Animal Farm

Animal Farm is a captivating novel penned by the renowned author, George Orwell. This particular edition was published in 2021 by Wordsworth Editions Ltd. The book belongs to the genre of allegorical and dystopian literature. Animal Farm is a symbolic representation of the corruption of power and the consequences of absolute authority. Orwell, through his skillful storytelling, portrays the story of a group of farm animals who rebel against their human farmer, hoping to create a society where the animals can be equal, free, and happy. However, their dreams are shattered as the pigs, who are the most intelligent animals on the farm, start to take control and change the society's structure, leading to devastating results. This book is a must-read for those who enjoy thought-provoking literature that reflects on society and politics. Don't miss out on this masterpiece from Wordsworth Editions Ltd.

In 1943, there was an urgent need for Animal Farm. The Soviet Union had become Britain's ally in the war against Nazi Germany, and criticism of Stalin's brutal regime was either censored or discouraged. In any case, many intellectuals on the left still celebrated the Soviet Union, claiming that the terrors of its show trials, summary executions and secret police were either exaggerated or necessary. But, to Orwell, Stalin was always a "disgusting murderer" and he wanted to remind people of this fact in a powerful and memorable way. But how to do it? A political essay would never reach a wide enough audience; a traditional novel would take too long to write. Orwell hit on the inspired idea of combining the moralism of the traditional 'beast fable' with the satire of Gulliver's Travels. A group of farmyard animals, led by the pigs, overthrow their human masters. Their revolution is inspired by high ideals: the farm will be run in the interests of its animals with no more slaughtering, plenty of food for all and comfort in retirement. But when Napoleon the pig takes command, he quickly corrupts their principles, creating a new tyranny worse than the old. Orwell wrote Animal Farm in the middle of the Second World War, but at first no publishers wanted to touch it. It was finally published in August 1945, once the war was over. This little book quickly became a seminal text in the emerging 'cold war' (a phrase that Orwell himself coined). It also became a site of that conflict itself, suffering various attempts to subvert or change its meaning. Today, Animal Farm remains a powerful fable about the nature of tyranny and corruption which applies for all ages. Our edition also includes the following essays: Shooting an Elephant; Charles Dickens; Inside the Whale; The Frontiers of Art and Propaganda; Literature and Totalitarianism; Fascism and Democracy; Patriots and Revolutionaries; Catastrophic Gradualism; Some Thoughts on the Common Toad; Why I Write; Writers and Leviatha