Assignment: Animal Farm-George Orwell

CP ENGLISH 9                                                                            Zabrowski

                         9th Grade CP SUMMER READING ASSIGNMENTS

You will be working on 1 assignment. Be sure to get a spiral notebook to keep it all together. Please label
each section for each assignment. You will be reading Animal Farm by George Orwell

Assignment: Animal Farm-George Orwell

It is recommended that you get the Signet Classic edition with the preface by Russell Baker or use the
book that the library has. It is recommended that you type your answers on a separate piece of paper
and keep it in a folder or spiral notebook. It will be due the first day of school Monday, August 21.Be
prepared to take a test on this book and work on a project the first and second week you are back.

Complete the following questions in complete sentence form and cite the pages where you located
the responses (parenthetical citation, please). This will help you when the novel is discussed in class.
Also, go past the typical responses and look to apply the themes and concepts learned in middle
school. You will notice hyperlinks to the web on this document. You will need to read these articles
in order to answer many of the questions. Refer to what you read in the articles and the novel as
you respond.

• Learning objective: I can recognize how the author’s background is important to the work.

Part A: Background knowledge

      1. Read this brief biography of George Orwell Briefly summarize his experiences outside of
         England and his political beliefs.

Eric Arthur Blair, better known as George Orwell, was born on 25th of June 1903. He was born in a
British colony in India and was brought by his parents back to England when he was a year old. He
attended a small school in Henley before attending Eton, where it is recorded that some of his teachers
thoroughly disliked him because he had little time for those in authority. The reports of his achievements
at school vary: some say that he was a poor student, other disagree with this. It was clear that Orwell
would not be able to attend university due to the inability to pay the fees. Orwell joined the police in
Burma, where he had family connections. In 1924 he was promoted. In 1927 he contracted Dengue fever:
in light of this he was allowed to return to England. It was at this time that he resigned from the police
force with the intention of focusing on writing. It was this time in Burma that provided the inspiration for
Orwell’s first novel, Burmese Days, published in 1934. Orwell took a job as a teacher in England, after
living in Paris for a short time. It was a small school and allowed Orwell to focus on his writing. He was
contributing on a regular basis to the magazine New Adelphi, where his essay "A Hanging" first appeared.
Orwell, after suffering with pneumonia, would take a part-time job working in a book shop in Hampstead.
When the Spanish Civil war began, Orwell volunteered to fight for the republicans against the uprising.
He was injured after being shot in the neck by a sniper's bullet; following this he and his new wife, Eileen
O’Shaughnessy, left Spain to return to England. By 1944 what would be Animal Farm was ready to be
published, but Orwell had difficulties finding the support for it as many felt it was an attack on the Soviets
who were allies in the war. Animal Farm would finally be published in 1945 and was the work that
propelled Orwell to new heights of fame. Eileen died in March of 1945 after having a hysterectomy. In
the year following her death, Orwell wrote 130 articles and mixed journalism for numerous magazines
and newspapers, as well as writing what would be his greatest work, 1984, published in 1949.Orwell
became seriously ill around this time, suffering with tuberculosis. Orwell had been courting Sonia
Brownell and married her while in hospital in October 1949. By Christmas Orwell was very weak and in

January of 1950, aged 46, he died. In accordance with his wishes, Orwell was buried. He lies in All
Saint’s Churchyard in Oxford, as it was impossible for him to be buried in London. George Orwell, 2003,
George-Orwell.org http://www.george-orwell.org/l_biography.html

• Learning objective: I can recognize why the author chose the genre of the work.

      2. Title Page: The full title of the book is Animal Farm: A Fairy Story. What are some of the
         major characteristics of fairy tales that you remember? Your response should be at least 1
         paragraph in length.

PART B: Chapter by Chapter analysis

Animal Farm Note Taker—Chapter One

• Learning objective: I can explain how an author develops a character.

1. What are the major mental, physical and personality characteristics of the following characters,
animals, or groups? Also, as you read, consider the type of animal being described and write down
what those animals usually symbolize to us? For example, lions symbolize courage and doves
symbolize peace.

