Book Review - Animal Farm

George Orwell, author (1945). 148 pages.

Sadly, my private school's curriculum didn't include this masterful novella. Written by Orwell as a satirical critique of the Russian Revolution, communism and Josef Stalin, the book has endless application to the behavior of men of all classes and colors.

The story, in a nutshell, is about a group of farm animals(the Russians) that overthrow the humans (the Csars) on their farm in the name of equality and 'animalism' in search of an animal utopia without supporting a corrupt overseer. At first the animals operate as a functioning and fair society, but one of the pigs is ruthless and subversive, using the passive and simple-mindedness of the animals (only the pigs could read) to manipulate them. Eventually the conditions for the animals (except for the pigs) are worse than they were under the farmer, and the pigs have become the humans, adopting their customs and even (gasp) walking upright on their hind legs.

There are multiple layers to the slide that have application not just to Russia, but also any system of government. The other major lesson is that leaders can be corrupted and manipulative to stay in power. Any Democrat reading this book would surely analogize Napoleon the pig to George W. Bush and the Republican party (or at least the religious right) to the animals. An essential book (but, then, you already knew that).