preview

Chapter 1 Questions and Answers, Animal Farm Essay examples

Good Essays
Open Document
1. What is the Gist of Old Majors Speech? At the beginning of the novel, the highly respected Middle White Boar – old Major – presents the animals with a speech, which is intended to plant within the animals his vision of a liberal future for all animals. The essence of Old Majors speech is that ‘...The life of an animal is misery and slavery...’ He is telling them of the reality of their existence - that they are merely slaves for mankind. Old Major explains to the animals that man is the reason why they are forced to persist in such appalling conditions of starvation, over-work and murder. Old Major passes on the wisdom that, to the animals, ‘...Man is the only real enemy we have. Remove Man from the scene and the root cause of…show more content…
Moses, the tame Raven, is described as a ‘...tale-bearer... he was also a clever talker.’ It is evident that Moses is a liar, when he tells the animals of a ‘...mysterious country called Sugarcandy Mountain, to which all the animals went when they died...’ Moses is also portrayed as being a very persuasive speaker, in that ‘...some of them [the animals] believed in Sugarcandy Mountain...’ thus, Moses, through his gift of the gab, is able to convince the animals of such fiction. Another of Moses’ purposes is to serve the most powerful figurehead, and this is made clear, when it is stated ‘Moses, who was Mr. Jones’ special pet, was a spy...’ so evidently, Moses served Mr. Jones through spying upon the other animals for him. Squealer, in the same way, is a negotiator. He spreads the propaganda of the pigs to the other animals, through his persuasion and speaking abilities. This is evident, when he is introduced as a ‘...brilliant talker... very persuasive...’ it is also said of Squealer that ‘...he could turn black into white...’ Squealer sells the ideas and information of the pigs, to the farm animals, through manipulation of the facts, and his persuasive talking. Squealer is also set as having no opinion, and this is revealed within the first few chapters, as he never voices his outlook on the farm should be managed after the rebellion has taken place. His loyalties always
Get Access
Related
Get Access