George Orwell

A satire on totalitarianism in which farm animals overthrow their human owner and set up their own government

A Fairy Story

Animal Farm

tanaz

And the behaviour of the cat was somewhat peculiar. It was soon noticed that when there was work to be done the cat could never be found. She would vanish for hours on end, and then reappear at meal- times, or in the evening after work was over, as though nothing had happened. But she always made such excellent excuses, and purred so affectionately, that it was impossible not to believe in her good intentions.

I disagree she’s got her priorities straight 😔✊🏻

The stupidest questions of al were asked by Mollie, the white mare. 

The very first question she asked Snowball was: "Will there still be sugar after the Rebellion? 

"No said Snowball firmly. "We have no means of making sugar on this farm. Besides, you do not need sugar. You will have all the oats and hay you want." 

"And shall I stil be allowed to wear ribbons in my mane?" asked Mollie. 

"Comrade," said Snowball, "those ribbons that you are so devoted to are the badge of slavery.Can you not understand that liberty is worth more than ribbons? 

Mollie agreed, but she did not sound very convinced.

And remember also that in fighting against Man, we must not come to resemble him. Even when you have conquered him, do not adopt his vices. No animal must ever live in a house, or sleep in a bed, or wear clothes, or drink alcohol, or smoke tobacco, or touch money, or engage in trade. All the habits of Man are evil. And, above all, no animal must ever tyrannise over his own kind. Weak or strong, clever or simple, we are all brothers. No animal must ever kill any other animal. All animals are equal.

Benjamin was the oldest animal on the farm, and the worst tempered. He seldom talked, and when he did, it was usually to make some cynical remark for instance, he would say that God had given him a tail to keep the flies off, but that he would sooner have had no tail and no flies. Alone among the animals on the farm he never laughed. If asked why, he would say that he saw nothing to laugh at.

Sashi

The creatures outside looked from pig to man, and from man to pig, and from pig to man again: but already it was impossible to say which was which.

After much choking, during which his various chins turned purple, he managed to get it out: If you have your lower animals to contend with, he said, ‘we have our lower classes!'

This shows how ruling class would willingly bend the rules to achieve their own interests.

They had thought that the Fifth Commandment was 'No animal shall drink alcohol’, but there were two words that they had forgotten. Actually the Commandment read: 'No animal shall drink alcohol to excess.'

Instead – she did not know why – they had come toa time when no one dared speak his mind, when fierce, growling dogs roamed everywhere, and when you had to watch your comrades torn to pieces after confessing to shocking crimes.

This is very interesting, seeing how the more ‘clever’ animals naturally took the more important roles and how the others, more ‘unintelligent’ ones just follow along because they don’t know any better.

It was always the pigs who put forward the resolutions. The other animals understood how to vote, but could never think of any resolutions of their own.

Interesting analogy. This is how oppressors usually look at the oppressed.

They had never seen animals behave like this before, and this sudden uprising of creatures whom they were used to thrashing and maltreating just as they chose, frightened them almost out of their wits.

Why then do we continue in this miserable condition? Because nearly the whole of the produce of our labour is stolen from us by human beings.

Luca Stromann

No one believes more firmly than Comrade Napoleon that all animals are equal. He would be only too happy to let you make your decisions for yourselves. But sometimes you might make the wrong decisions, comrades, and then where should we be?

Day and night we are watching over your welfare. It is for your sake that we drink that milk and eat those apples.

Gabi🌸🌷

Sve su životinje jednake, ali neke su životinje jednakije od drugih.

Dvanaest glasova bijesno je vikalo , i svi su bili jednaki. Sada je bilo jasno što se promijenilo u izgledu svinja. Pogled životinja koje su vani stajale klizio je od svinje do čovjeka, od čovjeka do svinje, ali već je bilo nemoguće raspoznati tko je svinja, a tko čovjek.

Lukas

Man is the only creature that consumes without producing

Several of them would have protested if they could have found the right arguments.

All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others.

When the downtrodden animals of Manor Farm overthrow their master Mr Jones and take over the farm themselves, they imagine it is the beginning of a life of freedom and equality. But gradually a cunning, ruthless elite among them, masterminded by the pigs Napoleon and Snowball, starts to take control.

Kathi

All animals are equal but some animals are more equal than others

拉亚

The life of an animal is misery and slavery: that is the plain truth.

There, comrades, is the answer to all our problems. It is summed up in a single word-Man. Man is the only real enemy we have. 

Selina 

Hunger, hardship, and disappointment being, so he said, the unalterable law of life.

When you don't look closely at what is right in front of you. This part always breaks my heart.

Elizabeth Park

"Fools! Fools!" shouted Benjamin, prancing round them and stamping the earth with his small hoofs. "Fools! Do you not see what is written on the side of that van?"

