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In 1944, George Orwell had a finished manuscript that hardly anyone wanted to touch. Four British publishers turned it down. One American publisher reportedly said it was too short to market properly. The problem was not the writing. It was the timing: Britain was fighting the Second World War alongside the Soviet Union, and this short, plain story about farm animals was, by Orwell's own description, a satire aimed at Stalin.
That manuscript became "Animal Farm," a book still read and argued over around the world. If you know it only as a title from a school syllabus, it is worth picking up as an adult, on your own terms.
Who wrote it, and when
George Orwell was the pen name of Eric Arthur Blair. He was born on 25 June 1903 in Motihari, then part of the Bengal Presidency of British India (today the Indian state of Bihar), and he died in London on 21 January 1950, aged 46.
Orwell had seen political conflict up close. During the Spanish Civil War of 1936 to 1939 he fought on the Republican side, the side loyal to the government, against the Nationalist rebels, and he wrote a book about the experience. His other famous novel, "Nineteen Eighty-Four," appeared in 1949, the year before his death.
He wrote "Animal Farm" between November 1943 and February 1944. It is an allegory of the Russian Revolution of 1917 and the Stalin era that followed, told in the form of a beast fable. The publishers who refused it included Victor Gollancz, who had published Orwell's earlier books. In the end, Secker & Warburg brought it out in London on 17 August 1945, under the title "Animal Farm: A Fairy Story." When the American edition appeared in 1946, the subtitle was dropped.
The book has since been named one of Time magazine's 100 best English-language novels published from 1923 to 2005. In 1996 it also received a Retro Hugo, a version of the Hugo Award that is given, decades later, for a year 50, 75, or 100 years in the past.
Where the story begins
Manor Farm, near the village of Willingdon in England, is run by Mr. Jones, a careless farmer who drinks too much and neglects his animals. One night Old Major, an aged prize boar, calls the animals together. He urges them to overthrow their human masters and to picture a life in which animals work for themselves. He leaves them with a song that carries that hope.
Not long afterward, Old Major dies. Two young pigs, Snowball and Napoleon, take the lead, and the animals drive Mr. Jones off the farm. They give it a new name: Animal Farm.
That is the starting point. Everything after it is best met on the page, without anyone telling you in advance.
What makes it worth reading
It is genuinely short. "Animal Farm" is a novella, and you can read it in an evening. That makes it one of the easiest classics to actually finish, and one of the easiest to reread.
It works without a history lesson. You do not need to know anything about Russia in 1917 to follow it. The language is clear, the setting is a barnyard, and the characters are pigs, horses, sheep, and a donkey. Readers who do know the history will notice a second layer underneath, but the story stands on its own.
The animals feel like people you know. Boxer is the loyal, hard-working cart-horse. Clover is the gentle mare who worries about him. Benjamin is the skeptical old donkey who keeps out of politics. Mollie is the vain young mare, and the sheep have no names at all, only a habit of speaking together. Orwell sketches each one in a few lines, and somehow that is enough.
It is a book about words. The whole story is set in motion by a speech and a song. Orwell is fascinated by how language moves a crowd, which makes this a rewarding book to read slowly and talk about.
If you are choosing an edition, look for one that keeps the original subtitle, "A Fairy Story." It is a small detail, but it shows exactly how Orwell wanted the book to be read.
Who will enjoy it
This is the obvious first step for anyone curious about Orwell who is not ready for the length of "Nineteen Eighty-Four." It is a strong pick for book clubs and classrooms, because it is short enough for everyone to finish and open enough to start a long discussion. Readers who enjoy fables, satire, or stories that look simple on the surface will find plenty here. So will anyone who read it at fifteen and suspects they missed something.
Give it one evening. It is a small book with a long reach.
Sources
- Wikipedia, "Animal Farm" (dates of writing; rejection by four British publishers, including Victor Gollancz, Orwell's own publisher, and the wartime alliance with the Soviet Union as the main concern; a US rejection calling it too short to market; first publication date and publisher; original subtitle "A Fairy Story" and its removal in the 1946 US edition; allegory of the Russian Revolution and the Stalin era; Orwell's description of it as a satire against Stalin; opening setup; characters; novella and beast-fable form; Time 100 listing; 1996 Retro Hugo) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Animal_Farm
- Wikipedia, "George Orwell" (real name, birth and death dates and places, service with the Republican side in the Spanish Civil War, publication year of Nineteen Eighty-Four) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Orwell
- Wikipedia, "Spanish Civil War" (1936-1939; the Republicans as the government side and the Nationalists as the rebels) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spanish_Civil_War
- Wikipedia, "Retro Hugo Award" (awarded for years 50, 75, or 100 years earlier; introduced in 1996) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Retro_Hugo_Award