Old Major, calls a meeting in the big barn of all the animals at Manor Farm. He shares his dream of revolution against Man. He describes a time of peace and harmony among animals. A time where all animals live as equals. He shares a song"Beasts of England," which becomes the animals' rally cry.
The animals are ecstatic about the potential utopian society, and all the animals agree to work together in harmony. However, Old Major dies three days later. His philosophical beliefs called Animalism are carried on by three younger pigs named Snowball, Napoleon, and Squeaker.
One night the animals plan and execute their revolt against Mr. Jones, the owner of Manor Farm. The animals win and leaders emerge because of their bravery. One such leader is the cart horse named Boxer. Boxer's mantra becomes "I will work harder." This mindset, he believes, is essential to achieve their new utopia.
As the story unfolds, animals begin to see that not everyone is treated equally. The pigs seem to have the better conditions, while the sheep are too dumb to notice. The seven commandments that the animals agreed to in the beginning slowly erode, so that the "new" rules (a form of the old but adapted to meet the current needs of their leader) always favor the pigs.
Will the animals' lives get better under animal rule than under man's rule? What will become of their leaders? Will the sheep continue to blindly follow, or will their eyes be opened?
"A little way down the pasture there was a knoll that commanded a view of most of the farm. The animals rushed to the top of it and gazed round them in the clear morning light. Yes, it was theirs—everything that they could see was theirs! . . . It was as though they had never seen these things before, and even now they could hardly believe that it was all their own." - Animal Farm: A Fairy Story
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