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Animal Farm
Event Summarization: The Great Purge In 1934, Joseph Stalin launched the Great Purge, which was a campaign of terror. It was directed at anyone who threatened his power. Thousands of Bolsheviks who helped stage the Revolution in 1917 stood trial and were executed for crimes against the Soviet state. Meanwhile, the secret police arrested and executed millions of so-called traitors. This helped Stalin build his totalitarian state. When the Great Purge ended, Stalin had complete control of the Soviet government and the Communist Party, as people lived in constant fear of being arrested and executed.
Event Summarization: The Execution Scene Having spread rumors about Snowball lurking in the farm at night and possibly having secret agents among the animals, Napoleon precedes to gather all the animals together. He has his dogs seize four pigs, who immediately confess to having been Snowball's agents. They are executed after their self-confessed betrayal. This prompts many more animals to step forward and admit to both small and large crimes. They are then all executed by Napoleon's dogs. Many of these animals, curiously enough, had once protested to one or more of Napoleon's commands. The execution ends with the remaining animals frightened and more obedient than before (the execution).
Stalin was the leader of the Soviet Union from 1922 to 1953. He is known for his military style and his careful control of media to create a cult of personality. In Animal Farm, he is represented by Napoleon, who is described to "read out the orders for the week in a gruff soldierly style" (p 57), and "a large, rather fierce-looking Berkshire boar, the only Berkshire on the farm, not much of a talker, but with a reputation of getting his own way." (p16)
Character Parallels Napoleon, the leader of Animal Farm, parallels Joseph Stalin because they are both totalitarian leaders who play upon the fear of their people to gain more power and authority. Napoleon's dogs represent the Stalin's Secret Police because they both are loyal only to the leader (Napoleon/Stalin) and arrested/executed people. Snowball represents Trotsky, Stalin's exiled political enemy. In this event, Snowball/Trotsky plays the role of the ultimate traitor. Anyone who confesses to have had contact with Snowball is executed. Squealer represents the media and other means of communication controlled by Stalin to spread political propaganda. He manages to persuade the people that what Napoleon/Stalin does is for the good of all and is therefore, correct.
Character Parallels Continued: The four pigs who were executed represent the Bolsheviks who helped to stage the 1917 revolution. They were executed because they became a threat to Napoleon/Stalin's authority. The other animals executed parallel the people Stalin killed to place fear in people's hearts and increase his own authority. The rest of the animals including Clover and Boxer represent the frightened survivors of the Great Purge. They are now too afraid to speak their mind and live under the complete control of Napoleon/Stalin.
Russian Revolution
Leon Trotsky, represented by Snowball in the book, the commander of the Red Army, and later on, an opposer of Stalin's policies. Expelled from the Communist Party and deported, Trotsky continued to oppose Stalin until he was assassinated by a Soviet agent in Mexico. In the book, Snowball is described as "a more vivacious pig than Napoleon, quicker in speech and more inventive, but was not considered to have the same depth of character." (p16)
The picture below depicts the storming of the Winter Palace, which is similar to the Rebellion in Animal Farm. After being oppressed for so long by their human master, Jones (representing the tsars), the animals (working class) rise up and fight to take up the farm (Russia). This greatly surprised the human masters, "They had never seen animals behave like this before, and this sudden uprising of creatures whom they were used to thrashing and maltreating just as they chose, frightened them almost out of their wits.." (P20)
