What is symbolism in the book Animal Farm?

Answer 1

Animal Farm was an allegorical novel by George Orwell that satirized the Bolshevik Revolution and Soviet communism. Most, if not all, elements of the story had some symbolic reference:

Characters

• Mr. Jones - Mr. Jones is a farmer, and the owner of Manor Farm. He represents the last Tsar of Russia, Nicholas Alexandrovich Romanov (Nicholas II).

• Mrs. Jones - She represents the Tsar's wife, Alexandra.

• Mr. Pilkington - Owner of Foxwood (leader of England). He doesn't represent one person in particular, but rather is a composite of all of the leaders of England.

• Mr. Frederick - Owner of Pinchfield (leader of Germany). Frederick is a composite of the leaders of Germany. However, throughout most of the book, Frederick is a representation of Hitler. It is said that Frederick had ''flogged an old horse to death (a reference to Hitler's euthanasia program), he had starved his cows, he had killed a dog by throwing it into the furnace (most likely a reference to Night of Knives), and that he amused himself in the evenings by making cocks fight with splinters of razor-blade tied to their spurs.''

• Mr. Whymper - A solicitor living in Willingdon. Acted as an intermediary between Animal Farm and the outside world in matters of trade. Represents capitalists who did business with the Soviet state.

• Napoleon - Napoleon is Joseph Stalin, the second leader of the Soviet Union. Animal farm skips the short rule of Vladimir Lenin (combining Lenin with Karl Marx in the character Old Major), and has Napoleon leading the farm with Snowball from the beginning of the revolution.

• Squealer - This pig represents the Russian media, which spread Stalin's version of the truth to the masses.

• Snowball - Snowball represents Leon Trotsky. Trotsky was one of the original revolutionaries. However, as Stalin rose to power he became one of Stalin's biggest enemies, and was eventually expelled from the Politburo in 1925, one year after Stalin took control of the nation. In the novel, Snowball was exiled from the farm just as Trotsky had been in 1929. But Trotsky was not only exiled in body, he was also exiled from the minds of the Russian people. His historical role was altered, his face was cut out of group photographs of the leaders of the revolution. In the Soviet Union, he was denounced as a traitor and conspirator, and in 1940 a Stalinist agent assassinated him in Mexico City.

• Old Major - The father of "Animalism". He represents Karl Marx, but in some ways also symbolizes the original communist leader, Vladimir Lenin. (In the book, Old Major's skull is displayed in a similar manner to the way Lenin's remains were displayed to the public).

• Boxer - Boxer represents the working class of the Soviet Union. Boxer is portrayed as being a dedicated worker, but possessing a less-than-average intelligence. His personal motto was, "I will work harder!". The novel describes the horses as being the pig's "most faithful disciples" and that they "absorbed everything that they were told [by the pigs], and passed it on to the other animals by simple arguments".

• Clover - Boxer's female counterpart, Clover represented those that could see through Stalin's conspiracy against the ideals of Soviet communism.

• Mollie - Mollie represented the Russian aristocracy that initially supported the Bolshevik Revolution, but later fled the Soviet Union yearning for their previous lifestyle. This is represented by Mollie's initial support of The Rebellion, but later missing her life of being pampered with sugar cubes and ribbons. She eventually flees to live in another farm.

• Puppies - The puppies (offspring of Bluebell and Jessie) represent the Soviet military and police force. In the beginning of the book, they voted against accepting the rats and rabbits as "comrades". Shortly after the revolution, several pups are stolen from their mothers. Later in the book, these pups (now fully grown and fully trained) protect Napoleon from a second potential revolution, and help to enforce his decrees.

• Jessie, Bluebell, and Pincher - The only three dogs that are mentioned by name. They do not have a very active role in the novel. All three are mentioned as being present at Old Major's meeting, but Pincher is never mentioned again afterwards (except in the "epilogue", when it is mentioned that all three dogs are dead). Jesse and Bluebell are the mothers of the pups which serve as Napoleon's bodyguards. Jesse and Bluebell also participate in the Battle of the Windmill.

• Birds - The primary motto of Animalism is "Four legs good, two legs bad". The birds argued with this saying, since it seems to exclude them, which have two legs and two wings. Squealer set them at ease by explaining, "A bird's wing, comrades, is an organ of propulsion and not of manipulation. It should therefore be regarded as a leg. The distinguishing mark of man is the hand, the instrument with which he does all his mischief."

• Moses - The raven, Moses, symbolizes the Russian Orthodox Church. In the beginning of the novel, Moses was Mr. Jones's pet, who reported all news concerning the animals to him. Moses fled the farm shortly after The Rebellion, but eventually returned. Moses never did any work, except tell stories, primarily of Sugar Candy Mountain (an allegory of the Christian belief of Heaven), a paradise where animals lived on after they have died. At first, Napoleon tried to get rid of Moses, but eventually Moses was allowed to stay on the farm and was even given a small ration of beer.

• Hens - The hens represent the peasant farmers in the Soviet Union, who are ordered to surrender their eggs to Napoleon. This is a reference to Stalin's attempt to collectivize the peasant farmers of Russia. The hens attempted to resist the order at first, just as the peasant farmers of the Ukraine did. However, both the hens and the farmers were starved into submission in their respective stories. In Animal Farm, nine hens died during the incident. In the Soviet Union, it is estimated that somewhere between four and ten million Ukrainian peasants were starved to death by Stalin. Also in the story, the hens attempted to resist Napoleon by smashing their eggs, preventing Napoleon from obtaining them. In response Napoleon executed the hens who responsible for the act. This is allegorical to the peasant farmers who slaughtered their livestock to prevent Stalin from obtaining them. Stalin responded by executing any farmer found guilty of the act.

