Animal Farm Quotes
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Source: Animal Farm
Author: George Orwell
War is war. The only good human being is a dead one.
Context
This line was spoken by Snowball in Animal Farm, written by George Orwell (1945).
If Animal Farm is an allegory for communism, then Snowball is Leon Trotsky, the former Russian Revolution leader, who got exiled by Stalin. Both Trotsky and Snowball the pig were into using military power to further the revolution, even though a pig knocking a human into a pile of dung is just plain silly—no matter how many Julius Caesar references he makes.
This quote might seem like a Braveheart moment, a rallying cry for the beleaguered army of farm animals getting slaughtered by their two legged opponents. But Orwell is just beginning to twist the deep knife of irony, since the animals become more like people as they begin doing things that they once despised, like drinking alcohol and sleeping in beds. We can understand dogs cuddling with us, but not smelly pigs.
It's all part of Orwell's ingenious plan to show that communism actually leads to authoritarianism, or a dictatorship, like Stalin and his successors. And what made Animal Farm so risky was that it was published while Orwell's native England was allies with Stalin. The book was revolutionary in a way that Snowball could only dream about.
Where you've heard it
You've probably heard this quote in a literature class between discussions of allegories and symbolism, or from your not-so-friendly neighborhood E.T.
Additional Notable References:
- If you're intrigued by Snowball a.k.a. Leon Trotsky's mysterious death, the FBI has made some files about it available, thanks to the good ol' Freedom of Information Act.
- On a less morbid note, Animal Farm happens to be one of the X-Men Beast's favorite books, which his silly guards think is a picture book, instead of a complex critique of Stalinism and authoritarian governments…like ones that want to lock people up just for having blue fur.
Pretentious Factor
If you were to drop this quote at a dinner party, would you get an in-unison "awww" or would everyone roll their eyes and never invite you back? Here it is, on a scale of 1-10.
Save this quote for when you're bleeding and dying for some lost revolutionary cause. Not during a nice chat with friends.