Die Revolution frisst ihre Küken! «Kein Tier soll seinesgleichen je tyrannisieren. Schwach oder stark, schlau oder schlicht, wir sind alle Brüder. Kein Tier soll je ein anderes töten. Alle Tiere sind gleich.» So Old Major, der preisgekrönte Middle-White-Eber. Doch allen guten Absichten zum Trotz kommt alles anders. Auf der Farm, wo die Tiere in Gleichheit und wechselseitigem Respekt zusammenleben wollten, herrscht bald Ungleichheit, Ausbeutung und Unterdrückung. Denn «manche Tiere sind gleicher als andere.» – Orwells zeitkritische, auf Stalin gemünzte Parabel hat ihre Zeitlosigkeit längst erwiesen. 2021 erscheint der moderne englische Klassiker in der Neuübersetzung Ulrich Blumenbachs mit einem exklusiven Nachwort von Eva Menasse. In «Farm der Tiere» nahm George Orwell, der Vater Courage der modernen britischen Literatur, eine der größten real existierenden Sauereien des 20. Jahrhunderts auf die Mistschippe – die Pervertierung der Idee von Gleichheit und Brüderlichkeit in brutalem Gesinnungsterror. Sein Buch, 1945 erschienen und bis heute Pflichtlektüre für jeden politisch denkenden Menschen, schildert anschaulich, dass kein noch so hehres Wunschbild davor gefeit ist, von skrupellosen Demagogen in sein Gegenteil verkehrt zu werden. Und die Moral von der Geschicht‘? – Die Revolution frisst ihre Küken. Die Neuausgabe enthält Orwells Essay «The Freedom of the Press», einst als Vorwort zu «Animal Farm» verfasst – ein grandioses Plädoyer für intellektuelle Redlichkeit.

Neu übersetzt von Ulrich Blumenbach, mit einem Nachwort von Eva Menasse

Farm der Tiere

Celine

* Vidkun Jonssøn Quisling (r887-1945), zwischen r931 und r933 nor- weg. Verteidigungsminister, anschließend Parteigründer und -führer der faschistischen Nasjonal Samling, die während der Nazi-Besatzung die einzige zugelassene Partei Norwegens war: Sein Name dient seither nicht nur im Engl. als Synonym für einen Landesverräter und Kollaborateur.

Animal Farm (Penguin Modern Classics)

Colton Ray

Finally actually read this. Not sure what I can add to the discourse except that I understand why this is a classic. It's a very depressing lesson for would-be revolutionaries and still insanely relevant in our modern era, where wealthy world leaders are constantly displaying authoritarian tendencies as their own personal Squealers proclaim the wonders and freedoms to the masses living in inequality.

Caroline

“All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others.” 


A classic which is quick & fast pace with only 10 chapters. A well written book & very thought provoking as well. This story makes us realise how power can make animals & humans behave alike.
The book aims at the political satire of the Russian revolution & the characters of the animals just represent the historical figures seen in the revolution.

This book is a fairy tale for grown ups and is mostly read in all universities.

Sammy

** spoiler alert **
           Orwell is a GENIUS! 

Terrifying to imagine pigs standing on two legs, or even playing cards, though… 

Anyway, long live bacon. xx

Mariana

Animal Farm consists of an easy read with an allegory that is simple to identify and understand. In this short novel, Orwell depicts a cycle of power, where, after a great rebellion, the rebels slowly become what they initially rebelled against. It truly portrays corruption and how power can and will lead to it.

blue

Animal Farm is an allegorical and dystopian novel by George Orwell. Old Major, the old boar on the Manor Farm, summons the animals on the farm together for a meeting, during which he refers to humans as parasites and teaches the animals a revolutionary song called Beasts of England. When Major dies, two young pigs, Snowball and Napoleon, assume command and consider it a duty to prepare for the Rebellion. The animals revolt and drive the drunken and irresponsible farmer Mr. Jones from the farm, renaming it "Animal Farm". They adopt Seven Commandments of Animalism, the most important of which is, "All animals are equal." Years pass, and the pigs start to resemble humans, as they walk upright, carry whips, and wear clothes. The Seven Commandments are abridged to a single phrase: "All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others".

I am glad to have finally read this book. Orwell’s style (perhaps honed through his experience as a reporter) perfectly captured a hauntingly convincing tale of animal farm and its connections to a reality from which its inspiration came from.

Lily Cooper

Julia

Animal Farm / 1984

trezaa

Natasha Musa

I rarely re-read books but I decided to pick Animal Farm for the second time since I last read it 25 years ago. I think maturity and a deeper knowledge of politics has given me a better perspective and understand of Animal Farm. This is truly a classic. It’s political theme is still relevant today as it was when the book was first published in the 1940s.

