Animal Farm

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Old Major, a white boar respected by many other farm animals living with him at Manor Farm, asks for a special gathering where he shares a vision he had in a dream, that of equality among all animals as well as the overthrow of their cruel human master Mr. Jones. After his death, two pigs by the name of Napoleon and Snowball turn his vision into reality by staging a revolt that successfully drives away the humans of the farm. The animals are now free from human intervention despite the neighboring farms demonizing them in fear of the revolutionary spirit spilling over to their own domains. Administration of the farm now falls in their hands. As new commandments are written and group work is abetted by the new communal spirit, Snowball is expelled and deemed a traitor, blamed for every bad occurrence at the farm, while Napoleon gains sole control of his domain, his behavior and style slowly turning into those of the humans they chased away not so long ago.

It wasn’t even a secret that Animal Farm was written by George Orwell as a not so veiled satire of the Soviet Union, which makes it an even more interesting read because anyone reading it even eight decades later can identify current regimes worldwide that will also neatly fit the description. Was Orwell’s vision so prophetic all along? We might think so but perhaps the more logical answer, a depressing one at that, is that he wasn’t really predicting the future. He was just describing something current that he was observing during his time. But even then, you can go as far back in human history as you’d like, and you’d still notice some parallels.

So perhaps we can just say it bluntly? That mankind is fvcked? Why is it that no matter where you situate yourself in our short history on this planet, may it be as far as 4000 years ago in Ancient Egypt or as close as half a century ago in modern day Philippines, the modus operandi is always the same? There is a small group of people in power exploiting a larger multitude below them. The masses revolt and get rid of the oppressors. Peace is attained but short lived until a new bunch ascends and the cycle repeats itself over and over again. Ad nauseam. Until we forget about it. Until we are reminded of it. And then we are all back to square one.

To be clear, we are not even talking about just the political realm here. In all spheres of existence, an elite governs, an exclusive club that controls the discourse. Politics is the most obvious iteration, but you also have an economic elite, a cultural one, etc. In all aspects of life, there is a hierarchy where one group is clearly in command. This makes you wonder. Perhaps this is just the way mankind has always been, is, and will always be. Otherwise, shouldn’t we have already evolved out of this vicious cycle by now? Maybe it is just in our nature after all, some subconscious, masochistic desire to be subjugated.

Or maybe I am just digging too deep into something that doesn’t exist. Maybe Animal Farm is really just a “fairy story” after all. A world where talking animals strangely resemble the odd behaviors of their human masters. It’s a piece of fiction after all, is it not? It’s hard to be that naive when almost every animal on that farm is a clear representation that you can pinpoint in real life, in the current socio-political setting of any existing country. Which are the ones that really left an impression on me?

The sheep that often blurt out “four legs good, two legs bad!” to drown a relevant discussion by using a script. The historical revision of the commandments that Squealer is caught doing red-handed towards the end. The dogs kidnapped as pups ending up as soldiers of the regime. Heck, even the body mass of the pigtators are on point, even more so when you see some real life examples on TV. Like, hello, Maduro and Lukashenka. LOL. Anyway, Animal Farm is annoying to read not because it’s bad literature but because it reminds you, too accurately, that mankind doesn’t ever change.