Prompt: Dynamic characters change throughout the course of a story. Compare and contrast a main character from the beginning of the story to the end. Provide specific evidence from the book and talk about the relative importance of the setting.
For my fourth quarter book report I read the book “Animal Farm”, written by George Orwell in 1945. This book was set at a farm, seeming to be written as if it were to be set during the Russian Revolution (1917-1945) were the animals play the role of revolutionaries. Most of the main characters were animals except for Mr. Jones, the often drunk farmer who ran the Manor farm before the animals took over. The main animals were Napoleon and Snowball, both which are pigs and who challenge each other for control over the farm. This was a story in which the animals overule Mr.Jones, and rename the farm, “The Animal Farm”. They set up as a commune in which, at first, all animals are equal. However, this soon emerges between the different animal species, the pigs being the "more equal species". The novel describes how a society’s ideologies can be manipulated and twisted by those in positions of social and political power. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Animal_Farm) Throughout this essay I will tell you about the importance of the setting and describe the ways Napoleon changes over the course of the story.
The setting of this book was very important because it was set during the Russian Revolution in 1917 to 1945. This book was set during the Russian Revolution at Manor Farm. It symbolizes Russia and the Soviet Union under Communist Party rule. But more generally, Animal Farm stands for any human society, be it capitalist, socialist, fascist, or communist. It possesses the internal structure of a nation, with a government (the pigs), a
police force or army (the dogs), a working class (the other animals), and state holidays and rituals. Its location amid a number of hostile neighboring farms supports its symbolism as a political entity with diplomatic concerns. (http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/animalfarm/terms/theme_7.html) The setting being important because this is a time where these things such as racism and communism happened making this book a great story linking the rough times to a book where animals play Russian Revolutionaries.
Napoleon is one of the main pigs in the story. He is made out to be a bad guy from the start but somewhat changes throughout. One main change of character was when he and Snowball, the other pig, fought for the control of the farm. During this fight for control, he engages in suspicious activity, which breaks some of the seven commandments that all farm animals must live by. One for example was that every animal was to be treated equally. However, Napoleon adjusted the commandments saying, “All animals are equal but some animals are more equal than the others” (pg.?). They also caught him drinking the milk that everyone had gathered, which broke the commandment as well. Napoleon is untrustworthy and very selfish at this point and doesn’t care about anyone but himself. Later on Napoleon ordered the construction of the windmill. But when the windmill breaks, he is the first to blame Snowball. As the animals confess there s0 called “wrongdoing” they are executed as a sacrifice. They designed a new windmill and everyone had to build it except for the pigs and dogs. And after all of this, he changes the Seven Commandments prohibition against killing, drinking, and sleeping in beds. Then Napoleon makes a deal with Frederick, who tricks Napoleon by paying him for the wood with fake money and then invading the farm.
During the Battle of the Windmill, the windmill is destroyed, but the animals win, although they pay a high price. Napoleon attempts to cover the losses by saying it was a great victory for the animals. But while Napoleon tells the other animals to fight and die for the good of the farm, he himself is a coward. And to no suprise, Napoleon rewards himself as a hero, claiming full responsibility for the animal’s victory during the Battle of the Cowshed when in reality it was Snowball who had performed all the heroic acts in this battle. And this is where we start to see a change in Napoleon.
Napoleon here relizes that his acts have acted much like those of humans and admits at the end of the novel that he has decided to abolish the use of ‘comrade,’ and declares that the farm shall go back to its original name of Manor Farm, showing the
farm’s change of status going back to the beginning where humans took care of the animals.
So now you know a little about the book Animal Farm. And you know the importance of the setting and you see how Napoleon changes throughout the story. So if you would like to know more about The Animal Farm, then I suggest you read the book for yourself. (:
Un-sourced cites!
(All accessed on May 24th 2009)
§http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/animalfarm/
§Animal Farm. (2009, May 31). In Wikipedia, The Fr