1. Mr. Jones

2. Old Major

3. Benjamin

4. Boxer

5. Clover

6. Mollie

7. Moses

8. Dogs

     Animal Farm Note Taker—Chapter Two

   2. What are the major mental, physical and personality characteristics of the following
characters or animals? What duties do they take on? What impression do you get from their names
and characteristics?
1. Pigs

2. Napoleon

3. Snowball

4. Squealer (What are his tactics and threats?)

5. Animalism: What is it, and how is it developed?

6. Mollie’s questions: Do you think her questions are “stupid”? What type of person do you think she
represents?

7. Sugarcandy Mountain: Why would the pigs want to discredit Moses and this concept? “Opiate of the
People”

8. Jones’s difficulties: What leads the animals to rebellion?

9. The farmhouse: How is it a parallel to this place?

10. The Seven Commandments: Go back to chapter one and look at Old Major’s speech? What has been
changed or left out of the commandments? What might be the reason for these changes?

11. Take note of the last sentence in the chapter. Why do you think Orwell wrote it in the passive voice?
Take notice of how often he uses it in the book. What is the effect?

     Animal Farm Note Taker—Chapter Three

1. “But everyone worked according to his capacity.” How is this statement a parallel of Marxist
philosophy?

2. Benjamin’s attitude: What do you think he means by his “cryptic answer”?

3. Wild Comrades’ Re-education Committee: Do you see any parallels to this part of the history of the
USSR?

4. “Four legs good, two legs bad.” Why would the Seven Commandments be reduced to this?

5. What role do the following groups begin to play in the revolution? Why would Orwell choose
these animals to fulfill these roles?

a. Sheep

b. Puppies

6. How do they justify giving all the milk and apples to the pigs?

     Animal Farm Note Taker—Chapter Four

1. It should be pretty obvious by now that although this book does not perfectly parallel historic
characters and events, it is an allegory for the Russian Revolution. Who or what do you think the
following characters represent? Base your answers on your readings. You should do a little research
about the Russian Revolution as you answer these questions. Feel free to use the internet or go to the
library.

a. Mr. Jones

b. Frederick

c. Pilkington

2. Propaganda : What rumors are spread about “Manor Farm”?

3. Why do you think Frederick and Pilkington agreed to help Jones retake the farm? Which stage of the
Russian Revolution would this represent?

4. The Battle of Cowshed: How is it commemorated? Why would it be important for the animals to
commemorate it in this way?

      Animal Farm Note Taker—Chapter Five

1. How have the pigs increased their hold on power at the farm? What is strange about the way
following phrase is written? “It had come to be accepted that the pigs, who were manifestly cleverer than
the other animals, should decide all questions of farm policy…”?

2. Power struggles: Read these biographies about Stalin and Trotsky. Then, answer the question
after the readings.

Joseph Stalin

Stalin was born Ioseb Besarionis dze Jughashvili on 18 December 1878 but later adopted the name of
Stalin - which in Russia means man of steel.In his early life, he was drawn Communist ideology and
became involved in robberies and violence against Tsarist sympathisers. Stalin was frequently captured
and sent to Siberia, but, he managed to escape.In 1917, Stalin played a key role in the Russian revolution
he gained control over the party newspaper Pravda and helped Lenin to escape to Finland. Stalin was one
of the five member politburo whom Lenin appointed in the Russian civil war against anti-Bolshevik
policies.Stalin frequently clashed with Leon Trotsky and Stalin advocated harsh measures to ensure
discipline and loyalty.In 1922, Lenin fell ill and Stalin became one of the main links between Lenin and
the outside world. Lenin became increasingly distrustful of Stalin, disliking his arrogance and love of
power. In Lenin's testimony he wanted Stalin removed from power. However, with great skill Stalin
formed alliance's with other key Communist party members, He outmanoeuvred Trotsky and had him
expelled from the Soviet Union.On the death of Lenin, Stalin was able to assume the position as leader of
the Soviet Union. He quickly strove to consolidate his power removing anyone he suspected of being
disloyal.In the 1930s, he unleashed a great wave of purges which led to the capture, torture and execution
of many prominent members of the party, army and society. These purges went far beyond suspected
disloyal members but became increasingly random - as if to strike fear into the heart of anyone in society.
It is estimated In light of revelations from the Soviet archives, historians now estimate that nearly 700,000
people (353,074 in 1937 and 328,612 in 1938) died during these purges.In 1939, Stalin shocked the world
with the signing of the Nazi - Soviet pact which agreed non aggression and also in secret agreed to carve
up Poland. When Germany attacked Poland on 1st September 1939, the Soviet Union also attacked in the
East.When Stalin was warned of an impending invasion in 1941, Stalin couldn't believe that Adolf Hitler
would attack the Soviet Union. When German forces streamed over the border, the Soviet Union was
almost defenseless and German forces swept through the country reaching almost the outskirts of
Moscow by 1942. However, at Stalingrad the tide of battle was turned and slowly Russian forces pushed
back the Germans beginning the long push back into Germany.Stalin took close command of the war and
went to great lengths to portray himself as the heroic war leader. He was ruthless as Supreme military
commander, often having Generals shot if they lost a battle. He also made armies dig in and refuse to
retreat. However, with great loss of life, the Soviet Union were finally able to prevail. When the German
army was at the gates of Moscow in 1942, Stalin refused to leave, and his presence in the city, helped to
maintain hope.The Germany occupation of Western Soviet Union was brutal with millions being killed by
the occupying forces. As the Russian army liberated their own country and saw numerous accounts of

