Context GapFill

The following quiz relates to Assessment Objective 3 (AO3).

George Orwell submitted his novella for publication in   1943192919461944, but it was initially rejected by  T S EliotD H LawrenceEzra PoundP G Wodehouse at Faber and Faber because its political message was at odds with the wartime effort. Orwell was concerned that the British   fascistsestablishmentintelligentsiamedia were presenting an inaccurate picture of Stalin's Russia as a true socialist   plutocracyoligarchyrepublicexperiment and that this misinformation could damage the wider reputation of socialism itself. The   writtenparodyfairy-talepastiche form was employed in order that Orwell could communicate his message as simply as possible to a wide audience. The choice of a farm as the setting also may have complemented the wartime efforts on   the Channel Islesthe Normandy Coastthe home frontthe Irish Sea, giving the story more contemporary relevance. However, most readers understood that the story was an allegory about the history of   LeninismSoviet communismthe Conservative Partythe labour movement. 

The narrative draws close parallels with the  KulakVelvetBolshevikTrotskyite Revolution in Russia: while Napoleon's exiling of Snowball echoes Stalin's persecution of Trotsky, Napoleon also mimics Stalin's treatment of Trotsky in using Snowball as an excuse for his   policybusiness dealingsshow trialswhisky drinking. Orwell's relatively sympathetic portrayal of Snowball may also stem from his allegiance to a Trotsky-inspired faction during the  Spanish Civil War1919 Liverpool RiotsSecond World WarRed Scare.

Orwell's egalitarian politics may seem surprising as he was educated at   CharterhouseGordonstounEtonWinchester. However, the snobbery he experienced there and his childhood experience of British Imperialist rule in   Sri LankaHong KongIndiaKenya clearly shaped his later political convictions. His political concerns in Animal Farm would prove chillingly accurate, as testified to by Stalin's subsequent purge of over   20 million50,0002 million40 million Russian citizens.