Claudia Beneyto

George Orwell was a naz1 but he did make a great book about the terrible effects of power and how a good society can turn into a totalitarian, capitalist hell if the wrong people are ruling it…

Jillian Roberts

this book made me deeply, viscerally sad. sad for the animals, but mostly sad for humanity. it begs the question - will heaven on earth ever be truly possible ? 

it is written concisely and it feels that every word was calculated perfectly to an equilibrium i can’t quite describe. 

i truly believe that if communism didn’t have the fallacy that for it to be possible no other thought process can exist, and that it is paradoxical in every way, it would be utopia. but this book serves as yet another reminder about its impossibility and it really saddens me to say, because it is a truly realism point of view, that i think it will always elude humanity.

Ashna Nirula

this book made me deeply, viscerally sad. sad for the animals, but mostly sad for humanity. it begs the question - will heaven on earth ever be truly possible ? 

it is written concisely and it feels that every word was calculated perfectly to an equilibrium i can’t quite describe. 

i truly believe that if communism didn’t have the fallacy that for it to be possible no other thought process can exist, and that it is paradoxical in every way, it would be utopia. but this book serves as yet another reminder about its impossibility and it really saddens me to say, because it is a truly realism point of view, that i think it will always elude humanity.

"Esta sátira de la Revolución Rusa y el triunfo del estalinismo, escrita en 1945, se ha convertido por derecho propio en un hito de la cultura contemporánea y en uno de los libros más mordaces de todos los tiempos. Ante el auge de los animales de la Granja Solariega, pronto detectamos las semillas del totalitarismo en una organización aparentemente ideal; y en nuestros líderes más carismáticos, la sombra de los opresores más crueles."--Amazon.

Rebelión en la granja

marian

britt

made me feel bad. and had to read it for school but it wasn’t the worst.

Ana Luiza

Rebelion En La Granja/ Rebellion in the Farm

Te convertiste en aquello que juraste destruir.

Martin Morales

Tobias V. Langhoff

This was designated reading in high school and I didn't care much for its heavy handed allegory then, but perhaps I should reread it voluntarily as an adult and reconsider it.

Animal farm

Glad and unfortunate that I finally read this classic. No wonder the American consciousness hates any socialist ideas if this is the brainwashing they’re conditioned too. Also fuck the sheep in particular. 

amy w

Maximus

Despite the fact that this novel was published in 1945 and the wide claims that it was based on Stalin and the 1917-1923 Russian revolution, I found that I could see numerous similarities in comparisons made about society today. I am from the UK and reading this has shown the worrying increase of the sense of self-entitlement in people who hold positions of power, a deeper comprehension of the workings regarding the socio-economic class system and the power that status still holds in a democracy and so on. An almost completely symmetrical allegory, in my opinion, was how rations represented both food and wages today and how work is getting longer and harder for people. A real eye opener and empathic journey. 

The introduction, note on the text at the beginning and Appendix I & II, particularly the freedom of press and Orwell’s preface to the Ukrainian edition at the end of the book were also very enlightening trains of thought.

I usually struggle to keep up with my reading, but this is the first novel that’s had me sucked in from the start, and as of this moment is the best short novel I have ever read. I am confident that this novel will indefinitely and undoubtably maintain its stand throughout the test of time.

Heather

What a interesting book and not a usual gere I go for. Glad I did 
Now trying one of his other books 1984

Kendall McClain

I’m sorry to be a hater I really am, but the metaphors felt a bit to simplistic to represent the Russian revolution and it irrationally irritated me! It was silly and fun but I just didn’t feel invested at all

When the downtrodden animals of Manor Farm overthrow their master, Mr Jones, and take over the farm themselves, they imagine it is the beginning of a life of freedom and equality. But gradually a cunning, ruthless elite among them, masterminded by the pigs Napoleon and Snowball, starts to take control. Soon the other animals discover that they are not all as equal as they thought, and find themselves hopelessly ensnared as one form of tyranny is replaced with another. Orwell's chilling 'fairy story' is a timeless and devastating satire of idealism betrayed by power and corruption.

Erin Darlyn

Poignant, relevant, and slightly terrifying. Masterfully done.

A new edition of Orwell's savage satire of the Soviet Revolution, introduced and annotated by his biographer, D.J. Taylor First published in 1945, just as the allied forces had begun to parcel up the post-war world, Orwell's satire of the Soviet Revolution was instantly acclaimed as a Cold War classic. Set in the English countryside in the early years of the twentieth century, this is the story of a rebellion that fails, carried out by revolutionaries who all too swiftly turn into the thing they were trying to destroy. This new edition includes an introduction and extensive end-notes, and an appendix containing original responses to the novel as well as letters and documents from the period in which Animal Farm was written.

Hadn’t given this a fair shot since high school. Always good to pick up a classic, though a bit outdated with predictions of totalitarianism that didn’t fully come to fruition (and thank goodness to that), it’s still a solid reminder of caution towards losing your individuality. 

Animal Farm A Fairy Story

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