chapter 1

• Historical/Political

  "The best known among them was a small fat pig named Squealer, with very round cheeks, twinkling eyes, nimble movements, and a shrill voice. He was a brilliant talker, and when he was arguing some difficult point he had a way of skipping from side to side and whisking his tail which was somehow very persuasive. The others said of Squealer that he could turn black into white."
• Who is the best-known character among the animals?

  Squealer
• What are some physical characteristics of Squealer?

  Small, fat, round cheeks, twinkling eyes
• How is Squealer described in terms of movement and voice?

  Nimble movements and a shrill voice
• What persuasive technique does Squealer use when arguing?

  He skips from side to side and whisks his tail
• What can Squealer do with his arguments, according to others?

  He can turn black into white
• What is the title of the pamphlet alluded to in the text?

  Communist Manifesto
• When was the Communist Manifesto published?

  1848
• Historical/Political

  [“]Only get rid of Man, and the produce of our labour would be our own. Almost overnight we could become rich and free.[”]
• What does the Communist Manifesto call upon workers to do?

  Unite to overthrow the capitalists
• What do workers aim to seize according to the Communist Manifesto?

  The means of production
• Historical/Political

  [“]Only get rid of Man, and the produce of our labour would be our own. Almost overnight we could become rich and free.[”]

  The character of Old Major, who is the speaker, is an allusion to both Karl Marx (1818–1883), the German political economist and philosopher who believed the history of the world was class struggle, and Vladimir Lenin (1870–1924), who was a leader of the Russian Revolution and a proponent of the economic system of socialism.
• Historical/Political

  [“]What then must we do? Why, work night and day, body and soul, for the overthrow of the human race! That is my message to you, comrades: Rebellion![”]
• Historical/Political

  [“]What then must we do? Why, work night and day, body and soul, for the overthrow of the human race! That is my message to you, comrades: Rebellion![”]

  The Rebellion is an allusion to the Russian Revolution of 1917, when the Russian people overthrew the royal ruling family.
• Historical/Literary

  Bright will shine the fields of England, Purer shall its waters be, Sweeter yet shall blow its breezes On the day that sets us free.

  The song “Beasts of England,” from which this stanza comes, is an allusion to both “The Internationale,” a socialist anthem written in the late 1800s, and “Men of England,” a poem written in the 1800s by Percy Bysshe Shelley about the exploitation of workers.
• Historical/Literary

  Bright will shine the fields of England, Purer shall its waters be, Sweeter yet shall blow its breezes On the day that sets us free.