Power and Leadership in Animal Farm

Animal Farm is an important and foundational piece of literature in schools. Animal farm teaches us about power, propaganda, and leadership; three key things to look out for in our world today. In Animal farm they teach us about power and leadership. Those in position of power can abuse and misuse their authority. The book shows quite clearly with the idea that all power can contain the possibility of corruptibility. Napoleon and Snowball both began to take advantage of their position early on, but it took quite a bit of time before Napoleon began to wear human clothes and walk on two feet. There was time to stop him, Action could have been taken. One moment of inaction, however, led to another as the animals of the farm chose to turn a blind eye to what was actually happening. 

Animal farm also teaches us about the use of language and propaganda. In Animal Farm they use these principles to completely change the goals of the revolution, just like how the USSR used the language of equality and convincing that work would be the best for everyone, but Orwell wanted people to see what was really happening. That being when parties become violent and totalitarianism, it is no longer communalist. I believe Animal Farm is very key in teaching students in schools about literacy principles and human actions, and developing these understandings in school systems now can help our world as people will be more educated.

Animal Farm is still applicable and relevant to our world even today. In spite of the allegory of the Russian Revolution, this novel is still relevant because it discusses explicitly the nature of a ruler. This novel can be a satire of politicians, particularly focussing on their eloquence and their ability to manipulate others and the way that once they gain some power they have a compulsive tendency to gain more. For example, Napoleon is presented as having benevolent motives, yet it is clear he is a power-hungry individual who manages to cover up his self-serving actions with the excuse that he is only doing them for the sake of the farm as a whole. An example of this being when he steals milk and apples and then says that pigs need the nutrients contained in these foods to carry out their work. Take heed of how the removal of Snowball is explained by the revelation that Snowball was a traitor. The Seven Commandments are regularly broken by the manipulation of language, and whenever the farm suffers a setback, Snowball is always blamed. In the ending of the story, when Napoleon’s intents are just like any other human, reveals the disposition for those who supposedly embrace the most noble ideas to become the worst enemies of the people whose lives they swore to improve. You only have to look at any number of dictators around the world to see that this is true, unfortunately. Even in democracies there are leaders who are still power-hungry. Certainly, watching the current world news reiterates what Orwell criticized.

Animal Farm helps us better not only ourselves but our community around us and the generations to come. Through the ways it teaches us about literature, or the ways it warns us of how we act, and even the way its themes are still relevant today, we can all use animal farm to better our society. As said in the book, “Man serves the interests of no creature except himself.”(Orwell, p.144) This serves as a nice reminder that we control our future by the interests and choices that we choose. We have the power to make a better future for ourselves, and it is crucial that we learn about the tendencies us humans have and have done to make sure history does not repeat itself. 

Works Cited

1. Orwell, G. (1945). Animal Farm. Secker and Warburg.
2. Atwood, M. (2003). Introduction to Animal Farm. In George Orwell's Animal Farm: A Casebook (pp. 1-8). Oxford University Press.
3. Ball, J. (2007). Animal Farm. In The Cambridge Introduction to George Orwell (pp. 74-80). Cambridge University Press.
4. Hitchens, C. (2002). Why Orwell matters. Basic Books.
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