Animal Farm Flashcards
What are the seven commandments?
Whatever goes upon two legs is an enemy. Whatever goes upon four legs, or has wings, is a friend. No animal shall wear clothes. No animal shall sleep in a bed. No animal shall drink alcohol. No animal shall kill any other animal. All animals are equal.
Whose vision do the animals follow?
Old Major
Is the revolution smooth or difficult?
It goes smoothly because no animals died and they drove Mr. Jones off of the farm.
What is the new slogan of Animal Farm that replaces the seven commandments?
Four legs good, two legs bad
What do the animals do with Mr. Jones’ gun?
They set up the gun at the foot of the flagstaff and decided to fire it twice a year - once on October 12 th (anniversary of the Battle of the Cowshed) and once on Midsummer Day (the anniversary of the Rebellion).
What idea does Snowball propose during the winter meetings? How does Napoleon feel about this?
Snowball wants to build a windmill so that it can power the machines to do the work for them. Napoleon hated the idea ever since Snowball announced it because he didn’t want the animals using human machines so they would be like them.
What happens to the windmill? How does Napoleon explain what happened? What does Napoleon order the animals to do? Why does he explain it this way?
The windmill breaks down and collapses. Napoleon says that Snowball has a grudge against them so he destroys the windmill. Napoleon orders the animals to catch him. If they catch him dead, they get half a bushel of apples and ‘Animal Hero, Second Class’. If they catch him alive, they get a full bushel of apples. He says that Snowball is a traitor so the animals believe him because they put all their faith, confidence, and trust in him. He knows the animals have confidence in him so he lies to them to get what he wants, which is total power over Animal Farm, which he pretty much already has.
Explain how the animals try to hide their food shortage from the humans.
They try to hide their food shortage from the humans by sending Mr. Whymper to the outside world to spread the word that there was no food shortage on Animal Farm. They also fill the bins with sand, and then cover it with what was left of their food. Also, Napoleon ordered the sheep to casually say once in a while that their rations had been increased.
How does Mr. Frederick outsmart Napoleon?
Napoleon made a deal with Frederick. Napoleon is going to sell lumber and in exchange Frederick will give Napoleon some much-needed money. However, instead of keeping the deal, Frederick gives Napoleon fake bank notes.
How is Boxer’s health? Is he looking forward to his retirement? Explain.
Boxer’s body is failing him and he isn’t as lively and strong as he used to be. He is still trying to work and has a split hoof. Boxer is looking forward to his retirement because he wants to have more leisure time to relax. He also wants to spend the next couple of years until he dies to learn the other 22 letters of the alphabet.
Why is it said the animals can no longer tell the differences between the pigs and the humans? What does this symbolize?
The animals say this because the pigs do everything like the humans. They are drinking alcohol, walking on two legs, sleeping in beds, abusing their power and much more, just like humans. The pigs are doing everything just like Mr. Jones. In the Soviet Union, Joseph Stalin and the Communists were abusing their power and becoming just like the tsars, when they promised to the people that they wouldn’t.
What commandment is left on the wall? Explain the significance of this.
The commandment on the wall is “all animals are equal”, but the pigs changed it to “all animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others”. This shows that the pigs think that they are better and more important than the other animals. This signifies that Joseph Stalin thought he was more important than the Russian people at the time.
