The Oppressors and Heretics of Animal Farm

Animal Farm is a political allegory written by George Orwell and about the animals taking over the farm, which was originally owned by a human. Albert Camus quoted, “Every revolutionary ends up either by becoming

an oppressor or a heretic.” There are always two types of revolutionaries: revolutionaries who want to have power and revolutionaries who just want the happiness of people. Camus’s quote is very true, because there are great examples like Napoleon, Snowball and the other animals in this book. In Animal Farm, Napoleon and the pigs became oppressors and Snowball and the other animals became heretics.

The quote by Albert Camus explains that a revolutionary could become an oppressor. In Animal Farm, Napoleon and the pigs became oppressors. There are many evidences in the book. After the rebellion, all animals had to work in the farm and fields. However, the pigs believed that they were the smartest among all the other animals, so they insisted that they should not work in order to work with their brain for Animal Farm, which they said is very tiring. Also, when the cows had to be milked, the pigs milked them and drank the product themselves, not sharing with the other animals. In addition, apples were reserved for the pigs only. After Napoleon became the leader of the Animal Farm with Snowball, Napoleon wanted to have the whole control of the Animal Farm to himself. So Napoleon used his privately raised dogs to run after Snowball and expelled him. After Snowball got expelled, Napoleon began the windmill plan, which was originally planned by Snowball, even though he was against it when Snowball came up with this idea. Also, he oppressed other animals to fulfill his desire. He executed the hens and other animals for contacting with Snowball. As the time pass, he became more and more like humans. For example, he drank alcohols that he got from selling Boxer to the horse slaughterer. The next day, he got a hung over and the pigs thought that Napoleon was dying. They began to get used to Mr. Jones’s possessions. They slept in beds and wore clothes which weren’t allowed by the original seven commandments. However, the pigs began to change the seven commandments. At the end, the commandments became “All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others,” which actually means that the pigs are better than other animals. The pigs abused their power for their own good.

The quote by Albert Camus also explains that a revolutionary could end up becoming a heretic. Even though all pigs abused their power, Snowball was way better than the other pigs. He ended up becoming a heretic. There are various evidences of Snowball becoming a heretic. He worked very hard for the animals and didn’t abuse his power compared to Napoleon and the other pigs. For instance, he flung himself to Mr. Jones during the battle of Cowshed even though he got shot by Mr. Jones and got a bloody streak on his back. Also, he planned the windmill project so that the animals could have better lives. However, Napoleon expelled him by abusing his power. He made fierce dogs chase Snowball out of the farm, which was unfair for Snowball. Napoleon made the animals think that Snowball was an awful leader, even though what Snowball did was to make the Animal Farm better.

Other than the pigs, there are many revolutionaries behind the rebellion. Most of the animals participated in the rebellion against Mr. Jones. After the rebellion, they all worked very hard for their farm. They had to harvest rice and work on the windmill project. Among all the animals, Boxer was the hardest working animal in the farm. His two personal mottos were “Napoleon is always right” and “I will always work harder.” Boxer came out to work an hour earlier than other animals and went back to the farm an hour or more later than others. One day, he worked to his limit and collapsed. The pigs told the animals that Boxer was being sent to a hospital, but they were actually selling him to a horse slaughterer. Benjamin, a close friend of Boxer, knew that he was sent to a horse slaughter but he couldn’t do anything. Boxer was the hardest working animal in the farm, but was sent to a horse slaughter instead of getting compensation.

In conclusion, Napoleon and the pigs abused the power for their own good and Snowball and other animals did not. Therefore, animals except the pigs were working really hard and starving, not enjoying the fact that Mr. Jones is not ruling them. Just like Albert Camus quoted, every revolutionary in the Animal Farm became either an oppressor or a heretic. The animals should have found a way that every animal could be happy an enjoying their lives.