USSR and How Communism is Affiliated with Animal Farm

The Bolshevik revolution in Russia came about in much the same way the revolution at Manor Farm comes about in Orwells Animal Farm. Under tsarist Russia, the peasant class was not very prosperous and there were many unsatisfied people. Lenin was one of the early Bolshevik leaders who took up the plight of the working class and called for revolution: Lenin was inspired by Marx, and the Bolshevik revolution in Russia in 1917 was the moment when Marxist-trained Communists seized power and institutionalized the revolution. If Lenin offered up the original dream for Communism, inspired by Marx, Trotsky became the mouthpiece for that vision and the potential new leader of it in Russia. However, Stalin emerged as more powerful andcraving still more powerchased Trotsky away and led a purge of all opposition in order to consolidate his grip on the USSR. Under Stalin, Russia was brutally united but the early ideals of the Marxists were betrayed, and the revolution turned Russia into the USSR became simply a power play. Stalin ruled with an iron fist, not caring at all for the common worker but rather only for the preservation and maintenance of his own authority. From this point of view, it is easy to see how Orwells Animal Farm reflects the sequence of events in Russia, with Old Major representing Lenin, Snowball representing Trotsky, and Napoleon representing Stalin.

Orwells novel begins with Old Major relaying a dream he had to the other animals. The dream is a vision of the way things could be on the farm if the all the animals worked together to take power away from Farmer Jones. This vision is essentially that of Lenin, as he spoke through the Bolshevik papers and circles about how society should be organized. What Old Major describes in the first scene of the novel is the same as what Marx and Engels described in their Communist Manifesto. Lenin simply repackaged that manifesto and used it as a...…promote Stalins line they would be shunned from society or imprisoned or worse. So while they might not have shared in Stalins power they at least produced propaganda that Stalin would approve.

In conclusion, the Bolshevik Revolution in Russia was initially led by Lenin, who presented the ideals that were meant to guide the revolution. In Orwells novel, the character who represents Lenin is Old Major, and in both cases the ideology of Marx serves as the basis of their ideals. But soon enough new leaders emerge following the war against Jones/Tsarand in the USSR this was Trotsky and Napoleon. On Animal Farm it is Snowball and Napoleon. In the novel, Snowball comes across as more caring and concerned about living out the ideals presented by Old Major, and he has practical plans that demand total sacrifice and commitmentbut he himself takes part in the struggles. Napoleon ends up chasing Snowball out using the fierce dogs he raises up. This does not exactly reflect the role that Trotsky played in fashioning the Cheka,…