“If it could give an image of the future, it would present a society of animals that had freed themselves from the fear of hunger and the whip, where all would be equal, each working according to their abilities, where the strong would protect the weak… Instead of all that – without even finding a reason why – they reached the point of not daring to express their opinion, seeing wild dogs roam threateningly everywhere and their companions being torn apart after first confessing terrible crimes.”
The animals of a farm react to mistreatment and proceed to occupy the farmhouse; they plan to create a paradise of justice, progress, and equality. Thus begins the most famous political allegory of the 20th century, which describes the story of a revolution against tyranny that went wrong — leading to a miserable and terrifying totalitarian regime. Animal Farm has been read as a commentary on Stalinist Soviet Union and remains relevant: a penetrating satire on power that corrupts and on authoritarian practices.
“If liberty means anything at all, it means the right to tell people what they do not want to hear.” George Orwell.
“The Freedom of the Press,” 1943 (from the afterword of the edition)
“I tried to analyze Marx’s theory from the standpoint… of the animals. With this thought as a starting point, it was no longer difficult to work out the story.” George Orwell, “Preface to the Ukrainian Edition,” 1947 (from the afterword of the edition)
“In the Farm, oppression and authoritarianism, hegemony and the totalitarian element become fictional images of themselves. The post-war world, seeking a new morality, as well as new codes of political communication, needed a fiction that would challenge the inevitability of oppression as an element of historical evolution. The timeless influence and resonance of Animal Farm is obviously due to this reason… The story told by Orwell reflects not only the political acumen of the author; it is also one of the fundamental allegories of our time.” Malcolm Bradbury (from the introduction of the edition)
“Animal Farm, before it became a global bestseller, was rejected by five publishers in Great Britain and twenty in America… However, with this book, Orwell gained his reputation. Wilson in the New Yorker compared him to Voltaire and Swift. Graham Greene appreciated his courage, considering the Farm a dynamic statement in wartime. Spencer Brown said: ‘No other writer has shown us so clearly the tragedy of our lives.’ Animal Farm, like 1984, remains an important book as we enter a digitized world where the post-Orwellian ‘virtual reality’ could be used as yet another way to restrict freedom.” Harold Bloom
Also available: - 1984 (translated by Andreas Pappas) - On Nationalism and Other Essays (translated by Andreas Pappas)
