Student Question
What do the first four chapters of Animal Farm reveal?
Quick answer:
The first four chapters reveal the initial stages of the animals' rebellion against human oppression, inspired by Old Major's vision of equality. After his death, the pigs lead a successful revolt, establishing their dominance and creating the Seven Commandments. However, inequalities emerge as the pigs begin to exploit their power, foreshadowing internal conflicts. The revolution spreads beyond the farm, paralleling the Russian Revolution's early phase and highlighting themes of power and corruption.
What revelations about characters and themes occur in the early chapters of Animal Farm?
The first chapter of Animal Farm centers on the elderly boar Old Major, who has summoned all the animals to a meeting. In a moving speech, Old Major explains how the animals' lives are full of labor and misery for the benefit of humans. He issues a call for the animals to work together to overthrow their oppressive human masters. This chapter also indicates to the reader that a hierarchy exists among the animals with the pigs at the top, the horses in the middle, and the rest of the animals at the bottom.
Chapter 2 begins with the burial of the recently deceased Old Major . Led by the pigs, meetings concerning a potential animal uprising become a regular occurrence on the farm. After Farmer Jones neglects to feed the animals, the cows break out of the barn and are joined by the other animals in a full-scale revolt....
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After the humans are expelled from the farm, the animals establish their revolutionary philosophy, which is spelled out by the Seven Commandments written prominently on the side of the barn. Now that they are in control of the place, the animals divide up the labor on the farm between themselves.
The third chapter opens after some time has passed. Now that they control the farm, there have been large and successful harvests. However, it isn't long before the other animals discover that the pigs, who have taken on a supervisory role, are giving themselves special treatment, such as adding milk and apples to their mash. Divisions among the animals are starting to show, with some doing more labor than others. There are also disagreements between the pigs, particularly between Snowball and Napoleon.
In chapter 4, the revolution begins spreading to other farms. Exiled Mr. Jones joins up with other farmers in an attempt to retake the farm. An intense battle ensues, but the animals are ultimately victorious.
Taken altogether, these chapters are meant to parallel the Communist Revolution in Russia. They particularly focus on the inception and spread of revolutionary ideas as well as set the stage for the internal divisions that threaten to destroy the revolution from within.