Writing Assignment B: Animal Farm
Assignment: Respond to a question about Animal Farm in a solid, substantial
paragraph that provides lead sentences and several, specific
follow-up sentences.
Grading: See attached rubric, and highlight the section your teacher indicates.
Due: Thursday, November 15, 2012 This must be turned in to Turnitin.com.
Computer Lab Time: Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday
Theme: Animal Farm
The main theme of the novel Animal Farm is “power corrupts.” There
are, however, many other important lessons that one could learn from
this novel.
Write an academic paragraph providing specific examples from the
novel.
You may choose to answer any of the following questions:
Focus Question #1: Are the pigs good leaders? Explain your opinion by
giving examples from the novel. You may even want to bring in
information from the articles read in class. Two of these are in your
Animal Farm packet.
Focus Question #2: In his role as leader, what did Napoleon doing to
strengthen his power?
Focus Question #3: How did Napoleon’s tactics escalate to control the
other animals?
Focus Question #4: Throughout the novella, Benjamin the donkey has
been “morose and taciturn.” He spoke very little, and when he did it was
often to make an intelligent but negative observation. He felt that life
never changes. He might have said something like, “You work hard, you
get too little to eat, and then you die.” At the end, as he reads the last
change to the Seven Commandments, “All animals are equal, but some
are more equal than others.” What does Benjamin mean by this? Also,
explain some parallels in today’s world.
Example Paragraph
Assignment: Discuss how the them “power corrupts” is illustrated in the
novel.
The idea that power corrupts is not new. As far back as the 1700’s
the idea that “absolute power corrupts absolutely” was discussed by
politicians, historians, and moralists alike. George Orwell, an author
who has taught hundreds of thousands around the world through the
writing of his essays and novels, illustrated this point in his novella,
Animal Farm which was published in 1946. In this novel, a group of
farm animals rebels against a leader who works them too hard and
neglects them too often. They have a vision of the utopian society that
they would like to build, and a group of pigs takes over as the leaders
because they know how to read and write and are generally more
intelligent than the other animals. On the very first day after the
rebellion, corruption by the leaders, the pigs, began to take place when
Napoleon (vying for leadership) directed all of the animals to the fields to
work during which time he helped himself to the milk that could have
been shared by all of the animals. As the plot progresses, a very subtle
corruption of power began when the animals were instructed that they
could learn the slogan, “Four legs good, two legs bad,” instead of really
learning and understanding the farms’ Seven Commandments. A naïve
working class can be easily manipulated, so it is in the best interest of
totalitarian leaders to keep the masses uneducated. This slogan was
also used often when Napoleon wanted to suppress discussions that were
important, but for which he did not want any opposition; Napoleon had
instructed the sheep to shout down any discussion by bleating the
slogan over and over. In totalitarian regimes, one of the most tragic
abuses of power occurs when leadership maintains its control through
the use of secret police. Orwell depicts this type of corruption in Animal
Farm when, during one of the last public meetings, Napoleon forced
confessions by innocent animals and executed anyone who he felt was
against him “…until there was a pile of corpses lying before Napoleon’s
feet and the air was heavy with the smell of blood…” Animal Farm by
George Orwell perfectly illustrates how a society can begin with an idea
of the way life should be and how easily corruption can set in. This novel
serves as Orwell’s warning to the working class that “absolute power
corrupts absolutely.”
Comment: The first line acts as a miniattention getter.
Comment: The second line is the topic
sentence for the paragraph.
Comment: The second line names the
author and the title of the novella.
Comment: A two sentence summary is
provided, so that people who have not
read the book can still understand the
paragraph.
Comment: This is the first specific
example provided.
Comment: This comments about the
second example provided.
Comment: This comments further
about the second example.
Comment: A bit of background info is
used to transition to the next point.
Comment: This explains the third
specific example. It is the most powerful
of the three examples, and it includes a
powerful quote.
Comment: This concluding sentence
restates the main idea and provides
detailed information about Orwell’s
purpose for writing.
Below are some (but not all) items you should consider when revising
your paragraph.
_____ Is your paragraph academic in tone?
_____ Did you revise so that the words you and I are not used?
_____ Did you work the title of the novel and the author in smoothly?
_____ Did you provide a brief summary so that those who have not read
the novel could still understand your writing?
_____ Did you provide many examples from the novel that you explain
clearly? This may take more than one sentence.
_____ What types of transitions did you use to move from one point to
the next? Are they the most basic types of transitions or did you
try to use more sophisticated transitional devices?
_____ Did you include a conclusion that restates the title, author, and
topic of the paragraph? Did you include an interesting
observation?
_____ Have you checked that all items are spelled correctly and are
grammatically correct as well?
_____ Did you follow MLA format?
_____ Have you turned this essay in to turnitin.com?
**The rubric for this essay is available on the class website under the
“Exam” button.**