Symbolism in Animal Farm

Symbolism in Animal Farm Animal Farm is almost a direct parallel to Russia during the time of World War I through World War II. The characters all have real life counterparts that are easily seen. The events are also all real and conveyed in the novel in an easily understood way. The novel creates a new way to look at the events that transpired during this time period and allows people to really understand what happened. In Animal Farm, George Orwell employs many symbols to convey the parallelism between the novel and World War I and World War II in Russia. The characters in Orwell’s Animal Farm represent real people that played major roles in World War I. Farmer Jones is the owner of the farm before the animal uprising. He represents Czar Nicholas II, the last czar of Russia before communism took hold. Napoleon is the main dictator archetype in the novel. He represents Joseph Stalin. Stalin was the dictator of communist Russia during the time of World War I. Snowball represents Leon Trotsky. Trotsky played a large part in the Russian Revolution but as Stalin gained more power, the two became enemies, much like the relationship between Napoleon and Snowball. The preface of Animal Farm provides evidence of these comparisons by saying, “Stalin and Trotsky, after all, were unmistakably Orwell’s feuding pigs, Napoleon and Snowball” (Orwell viii). Other minor characters also represent real life people. Boxer, the horse, represents the Proletariat. Boxer and Clover, who is also a horse, both represent the working class; “those who should realize they are being exploited but do not because of their own laziness or apathy” (Orwell, George 6). Mollie, another horse, also represents the working class but as part of the upper class who was still faithful to the czar. She does not participate in the revolution and misses the perks she used to receive when Farmer Jones was in charge. She eventually runs away. Another animal who is unhappy is Benjamin. Benjamin is a

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