Analysis

The following pages will focus on in-depth analysis of various aspects of Animal Farm by George Orwell.

When considering the structure of the book, we will comment on the non-traditional structure where the main conflict (human oppression) is seemingly resolved quickly , only to be replaced by a similar conflict as the story progresses (the pigs becoming more and more like human oppressors). 

We will also look into the various aspect of the setting. The physical setting of the story is an English farm. The social setting is complex, as it contains many parallels to human societies. Some of the animal species represent specific social classes, and some of the events represent real political situations.

In the next section, we will give a detailed overview of the most important characters in the story (most of which are animals) - particularly Napoleon and Snowball, who both play major roles in the development of Animal Farm.

We will finally zoom in on the language used in the story, and help you to consider Orwell’s use of literary devices such as anthropomorphism, foreshadowing and imagery.

You can read the full analysis in the following sections.

Do you need further help for analysing novels? See our guide for novel analysis.