Animal Farm Chapter 1 Knowledge and Questions PDF

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Chapter 1 summary, knowledge and questions....

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Animal Farm – Questions about Plot and Concepts Chapter 1 1. According to Major, what is the cause of all the animals’ problems? Why? According to old major, man is the cause to all the animals’ problems. He suggests that the cows produced that milk, the hens laid the eggs but humans did not produce anything but rather just took these materials away. He justifies this by stating how last year the horse’s foals were sold before they were even one year old. 2. Which three not-so-little pigs begin to teach and organise the animals, and what is their purpose in doing so? How are the other animals persuaded? The three not-so-little pigs in Animal Farm are Old Major, Napoleon and Snowball each representing one of the three major figures of the soviet union during the 1917 Russian Revolution. They begin to teach and organise the animal formulating their principles to a philosophical concept of ‘Animalism’, the fundamental teachings which they quickly spread amongst the other animals. Having to be the most ‘clever and clearest minded’ animals on the farm whom seem to fully understand the real ‘struggles’ they have been living up to, cruel treatment and their ultimate fate, death they plan to rebel against Mr Jones. Due to the fact that the pigs were the most intellectual animals on the farm, being able to somewhat read and write, they were easily able to manipulate the other animals as they were too dumb to understand or contest the pigs. 3. What are the aims of Animalism? The ultimate aim of ‘animalism’ is to make all animals equal. Animalism also aims to eliminate humans as they believe they were the cause to their problems believing without them they would achieve the utopian like society they’ve imagined, to live an enjoyable life. The basic principles of Animalism are that any animal that walks on two legs, not four, is an enemy, while any animal that walks on four legs or has wings is a friend. Animals cannot wear clothes, sleep in beds, drink alcohol, or kill other animals, and all animals are equal. Basically, what the animals on the farm hope to achieve through animalism is that through this communist-like philosophical concept that all of the animals should be treated equally, sharing equally in both the responsibilities and rewards of the farm. 4. What is Old Major’s warning to the animals?

The Old Major warns the other animals that everyone is to be treated equally and that animals should never wear clothes, drink alcohol, smoke tobacco or sleep in a bed. He also further warns his fellow comrades that whatever goes on two legs is an enemy unless they have wings and those who walk on all four is one to be called a friend. He states his dreaming of the world without humans, as he describes their actions are ‘evil’, he further emphasizes his act of achieving equality amongst all animal. 5. Why don’t the pigs like Moses the raven’s story of Sugarcandy Mountain? The pigs don’t like Moses the raven and his story of Sugarcandy Mountain because it contradicts and serve as a distraction from daily life on the farm. In accordance to Moses, Sugarcandy Mountain is a place where clover grows all year round and lumps of sugar can be found on the hedges hence there was no need to work or no need for rations, presenting a much peaceful, easygoing society which is not the case and not possible. 6. What incites the animals to rebel against Farmer Jones in Chapter 2? This was because they had not been fed properly which caused one of the cows to kick down a barn door and allowed the animals to help themselves to the food. From there, Mr Jones and his men started to whip the animals who began to fight back. The growing ‘social’ unrest was becoming more and more clearer from this point on, in addition to the manipulative thoughts and theories of ‘animalism’ a philosophical concept defined to help the animals on the farm achieve equality, by the pigs, the animals ultimately decide to rebel. Eventually Mr Jones was expelled from his own farm with his men. 7.

Why does Boxer discard his straw hat? What does this demonstrate about Boxer’s personality? Boxer destroyed his straw hat because he believed that it was a piece of clothing that reminds and builds a connection to human beings and their ‘habits’ which had been describes as ‘evil’ by Old Major. It was also his acts of having to comply with the seven animalism commandments. This suggests that he is fully compliant with what he has made to believe, and to a small extent naïve with the rules set. This is explained by his most notable motto ‘I will worker harder’, believing in the fact that individually his hard work in all situation is not enough and instead wishes to push himself further even beyond his limits to fulfil a

vision/goal. Although dedicated and loyal, it is his own naive and ignorant personality which soon led to his ultimate fate in animal farm. 8.

How are the cows milked on the first morning after the rebellion? And where does the milk go? The cows are milked by the pigs’ trotters in the morning after the rebellion and the milk was given to the pigs as explained themselves to have “worked the hardest”.

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What do the pigs reveal they have been teaching themselves to do for the past few months? Explain the impact this may have on fulfilling the ideals of Animalism. The pigs reveal that they have been teaching themselves how to read and write from an old spelling book which had belonged to Mr Jones’ children. This to an extent contradicts to the ideals of Animalism as reading and writing build a connection to habits of a human. It is as if they have broken one of the seven animalism commandments....