Animal Farm

     Animal Farm written by George Orwell reflects the Russian Revolution of 1917. It uses animals on an English farm to tell the history of Soviet communism. The animals on the Manor Farm prepare for the rebellion because they believe that life without human beings is better. They succeed in driving the drunken farm owner Mr. Jones from the farm, renaming it "Animal Farm". They write down Seven Commandments of Animalism, the most important of which is, "All animals are equal."

     However, equality is too difficult to achieve. In Utopia, an imaginary place envisioned by Sir Thomas More, people are equal and share their food and property. They feel content and happiness. In reality, most communist societies end up with appearing a powerful, sometimes brutal, ruler, like Napoleon, the totalitarian leader in Animal Farm. People do not have motivation to work hard because even they work harder they cannot get more. They will rely on others, and become lazy. Under the circumstances, they need a leader to apportion their work and food. If leaders cannot control themselves, they will be overwhelmed by greedy and desire for money or power, which is from human nature.

     They can avoid these disasters but they do not have ability to resist or express their opinions. Education gives us the ability to express ourselves, think critically, and prevent ourselves from being easily manipulated. In Malala Yousafzai’ speech Education for Every Child at the United Nations, she said: “The wise saying ‘The pen is mightier than sword’ was true. The extremists were and are afraid of books and pens. The power of education frightens them.” On the Animal Farm, Snowball, Napoleon's rival and original head of the farm after Jones' expulsion, teaches the animals to read and write, but they learn slowly and some of them are reluctant to learn. After Snowball is expelled, they no longer have a chance to learn. Therefore, they become perfect prey for unscrupulous leaders to take advantage for their own gain.

     Finally, The Seven Commandments are abridged to a single phrase: "All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others". The greedy of the totalitarian leader and animals’ innocence caused by lack of education lead to their miseries. They do not realize the importance of their voice so they keep silence. They are used to seeing darkness; hence, they limit themselves and forget to pursue the better and lighter life.