connect the idea that the pigs are becoming more like humans soon enough. The animals on the farm had very little knowledge. With the exception of the pigs, dogs, Muriel, and Benjamin, the animals could barely read anything. ”None of the other animals on the farm could get further than the letter A”

When Boxer was seriously injured, the pigs ordered a veterinary surgeon to pick up Boxer, but in reality, they were sending him to a horse slaughterer. “But the explanation was really very simple. The van had previously been property of the knacker, and had been bought by the veterinary surgeon, who had not yet painted the old name out” (Orwell, 125). It seems rather suspicious that a veterinary would purchase something that would abuse animals, especially since money can be used to help improve the productivity of the organization and provides further support to them. The animals were also supposed to acquire luxuries and rest after working hard. “Napoleon had denounced such ideas as contrary to the spirit of Animalism. The truest happiness, he said, lay in working hard and living frugally” (Orwell, 129). Working to a certain degree does bring satisfaction, but doing too much can lead to stress and can even cause people to collapse from exhaustion. Chicanery can lead to an oppressive, unstable environment, and can cover up the reality of the current