There are many events in Animal Farm which help to define and further the plot. Due to the allegorical form of the novel (it is used to relate a far more telling story of the Russian Revolution), the significance of events has a two-fold effect.
Old Major's speech inspires the uprising as he identifies Man as the main cause for the animals' problems. The foundations of 'Animalism' and the Seven Commandments are created after his speech. He also teaches the animals "Beasts of England.':
Get rid of man, he says, and animals will be rich and free.
Slowly but surely, the pigs begin their rise to power. The 'milk and apples' is (are) set aside for the pigs, the 'brain workers.'Later on pigs are allowed to wear ribbons on their tails and the
piglets are kept separate from the other animals, enforcing the new elitism that continues to grow
The removal of Jessie...
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and Bluebell's puppies is significant as they becomeNapoleon's 'security' and will be used to run Snowball off the farm.
The Battle of the Cowshed establishes Snowball as a hero
Animal Hero, First Class
but unfortunately it will be used later as a form of propaganda against him as Squealer tries to convince the other animals that Snowball was a traitor. Snowball's eviction is also a key event from which Squealer will feed in his attempts to turn the animals against Snowball.
Some of the animals confess to crimes against Napoleon and are executed. Significantly, the commandment has been changed:
No animal shall kill any other animal without cause
This is not the first time the commandments have been manipulated - the pigs get to sleep on beds - but no sheets! and later
No animal shall drink alcohol to excess
replaces the original commandment which did not include 'to excess.'Clover has noticed that all is not well but does not have the strength of character to do anything about it.
When Boxer, who steadfastedly believes Napoleon will do right by the animals
If Comrade Napoleon says it, it must be right
is sent away, having exceeded his usefulness
Squealer has an explanation for everything
thereby consolidating his position as propaganda boss, instrumental to the development of the propaganda theme.
At the end of the novel, the story has come full circle and the animals are confused and bewildered by what is before them:
The animals cannot tell the difference between man and pig. Both have been sublimated into each other.
For any more examples and explanations of events and characters, refer to the eNotes study guide and navigate to the character analyses and so on.
What are the most important facts in Animal Farm?
Animal Farm is a short book, but there is a lot to it. Here is a list of the top ten facts.
1. It is a fairy tale. This means it is short and has a lesson.
2. It is an allegory of the Russian Revolution. This means that some events and characters are based on real events.
3. An old pig named Old Major has a dream and calls the animals to listen to it. The dream is for a society with no humans, where the animals answer only to themselves and run the farm on their own. Old Major dies shortly after, but the animals are interested.
Man is the only creature that consumes without producing. He does not give milk, he does not lay eggs, he is too weak to pull the plough, he cannot run fast enough to catch rabbits. Yet he is lord of all the animals. (ch 1, p. 2)
4. The farmer, Jones, is very neglectful. He does not run his farm well, and the animals are not well taken care of. One day, the cows have not been milked and the animals have not been fed, so they overthrow him and drive the humans out and take over the farm. They rename it Animal Farm.
5. The animals reduce the teachings of Animalism to seven commandments. The last one is: “All animals are equal” and the sixth says that no animal should kill another. There are also commandments against human-like activities like sleeping in a bed, wearing clothes, and drinking alcohol.
6. The humans try to take back their farm, but the animals drive them out. Shortly after, the rivalry between Napoleon and Snowball reaches a head and Snowball is driven out. Squealer continues to act as propaganda minister. Napoleon begins training the puppies as a private security force.
7. The pigs begin to take more and more control over the farm. As they do, they change the commandments one at a time and tell the other animals that they remember wrong. The changes give the pigs more comfort and power, and allow them to act more human.
8. Napoleon puts the animals to work on the concept of the windmill, which is supposed to make their lives better by producing electricity. The windmill is destroyed several times. Boxer continues to the hardest worker.
His answer to every problem, every setback, was `I will work harder!' which he had adopted as his personal motto. (ch 3, p. 11)
9. The pigs begin trading with humans, making deals with Pilkington and Frederick. At one point they are tricked, but Napoleon tells the animals it is part of his plan.
10. The pigs begin to act more and more like humans. Napoleon makes a show of killing several animals he claims are in league with Snowball. All commandments are changed to one.
ALL ANIMALS ARE EQUAL
BUT SOME ANIMALS ARE MORE EQUAL THAN OTHERS (ch 10, p. 51)
The pigs begin walking like humans. They have been wearing clothes and living in the house. The men come to visit and the animals can’t tell which is which.
All page numbers from: http://msxnet.org/orwell/print/animal_farm.pdf