George Orwell 'Animal Farm'

ANIMAL FARM is perhaps the most famous satirical allegory of totalitarianism. Published in 1945, the book reflects events leading up to and during the Stalin era before World War II. Orwell, a democratic socialist was a critic of Joseph Stalin, and was suspicious of Moscow-directed Stalinism.

In recent years, the book has been used to compare new movements that overthrow heads of a corrupt and undemocratic government or organisation, only eventually to become corrupt and oppressive themselves as they succumb to the trappings of power and begin using violent and dictatorial methods to keep it. Such analogies have been used for many former African colonies such as Zimbabwe and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, whose succeeding African-born rulers were accused of being as corrupt as, or worse than, the European colonists they replaced. In addition, the political deception and abuses of power of the Bush Administration fall into this category as well.

Read by Ralph Cosham



No mirrors please!

To read my other interesting news