IndexOrwell's Symbolism as How to Attract Readers' AttentionSnowball Pig as a Representation of Leon TrotskyConclusionMany literary authors use a variety of literary devices in their writings. Some of the most common are devices such as similes, symbolism, satire, and alliteration. Many writers seek to express their ideas through writing in the hope that others will one day read their thoughts and ideas and contemplate them. For example, in George Orwell's short story, Animal Farm, Orwell uses a combination of symbolism, satire, and other literary devices. In his book, Orwell uses animals to represent prominent figures during the Bolshevik Revolution in Russia in 1917. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay To truly understand the symbolism behind Animal Farm and its characters, you must first understand the timeline of the Bolshevik Revolution. In 1917, Russia was a tsarist autocracy, meaning there was a king-like figure called the Tsar who ran everything. His name was Emperor Nicholas II. In February 1917, members of the imperial parliament, the Duma, assumed control of the country. There was also an October Revolution in which the Bolsheviks led an armed insurrection to overthrow the Duma. The Bolsheviks established their own federal government, practicing a Soviet democracy. The main figures of this period were Leon Trotsky, Joseph Stalin, Karl Marx, Nicholas II, Rasputin, Adolf Hitler and Alexandra. Nicholas II was the old Tsar who was overthrown. Leon Trotsky was one of the leaders, rivaling other leaders such as Joseph Stalin. Trotsky founded the ideology of Trotskyism, which opposed Stalinism. He remained in Russia and as an influential leader until he was ousted by Stalin. Joseph Stalin became a political leader of communist Russia for many years. Karl Marx is known as the father of Marxism, the foundation of the political ideology of communism. He was also one of the main writers of the Communist Manifesto, where most of the ideology of communism is found. Alexandra was the wife of Nicholas II. Adolf Hitler was the leader of Germany during this time and is famous for his political ideas and actions. Many famous and infamous leaders arose in this time period, and Orwell highlights the actions of these leaders. Orwell's Symbolism How to Grab Readers' Attention In "Animal Farm" Orwell intentionally uses symbolism and foreshadowing to represent the socialist nature constructed in the beginning. For example, Orwell uses character names such as "Snowball" to symbolize purity and fairness on the farm. In chapter two, the revolution begins and the farm begins to work towards "animalism". The pigs aim to carry out their revolt by establishing seven commandments that primarily forbid any behavior that resembles that of a human and introducing the song "Beasts of England", a triumphant war cry that evokes images of freedom and a positive future. On page seventeen, the seven commandments say: “Everything that walks on two legs is an enemy. Anything that goes on four legs or has wings is a friend. No animal may wear clothes. No animal will sleep in a bed. No animal may drink alcohol. No animal can kill any other animal. All animals are equal.” Throughout the novel Orwell uses these directives to foreshadow the pigs' eventual spiral of corruption and absolute power that has yet to be exposed. Old Major is one of the first characters we are introduced to. It's aold pig that will soon die. One night he calls a meeting to talk to all the animals on the farm. All animals respect him, because not all animals are necessarily willing to lose a few hours of sleep just to hear him speak. (Orwell, 4) Old Major tells them of his dream in which all the animals are freed from their captivity and no longer slaves to their human masters. He tells them that all animals are the same, which becomes the foundation of the ideology that will originate among the animals, known as Animalism. It's about a song that sings about the freedom of animals. Old Major then states that a rebellion must occur in order for the animals to be freed. Old Major is usually compared to Karl Marx, the founder of Marxism, which is the basic foundation of communism. Many similar ideas are shared by both Marx and Old Major. Marx believed that all men were equal, just as Old Major did with animals. Old Major is where the whole rebellion began. One of the main leaders in the book is a pig named Napoleon. Although his name resembles that of Napoleon Bonaparte, he is thought to resemble Joseph Stalin in his actions. Napoleon, immediately after the rebellion, began to address those around him as comrades. A companion is a person you travel with or fight with. Thus many addressed Joseph Stalin as Comrade Stalin. Napoleon was also very tactful, a skill Stalin was known for. Napoleon studied military tactics used by others and tried to implement successful ones in his own battles. Both Napoleon and Stalin saw the use of brute force. Napoleon, after Jessie and Bluebell have a litter, takes the litter to be bred. The dogs are then transformed into