Themes of Power and Betrayal Depicted in Orwell's Animal Farm

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‘Animal Farm’ written by George Orwell in 1945 is a novel about animals acting out the reality of human faults and responsibility in the life of politics that we humans have undergone and/or witnessed in today’s society. Orwell shows the themes and issues through the relationships and leadership skills of the animals, and how they react with each other.

There are many themes and issues conveyed through the characters of ‘Animal Farm’, but two that Orwell portrayed the ideas and really stuck out to me were power and betrayal. Using human characteristics on the animals was a really good idea, as it shows there may be political side to the animal society.

Old Major was a clear leader at first. He was wise and all the animals looked up to him. Soon enough, the result of his death meant someone else would have to take charge and help raise ‘Animal Farm’. The ‘power’ idea clashed when two pigs put their hands up for the crown, but clearly there was only room for one.

With him running Snowball out of the farm, it left Napoleon with an advantage to persuade the other animals that he...

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