Animal Farm Y8 Flashcards
Who wrote ‘Animal Farm’?
George Orwell - the pen-name of Eric Arthur Blair (1903-1950).
When was it published?
In 1945, less than a month before the end of World War 2 (in which Britain, USA, Soviet Union and others were allies).
To which genre does it belong?
It is a work of political satire - an allegory about the Russian Revolution and Joseph Stalin’s rise to power.
What was the Russian Revolution?
A pair of revolutions in Russia in 1917 that replaced the monarchy of Tsar Nicholas II with a communist system of government that would in time become the Soviet Union.
What is communism?
A system of government in which all property and resources are owned by the community and shared equally. A communist system is the intended outcome of the ideas of Karl Marx.
What is capitalism?
The opposite of communism is called capitalism. This is the system of private ownership and businesses. Britain today is often called a capitalist society.
What is socialism
This was Orwell’s political philosophy and it is somewhere in between communism and capitalism. It tries to soften some of the unfairnesses that exist under a capitalist system.
Who was Karl Marx?
A German-born philosopher (1818-1883) whose Communist Manifesto inspired the Russian revolutionaries.
Who was Joseph Stalin?
Revolutionary - later dictator of the Soviet Union (died 1953)
Who was Leon Trotsky?
Revolutionary - later assassinated (in 1940) on Stalin’s orders.
Did George Orwell support the Russian Revolution?
As an English socialist, Orwell supported the motives of the revolutionaries and some of their ideas, but he felt the revolution had been betrayed and he opposed Stalin’s tyranny.