the equivalent of Napoleon's bodyguards and other pigs. This is similar to the excessive force Stalin used in battle. Stalin was known for favoring a strong army. The Moscow Foreign Language Publishing House published an article on Stalin and the Soviet Armed Forces in 1950. The document states: “Stalin is the creator of advanced Soviet military science.” (Nikolai Bulganin, 1) Both Stalin and Napoleon saw the power of a strong army, so they worked to grow their army. Napoleon had dogs to protect him, Stalin had his soldiers. They had to forcibly enforce the laws so that no one would rebel, or in some cases, speak against the leaders' wishes. But it was at that moment that Napoleon rose up, and, casting a strange sidelong glance at Snowball, uttered a shrill wail of the kind that no one had ever heard him utter before. Now there was a terrible barking from outside, and nine enormous dogs wearing brass-studded collars bounded into the bar. They lunged straight for Snowball, who jumped from his seat just in time to escape their snapping jaws. In this scenario, Napoleon used his dogs to chase away Snowball, who was in opposition to Napoleon. Other sources, such as History.com, claim that Joseph Stalin had banned other potential leaders from the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, as in the case of Leon Trotsky. At other points in the book, it is evident that Napoleon abuses this force, as in the massacre of the “guilty” animals who supposedly conspired with Snowball. Napoleon is an almost mirror image of Stalin and his beliefs. The Pig Snowball as a Depiction of Leon Trotsky One of the most influential characters in the book Animal Farm is another pig called Snowball. Snowball is an influential leader and had the potential to do great things. He helped found the idea of ​​Animalism, based on the idea that allanimals are the same. He is also very intelligent, as seen when he designs the windmill for the farm. His imagination had now gone far beyond turnip choppers and turnip slicers. Electricity, he said, could run threshers, plows, harrows, rollers, reapers and binders, as well as provide each stable with its own electric light, hot and cold water and an electric heater. (Orwell, 52) Snowball's creativity and intelligence can be demonstrated in all the plans he has to help make every animal's job easier. He was in favor of three-day work weeks instead of six-day work weeks so that the animals were not pushed as hard. In the book, Snowball is usually depicted as siding more with equality among all animals rather than special privileges. About halfway through the book, Snowball is chased away by Napoleon's dogs. Snowball is usually compared to Leon Trotsky. As stated in a previous paragraph, Trotsky was kicked out of the USSR because his idea of ​​Trotskyism was opposed to that of Stalinism. He was seen as a potential threat to Stalin, so Stalin decided to chase him out of the country. After Snowball is kicked out of Animal Farm, nothing definitive is ever said about where he went. He is mainly used as a scapegoat for Napoleon whenever something goes wrong. This was the case with the windmill. “Comrades,” he said calmly, “do you know who is responsible for all this? Do you know the enemy who came in the night and knocked over our windmill? SNOWBALL!" he suddenly roared in a thunderous voice. “Snowball did this thing!” Although it was explicitly stated that the time was November, when strong winds blew from the southwest, and that there had been a heavy storm the night before, Napoleon continues to blame Snowball for the windmill now ruined. Snowball is used as a scapegoat throughout the rest of the book so that Napoleon can do whatever he wants and have someone else to blame for his consequences. As the book progresses, there are nine dogs who begin to play a significant role in the book and its depiction of the Bolshevik Revolution. These are the dogs born to Jessie and Bluebell. When they are puppies, they are taken away by Napoleon so he can train them young, so he uses this as a reason to train the dogs in private. dogs wearing brass-studded collars came bounding into the bar." (Orwell, 53) The puppies were no longer innocent puppies, but large dogs who were to act as Napoleon's private military officers. Under Stalin there was what was called the Red Army. Public broadcasting states in their archives of Russian history, discuss the main officers of military units. PBS states, regarding these officers: “While they remained mostly loyal to the Soviets, political officers, called “advisers,” were assigned to all units. They checked the reliability of the officers and carried out propaganda." (PBS) The dogs could be considered similar in the way they were trained. These dogs were to provide propaganda, in this case fear tactics of what would happen if anyone opposed Napoleon, to keep all units, or animals, in line with their work. These dogs were terrifying to other animals. And Napoleon would use these dogs in any scenario he deemed necessary. When others spoke to oppose him, he used dogs to.