atrocities, they in turn committed atrocities in their conquest of Germany. Even Soviet citizens who
survived the German occupation, were often arrested and deported on Stalin's orders. He believed that
many in the occupied zone had collaborated with the Germans.After the end of the Second World War,
Stalin became desparate to get the Nuclear bomb, after seeing its devastating effects in Japan. This
became more important as the end of the Second World War gave way to the Cold War between the US
and Soviet Block.Stalin died in 1953 after suffering a stroke. Pettinger, Tejvan. "Biography of Stalin", Oxford,
www.biographyonline.net, 21st Aug. 2008

Leon Trotsky

After being imprisoned for years in Siberia, and being exiled from Russia when Joseph Stalin became the
new leader of Russia, Leon Trotsky started his political career when he became the leader of the October
Revolution of 1917. He was later appointed the commissar of foreign affairs under Vladimir Ilich Lenin.
His writings display his deep philosophical beliefs as a theorist for fundamental communism, but later he
leaned towards social democratization. Trotsky was born into a Jewish family. His father was David
Bronshtein and his mother was highly educated. He was the only one of their children to survive infancy.
Although the family was of the middle class, young Leon was sent to study in Odessa – a formal
education was a central part of his parents’ belief. Over the course of nearly 10 years, Trotsky lived with
his cousins, who were open-minded intellects. While completing his education, he was made aware of the
theories of Marxism and thereafter helped form the South Russian Workers’ Union. Within two years of
the turn of the 20 th century, Trotsky was sent to serve a four-year sentence in Siberia for his
revolutionary connections. While there, he married and had two daughters, whom he would never see
once he escaped with forged papers under the name Trotsky and thereafter went to London. While in Paris
he had two more sons after marrying Natalya Sedova. He went to Brussels supporting his party, but his
theories had evolved by this point to a form of democratic socialism.Soon after, Trotsky moved back to
his homeland and became the leader of a workers’ party that was in favor of revolution. Trotsky was
again jailed and while there wrote some of his most renowned political essays. He escaped Siberia again
and went to Vienna, where he worked during the Balkan Wars. He joined up with the social democrats
once more and was forced to leave France and Spain due to his beliefs against the war. Upon returning to
Russia, Trotsky was admitted into the Bolshevik Party, even though he had been jailed again. He was
released and made chairman of the Petrograde Soviet of Workers’ and Soldiers’ Deputies. When Trotsky
wanted to argue against accepting terms from Germany for annexation, Lenin wanted to have more time
to get the Soviet state in order, but Trotsky wanted nothing to do with resolving the issue, although he
didn’t want war either. What eventually occurred was the Russian Civil War and the expectation that
Trotsky's leadership would revive the economy with militaristic precision. When Lenin knew that his time
to lead Russia would be short, he asked for Trotsky’s help in getting Russia’s foreign policy back in
order. By 1928, Trotsky was exiled again and eventually ended up in Mexico, where he was assassinated
according to Stalin’s plans. http://www.biographyshelf.com/leon_trotsky_biography.html

Consider the two pigs that are listed below. Which historical figure from the above biographies do
they represent? Give three reasons for your choice. Make sure that you consider how each one of
them tries to gain and maintain power.

a. Snowball

b. Napoleon

3. The windmill: What do you think of Benjamin’s attitude? Does technology really make our lives
easier? Give reasons for your answer.

4. Public opinion: What statement is Orwell making about public opinion? “The animals listened first to
Napoleon, then to Snowball, and could not make up their minds which was right; indeed, they always
found themselves in agreement with the one who was speaking at the moment.”

