The Parallels Between Animal Farm and the Russian Revolution

What Was the Russian Revolution? The Russian Revolution began with the overthrow of Tszar Nicholas II on February 8, The citizens of Russia were very unhappy with the way the Romanov dynasty was ruling Russia. They were in economic turmoil due to World War I, and it led to strikes and uprisings from the citizens. The Tszar abdicated his rule in Russia. The October Revolution, also known as the Bolshevik Revolution, took place on November 7, This revolution was started by a small extremist group called the Bolsheviks, who wanted to create a democaratic, communist state. They gained the support of the Russian people quickly, and were accepted as the leaders. They abandoned the democratic process in January 1918 and declared themselves a dictatorship of the proletariat.

The Effects This overthrow of the Russian Empire led to the Russian Civil war. It was an attempt by the previous rule to take back the Russian Government from the Bolshevik Soviets. The Reds, which were the Bolsheviks, won the war in 1920 and the Soviets remained in power. From these Soviets rose many communist leaders. Among them were Leon Trotsky, Vladmir Lenin and Joseph Stalin.

Leon Trotsky Leon Trotsky ruled the Soviet Union from March 13, 1918 to January 15, He was a proponent of Marxism and wanted to create a Marxist state. He created many groups such as the FI International Committee, International Workers' League and the Committee for a Workers' International. These groups were designed to benefit the state as a whole, which Leon Trotsky was very in support of. He was forced out of the Communist party by Stalin and the KGB, which were the secret police, and was assaniated.

Vladmir Lenin Vladmir Lenin became the leader of the Bolshevik party and the Soviet Union from December 30, 1922 to January He was a harsh ruler and was a corrupt leader. He claimed to want a communist government, but passed laws to benefit the Bolshevik party rulers. He used propoganda and lies to control the Russian people.

Joseph Stalin Joseph Stalin came to power on April 3, 1922 and ruled until March 5, He was a very brutal ruler, and exiled or killed all who opposed him. He created the KGB secret police to control the people around him and the Russian citizens. He used the Russian Church to control the citizens and prevent them from uprising. He was a puported supporter of Communism, but changed the principals to benefit himself and the Bolsheviks.

What Does This Have To Do With Animal Farm? George Orwell wrote Animal Farm as a political satire and commentary on the Russian revolution. The characters, events and themes in Animal Farm DIRECTLY correlate with the events and people of the Russian Revolution.