Comparison Between Animal Farm and Oliver Twist
...ul conditions that the paupers living in the workhouses suffered from. Due to these facts, he criticized the corrupt organizations and individuals of his time, writing as a man who felt strongly on the subject of injustice and in a personal tone. For instance, when Mr. Bumble is corrected before the magistrate after insulting Oliver for his rebellious nature, Dickens writes: "A beadle ordered to hold his tongue! A moral revolution" (Dickens 22). This is used to describe the egotistical attitude that was characteristic of such officers of the church. Dickens speaks as one who has a strong opinion on unfair social standings. George Orwell's motivations for writing Animal Farm were quite different than those of Dickens. He wrote the novel to describe the Russian Revolution of 1917 and the history of that country following it. During this time, a state run on Communist principles replaced the former Russian Empire. This became known as the Soviet Union. The peasants and workers were supposed to have power themselves after being mistreated and controlled by the previous government system for countless years. However, people who formed their own opinions or spoke against the new system were either exiled to labour camps or killed. Although Orwell had strong views about such political issues and injustices that took place, his motivation for writing focused more around the use of words. Orwell believed that solid writing does not directly draw attention to itself, but enables the reader to form their own viewpoints and identify the subject that is being written about. Therefore, he wrote Animal Farm in a very passive tone, remaining neutral in his criticism of the corrupt pigs and allowing people to form their own ideas and understanding of what took place. This is extremely different from Dicken's personal reflection of his life through Oliver Twist, in which he forces the reader to agree with his opinions and ideas. The second major difference between the two novels lies in the amount of communication between the characters. In Oliver Twist, the characters are often engaged in conversations that may be used to understand their feelings and state of mind. The dialogue clearly depicts the amount of corruption, cold-heartedness, and greed that was characteristic of the upper-class, while outlining the feelings of sadness, misery, and suffering experienced by the lower-class. In Animal Farm, however, there is very little dialogue between the characters. In fact, it is mainly a narrative recollection of events. This is used to symbolize what is perhaps the greatest form of suffering following the Bolshevik Revolution - the lack of communication. The people of Russia were unable to stop Stalin's terror and madness as there was no discussion between the population. In addition, whenever there was dialogue in Animal Farm, the pigs were usually speaking. Therefore, this represents how the limited communication that did occur often only came from the powerful and controlling leaders. Another difference that is evident between the two novels centres around the use of language. Throughout Oliver Twist, Dickens uses a form of decorative writing that creates a colourful and clear picture of what is taking place. Orwell, contrastingly, is very concise in his use of terminology. He seldom describes an event in great detail. These differences are also reflected in the irony that is presented. Throughout the novel, Dickens uses complete sarcasm to illustrate his point of view. For example, in one section, the story reads: "...a weary catalogue of evils and calamities which hard men had brought upon him (Oliver)" (Dickens 222). This sentence describes Dickens' content against the corrupt and powerful in England, and also contributes to the reader's awareness of suffering in a very direct way. Orwell, however, uses dramatic irony to illustrate his message...