5. Special committee of pigs: How is this decision making arrangement different from the beginning of
the chapter, and how does Napoleon enforce this new arrangement?

6. Squealer’s tactics: How does Squealer (along with Minimus) use language as a means to control the
animals? Give at least three specific examples.

7. After the Battle of Cowshed, Snowball was the hero of Animal Farm. How has history been rewritten
at this point? Give examples.

8. Do you think it is possible to rewrite history to the point where what was once considered true is now
considered false? Why? Consider this recent debate on history textbooks.

   Animal Farm Note Taker—Chapter Six

Learning objective: I can find examples of irony and explain how they are important to the work.

1. What is ironic about the “voluntary” work the animals are performing? Also, consider Napoleon’s
changing position on the windmill. How is the present situation ironic?

    Animal Farm Note Taker—Chapter Seven

Learning objective: I can explain how the choice of point of view is important to the work.

1. What point of view is the story being told from? Who does the narrator appear to be? What effect do
you think Orwell is going for when the narrator presents events as this on the first page of the chapter?

“Out of spite, the human beings pretended not to believe that it was Snowball who had destroyer the
windmill: they said that it had fallen down because the walls were too thin. The animals knew that this
was not the case. Still, it had been decided to build the walls three feet thick this time instead of eighteen
inches as before, which meant collecting much larger quantities of stone.”

2. Why is Snowball the perfect scapegoat for all of the problems on Animal Farm?

3. How are Stalinist purges and trials represented in this chapter? Once again, pay attention to how history
is rewritten.

Learning objective: I can make predictions.

4. When Clover tries to console herself over what she sees as the failure of the “permanent revolution”,
Squealer proclaims, “‘It's no longer needed, comrade,’ said Squealer stiffly. ‘Beasts of England was the
song of the Rebellion. But the Rebellion is now completed. The execution of the traitors this afternoon
was the final act. The enemy both external and internal has been defeated.’” This chapter began with bad
relations with the surrounding farms, and then Napoleon gives a false impression of Animal Farm to Mr.
Whymper. Why do you think Napoleon declares the Rebellion to be over, and what effect will this have
on his relations with the humans.

        Animal Farm Note Taker—Chapter Eight

1. How does Squealer “prove” to the animals that they are better off than in under Jones?

   2. Cult of personality How has Napoleon built his image among the animals? What has he done in
   previous chapters, and how does further the myth surrounding him in this chapter?

   3. Although the rebuilding of the windmill has caused great hardship, how does its completion and
   the animal’s reaction show that Napoleon is a brilliant politician?

   4. Pilkington vs. Frederick: How do the events in this chapter parallel the events surrounding the
      Nazi-Soviet Pact and the German invasion of the USSR?

   5. How does Boxer’s simplicity point out the absurdity of Squealer’s claim that they won the war?

   6. The commandment: Why is Napoleon going to plant barley, and what is the great irony of the
change to the commandment about alcohol?

    Animal Farm Note Taker—Chapter Nine

1. How do the pigs lives differ from the rest of the animals? Why would the animals put up with these
“class differences”?

2. “Spontaneous” demonstrations: What is odd about this term as Napoleon uses it? “Napoleon had
commanded that once a week there should be held something called a Spontaneous Demonstration, the
object of which was to celebrate the struggles and triumphs of Animal Farm.” Do you know the literary
term which applies to this use of language?

3. Moses returns: Why would the pigs allow Moses to return and preach about Sugarcandy Mountain
when they disagree with everything he says, and they have the power to throw him out?

4. Why do you think the Animals are satisfied with Squealer’s explanation of what happened to Boxer?

   Animal Farm Note Taker—Chapter Ten

1. A worker’s paradise: What is the irony of how the windmill is being used?

2. The ruling class/bureaucracy/owners: How has the relationship between the ruling bureaucracy
(pigs) and the animals come to mirror their relationship with Jones in the first place?

3. Four legs good, two legs better! How did Squealer prepare for the shock the animals would experience
at seeing Napoleon walking on his hind legs? What element of society do the sheep represent?

4. The final commandment: How has this revision been true ever since the beginning of the revolution?

5. An apology of sorts: Read Pilkington’s toast. How are euphemisms and the passive voice used to hide
the truth about the human’s relationship with the animals?

6. Pigs or men? Describe how the final scene points out the horrible irony of the book.

As always, if you need extra assistance please email :kzabrowski@desertchristianacademy.org