• Pigeons - The pigeons, who fly out each day to spread the word about Animalism to the other farms in Willingdon, represent the Communist International, an organization founded in Moscow who's main goal was to spread communism around the globe.

• Benjamin and Muriel - Benjamin and Muriel represented the elderly citizens of the Soviet Union. Because of Napoleon's corruption, they eventually become one of the few animals who still remembered The Rebellion. They easily see through Napoleon's conspiracy. This is symbolic of the elderly that still resided in Russia, the only ones that still reflected upon the Bolshevik Revolution and could still see through Stalin's plans.

• Rats and Rabbits - The rats and rabbits are the wild animals that live on the farm. They represent beggars, thieves, and gypsies. During the first animal meeting, a vote is taken on whether or not these creatures should be considered as "comrades". It is decided that they should be included as "animals".

• Sheep - The sheep represent the masses of the Soviet Union. Both the sheep and the masses blindly follow their respective leaders and repeat anything that they say. They appear to not have a mind of their own.

Settings

• Animal Farm - Animal Farm represented the Soviet Union (USSR). "Animal Farm" is the name the animals gave their farm after The Rebellion.

• Manor Farm - Manor Farm represented Russia. Manor Farm was the original name run under Mr. Jones.

• Foxwood - Foxwood represents England. The novel describes it as "a large, neglected, old-fashioned farm, much overgrown by woodland, with all its pastures worn out and its hedges in a disgraceful condition. Its owner, Mr. Pilkington, was an easy-going gentleman farmer who spent most of his time in fishing or hunting according to the season."

• Pinchfiled - Pinchfiled represents Germany. Orwell described it as "smaller and better kept. Its owner was a Mr. Frederick, a tough, shrewd man, perpetually involved in lawsuits and with a name for driving hard bargains."

• Willingdon - All of the farms mentioned in the book are located in the city of Willingdon, which is a metaphor of Europe.

• England - Since farms represent the various nations in Europe (Willingdon), England is a representation of the entire world.

• The Farmhouse - The Farmhouse represented the Kremlin, where Mr. Jones (the Tsar) resided in before The Rebellion. After the revolution, there were some that wanted to destroy the Farmhouse, but it was decided to preserve it as a museum. (The Kremlin was saved in a similar manner). Eventually, Napoleon (Stalin) decided to take up residence there.

• Sugar Candy Mountain - Sugar Candy Mountain is an allegorical reference to the Christian belief of Heaven (Christian because it is a reference to the Russian Orthodox Church). In the novel, Moses "...claimed to know of the existence of a mysterious country called Sugarcandy Mountain, to which all animals went when they died. It was situated somewhere up in the sky, a little distance beyond the clouds, Moses said. In Sugarcandy Mountain it was Sunday seven days a week, clover was in season all the year round, and lump sugar and linseed cake grew on the hedges. The animals hated Moses because he told tales and did no work, but some of them believed in Sugarcandy Mountain, and the pigs had to argue very hard to persuade them that there was no such place". Later in the novel, the pigs quietly allow Moses (the Church) to return to the farm. Here, Orwell is demonstrating religion's use of an "opiate of the masses". The pigs realized that by offering their subjects the promise of a mystical reward after their death, it would help make their miserable over-worked lives more bearable for them to endure.

Others

• Animalism - A reference to Soviet communism.

• The Hoof and Horn - A reference to the national Soviet symbol, the Hammer and Sickle.

• Animal Committees - A representation of the Soviet Committees.

• Beasts of England - Allegorical to the original socialist anthem, The Internationale. Beasts of England is later replaced by Animal Farm! (National Anthem of the Soviet Union), which in turn is later replaced by Comrade Napoleon.

• Windmill - The Windmill is a symbol for Stalin's Five-Year Plans for the National Economy of the Soviet Union. Just as the Windmill was promised to make the animal's life easier, the Five-Year Plans were supposed to improve Soviet industry to the point where work-weeks could be shortened substantially. And just like the Windmill, Stalin's plans were an utter failure. After the destruction of the Windmill, the animals decided to build another one and in real-life, Stalin kept churning out new Five-Year Plans, promising that each new plan would solve all of Russia's problems and bring the USSR closer to parity with the industrialized nations of the west.

• Drinking of alcohol - After The Rebellion, it is decided that animals should never consume alcohol. After a short time, the pigs began to break this cardinal rule. This is a metaphor for the intoxicating effects of power.

• The Rebellion - An allegory of the Bolshevik Revolution.

• The Battle of Cowshed - An allegory to the Russian Civil War.

• Mass executions - The series of executions incited by Napoleon are a reference to the Great Purge performed by Stalin from 1936-1938.

• Selling of the wood to Frederick - A reference to the Nazi-Soviet Pact.

• The Battle of the Windmill - An allegory to the Battle of Stalingrad, an invasion of Russia by Nazi forces.

Answer 2

In "Animal Farm," symbolism is used to represent various concepts and historical events. For example, the animals on the farm represent different aspects of society, with the pigs symbolizing the ruling class. The farm itself represents Russia, with the animals' rebellion against the humans mirroring the Russian Revolution.

Answer 3

The whole book is filled with symbolism on events happening in Russia and with Russia's European neighbors. You can find more information in the related links area