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Animal Farm

Animal Farm

List Price: $21.95
Your Price: $21.95
Product Info Reviews

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Rating: 4 stars
Summary: It's About Communism. In Russia. Duh.
Review: In case you haven't guessed (and shame on you if you haven't), this book is a transparent allegory of the Communist Revolution in Russia. It's NOT a literary masterwork, it's NOT brilliant prose, and most of all, it is NOT a random story about farm animals.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Wow
Review: It's a real shame that in this modern day of ours, we don't have authors like George Orwell around. I'm not going to try and make a critical analysis for Animal Farm because it speaks for itself. This book is original, funny, and shows despotism at its best. Fantastic.

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: Mixed feelings
Review: After reading Animal Farm I had mixed feelings about the novel I was not sure if I liked it or not. I do believe it is a creative novel the plot and storyline, but I do not find it very appealing. I do not believe many teengers as myself would enjoy reading this novel.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Four legs good, two legs bad, this book good!
Review: Taking a Russian history class and learning in detail about Joseph Stalin's rule would help one understand Animal Farm much better, as well as the characters. George Orwell's hatred of totalitarianism, especially that of the Stalinist USSR, formed the basis for this short satirical fiction.

A band of oppressed farm animals oust Jones, their cruel human owner and take over the farm. Led by two pigs, Napoleon and Snowball, the animals proceed to run the farm by themselves so they are no longer exploited.

Napoleon is clearly Stalin, while Snowball is based on Leon Trotsky, and the Old Major is Lenin. Squealer may be Molotov or Kaganovich, but I'm not sure. The first attack on the Farm by Jones and his men is based on the Russian Civil War (1918-1921), where disorganized factions of anti-communists attacked the Soviet Union from all sides, and lost. However, things don't always go in parallel, as the Old Major dies before the Revolution. Lenin of course precipitated the Revolution in 1917. And note the date of the liberation of Manor Farm: 12 October. That is close to 24 October, the date of the Bolshevik Revolution.

Other items: Boxer the horse is the epitome of the hard worker whose two sayings are "Napoleon is always right" and "I will work harder." In fact he may be Stakhanov, the worker whose team so efficiently met their quota in one of Stalin's 5-Year Plans, that the word Stakhanovite became synonymous with an A-One Soviet worker. And the inability of most animals to read only the first two letters of the alphabet hint at their being lowly, illiterate subjects blindly obedient to the State.

The Seven Commandments--ironic for a Biblical reference in an atheist system-- plays an important key to the book, as they keep changing during Napoleon's reign. They are: "Whatever goes upon two legs is an enemy, 2) Whatever goes upon four legs, or has wings, is a friend, 3) No animal shall wear clothes, 4) No animal shall sleep in a bed, 5) No animal shall drink alcohol, 6) No animal shall kill any other animal, and 7) All animals are equal." However, as Napoleon consolidates his rule, the Commandments become slightly altered. For example, after the animal executions, analogous to Stalin's purges, the sixth Commandment has the words "without cause" appended. And talk about irony in using the name of Napoleon for the Stalin character when in fact Napoleon invaded Russia, the result of which increased distrust of the West by Russians.

Orwell's portrait of the totalitarian state would be finalized in his masterpiece 1984. Animal Farm was a preview for that grand work, but the final thing that comes through in this book is that the Stalinist regime was just as oppressive as the czarist regime, with the ordinary animals on the receiving end-i.e. "but some animals are more equal than others."

