Animal FArm (797 words)

Animal Farm
The novel Animal Farm by George Orwell is one of the most well recognized political satires of this time. Orwell has caused many elaborate interpretations to be written of his novel such as Language as Theme in Animal Farm, by Samir Elbarbary, is one of these interpretations. In Orwells? novel Animal Farm expresses the traits needed to maintain and secure a sense of power and control through the Pigs in the books? actions. The most significant of these traits are linguistic ability, the skill to manipulate ideas to the leaders? advantage and to posses the ability to confuse those less intelligent than them. These traits by themselves work alone and are flawlessly blended together to win the rest of the animals over.

The Pigs? ability to overwhelm the animals with a vast vocabulary base and their talent of rhetoric allows them to keep a sense of power and control. This use of strong vocabulary controls the animals in such away they will listen to almost anything and believe it it?s the right course of action. For example, when Squealer exclaimed to his following crowd, ??Tactics, comrades, tactics!??the animals were not certain what this meant? (Orwell 62) he used the word ?tactics? to take advantage of the other animals weak vocabulary and to strengthen his speech simultaneously. On top of this, the Pigs? speak in a complex way to embrace their power. One of the forms of complex speaking is stated by Samir Elbarbary where he says ?pitch raising used for additional reinforcement of persuasion?. (Elbarbary 3). Blending both strong vocabulary and complex speaking allows the Pigs to easily take advantage of their intelligence and use it to keep their position of power standing strong. The Pigs ways of manipulating ideas to their advantage drastically strengthens there leader status. The pigs, such as Squealer who ?is the master manipulator of his approving listeners? (Elbarbary 3) obviously does a great job at this. He manipulates the animals to a great extent. This is shown when Squealer was ?sent to make the necessary explanations? to the animals. (Orwell 42) He addressed the animals in such a way where he said ?you do not imagine, I hope, that we pigs are doing this in a spirit of selfishness and privilege? Many of us actually dislike apples and milk, I dislike them myself. Our sole object in taking these things is to preserve out health.? By speaking in such a manipulative way he can break one of their base principles on the farm, which they created, to ?preserve their health?. As well as manipulative speaking the Pigs have ways of doing this sub consciously. In one case they use poetry and artwork to manipulate ideas. There was a piece of literature that was noticed and shortly after ?Napoleon approved the poem and caused it to be inscribed on the barn wall?surrounded by a portrait of Napoleon.? Not only does he use this to manipulate ideas, he uses it as propaganda for the Pigs. This is a manipulative act because Even though the poem isn?t directly about napoleon, he puts it next to a portrait of him to place that in the less intelligent animals? minds.

The Pigs have the ability to confuse and take advantage of those less intelligent than them. In the paper Language as theme in Animal Farm Elbarbary stated that the Pigs ?take advantage of the Pigs linguistic vulnerability?. (Elbarbary 3). He derived this through the fact that when the animals use words that the other animals don?t comprehend they confuse them and make them more susceptible to the information they want to get across. They can do this even if the information isn?t true or even goes against the commandments that the farm is supposedly following. Not only do they just use that tactic, they will use ?language that becomes so opaque it parodies it commutative purpose?. This allows the pigs go so off topic to get the animals mind off something. Doing this enables the Pigs ?talk around things? and keep a firm position in power. The Pigs ability to perform these things so smoothly without mistakes lets them keep a sense of power and control as leaders of Animal Farm.

The Pigs