The Donkey in the Animal Farm— Performance Desire of George Orwell Himself: Integration or Detachment?

Abstract

Animal Farm is one of the most influential works in the literary world. It is an allegorical novel written by George Orwell published in England on 17 August 1945. The story describes the brewing, rise and ultimate transformation of an "Animalist" revolution. The novel’s theme is anti-totalitarianism, but there could be more subjects to explore. Benjamin has its essential symbolic meaning.

The research of the thesis is mainly based on the Animal Farm and its expression of Orwell’s internal world: positive integration into or negative detachment from the real world. In the first part, the author makes a brief introduction and basic comment on both George Orwell and Animal Farm. The “Utopia” theory is then analyzed in the following part. The author discovers Orwell’s attitude toward the “Utopia” question, and clarifies the dangers of indulging in the myth of Utopia. The author then discusses the definition of totalitarianism and makes a conclusion that the story is inconsistent with the requirements of the totalitarianism, which is connected to Orwell’s attitude of detachment from secular society. Then next, the author reviews Orwell’s political points of view mentioned in the essay and explores the realistic meaning of it in China’s social circumstance. Four motivations were put forward by the outstanding political satirical novelist George Orwell, as follows: self-expression, thinking of aestheticism, historical impulse, and political efforts. The character Benjamin, a donkey in his work Animal Farm, has been long regarded as the author’s self-performance among those four writing guidelines. In light of both philosophy of living and current awkward situation of intellectuals, this essay commits itself to a narrow perspective: extrinsic detachment away from as well as intrinsic integration into the secular society was conveyed by George Orwell, through molding Benjamin such a character.

Key words: George Orwell，Animal Farm, integration, detachment