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: good
Review: This is a book about a group of animals took over the control of their owner's farm. It wasn't that interesting to me when I first read it, but after I learned about the Russian Revolution in my history class, I start to understand more about the theme that was behind the story. The animals and the animal leaders (pigs) in this story were representing the Russian people and the Communism Party that took control of Russia during the Revolution.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: very good, recommend highly
Review: this book was very good. the characters were developed very well, and the parallels to communist russia were excellent. this book was very fun to read, and the author had much detail and a very good style. it was a very good idea...animals throwing over a farm and running it themselves. i enjoyed this book very much and would highly recommend to anyone.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Animal farm
Review: I believe that animal farm was a very intersting book. The whole message of the book was great, it was simple yet very complex . If you dont know all about Russian history it's ok because you dont have to understand all the history to enjoy reading the book. Animal farm is a short get to the point kind of book. The excitment gets you all at once. And when it does you'll uderstand more and more about what the message of the book is. Well at least i did. I like the fact that animal farm doesnt have a solid ending to it. The animals are stuck outside watching the pigs and people play cards. I really have no idea what you get out of that. But all and all the book was good. It kept my attention and i hate reading.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Orwell's Best Book!
Review:
Short as it is, this work represents all that Orwell had been leading to all his life. It's a satire and a fable -- and in very simple terms outlines the dangers of tyranny, the corruption of ideals. Orwell uses the Communist revolution as a template: and points out how, in the end, 'some animals are more equal than others' -- that is, the essential greediness of us all. In darker, more subtle terms, it suggests, too, that we are, in essense, animals ourselves -- we cannot escape our dark primal nature. And we need to always be aware and vigilant of this. It's a chilling, sad, illuminating and very effective masterpiece. Everytime I read it, it affects me more! Other recommended Amazon picks: Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain, The Losers Club: Complete Restored Edition by Richard Perez


Rating: 5 stars
Summary: The Book Is Not About Farming or Animals...It Is About Power
Review: This is a very interesting book that should be read along with the author's other book 1984. I read the book and saw the VHS which is mostly a faithful representation of the book - and a good movie in color - but not for the faint of heart unless you like slime and grease covered pigs talking like people.

The basic plot is essentially about some farm animals that have a revolution, throw out the owner, and then run the farm themselves in a mini Utopian socialist state.

In Orwell's 1984 the system is corrupted by the "inner party members" of the socialist state INGSOC - in the country of Oceania. Here in Animal Farm the Utopian system is corrupted by a group of pigs that have goals for more power and material wealth at the expense of the other animals. It is a simple case study in human greed for power and wealth. Here the pigs attempt to change the rules as they go along to justify their actions and impose their will on the other animals such as horses, sheep, various birds, dogs, etc, i.e.: all animals are equal but some more than others say - somewhat appropriately - the pigs who try to get more than a simple share.

The animal farm revolution starts out with much happiness and cooperation among the animals, but eventually we have too much abuse by one group of animals, i.e.: the pigs, who seize control. Like other socialists states where a Stalin or Mao or Castro emerges as a totalitarian ruler, we have one power group emerge. Then we have arbitrary decisions by the pigs who have seized power. Like the socialist states gone wrong we have one set of laws for the rulers and a much harsher set of laws for the masses. Like a socialist state gone wrong the leaders have behind the scenes corrupt business deals while the masses starve. Like a socialist state gone wrong we have transparent propaganda and public works projects that are little more than monuments to the rulers. Eventually this triggers a counter revolution and the animal farm revolution collapses.

Like the book 1984 a small group attempts to manipulate the masses - here the masses are the other animals - and to set the social laws essentially to help the pigs take control. It is similar in ideas to 1984 but obviously low tech as opposed to the futuristic 1984, for example the pigs do not use mind control the same way as rulers in 1984. Also the farm setting has the friendlier and informal atmosphere as opposed to some cold and gray socialist state of 1984, and the plot it is less chilling. It is entertaining but in a different fashion. Still this is a story about how a society can take a wrong turn and how leaders are corrupted by absolute power.


Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Animal Farm Review: By this kid from this place
Review: In a place witch no name is given it would seem all should be well. However, that couldn't be farther from the truth. The book takes place on a farm. The owner of the farm, Farmer Jones, Neglects his responsibilities and allows his animals to starve. He also does little work around the farm as he lets his crops rot away. Most of this is caused by his excessive drinking problem.
After being convinced by a respected speaker of the farm, Napoleon and snowball, rebel against the has been farmer and set their own standards for living. Although Napoleon leads the farm into a new revolution it isn't necessarily a good thing. Napoleon turns the farm into a dictatorship with him as the totalitarian.
The turning point of the book is when the animals are no longer blinded by Napoleons deceiving ways. The animals started keeping apples and milk for themselves instead of sharing with the communist community. The entire book seemed to be based on the Russian revolution. The books moral is to teach against communism in a new innovated way never seen before. It is a very clever way to get the point across. The book is short and somewhat enjoyable to read. This concludes a summary on George Orwell's, "Animal Farm."



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