1. Read the following excerpt from Old Major’s speech from chapter 1 of Animal Farm, by George Orwell.

"Now, comrades, what is the nature of this life of ours? Let us face it: our lives are miserable, laborious, and short. We are born, we are given just so much food as will keep the breath in our bodies, and those of us who are capable of it are forced to work to the last atom of our strength; and the very instant that our usefulness has come to an end we are slaughtered with hideous cruelty. No animal in England knows the meaning of happiness or leisure after he is a year old. No animal in England is free. The life of an animal is misery and slavery: that is the plain truth.

"But is this simply part of the order of nature? Is it because this land of ours is so poor that it cannot afford a decent life to those who dwell upon it? No, comrades, a thousand times no! The soil of England is fertile, its climate is good, it is capable of affording food in abundance to an enormously greater number of animals than now inhabit it. This single farm of ours would support a dozen horses, twenty cows, hundreds of sheep--and all of them living in a comfort and a dignity that are now almost beyond our imagining. Why then do we continue in this miserable condition? Because nearly the whole of the produce of our labour is stolen from us by human beings. There, comrades, is the answer to all our problems. It is summed up in a single word--Man. Man is the only real enemy we have. Remove Man from the scene, and the root cause of hunger and overwork is abolished for ever.”

What is Old Major’s main claim about the lives the farm animals are leading?

  1. Old Major claims that the pigs are worked hardest of all and should really run the farm.
  2. Old Major claims that the animals live miserable lives because humans keep them down.
  3. Old Major claims that the animals are smarter than humans and that they would do a better job running the farm.
  4. Old Major claims that humans are lazy and don’t know how to farm.

2. What literary device is Orwell using in the following quote: "…starvation was staring them in the face"?

  1. Hyperbole
  2. Simile
  3. Metaphor
  4. Personification

3. What was Orwell's purpose in writing Animal Farm?

  1. He was unsettled by the rise of communism in Russia, and wanted to create an allegory as a way to caution against the dangers of communism.
  2. He liked farm animals and was disturbed by the way farmers in England treated their animals.
  3. He was friends with Stalin and wanted to write a tribute to the leader of the USSR.
  4. He liked the idea of communism, but not the way that the Russians were enforcing it.

4. What is the purpose of allegory, and how does Orwell use this literary device? Choose all that apply.

  1. Allegory is when a non-human object is given human characteristics.
  2. Orwell uses allegory to show how life would be like on a farm if the animals behaved like humans.
  3. Allegory is a fantastic story that usually has a moral or political meaning.
  4. Orwell uses the farm animals to portray human like characters that resemble key leaders of the USSR and how they ruled over the Russian people- his allegory is politically motivated.

5. Read the following passage from Animal Farm, by George Orwell.

“All the men were gone except one. Back in the yard Boxer was pawing with his hoof at the stable-lad who lay face down in the mud, trying to turn him over. The boy did not stir.

"He is dead," said Boxer sorrowfully. "I had no intention of doing that. I forgot that I was wearing iron shoes. Who will believe that I did not do this on purpose?"

"No sentimentality, comrade!" cried Snowball from whose wounds the blood was still dripping. "War is war. The only good human being is a dead one."

"I have no wish to take life, not even human life," repeated Boxer, and his eyes were full of tears.”

Based on the passage, choose the statement that best characterizes Snowball as a leader.

  1. This passage characterizes Snowball as a caring pig, who values all life, even human life.
  2. This passage characterizes Snowball as a ruthless leader who believes that the ends justify the means.
  3. This passage characterizes Snowball as a leader who understands that losses happen in battle, but acknowledges the valiant efforts of the fighters.
  4. This passage demonstrates that Snowball believes animal lives and victory are more important than the animals’ feelings.

6. What can you infer about Boxer based on his two maxims: “I will work harder” and “Napoleon is always right”?

  1. Boxer’s maxims mean that he likes to work and not think.
  2. Boxer’s maxims mean that he idolizes Napoleon and will only work for him.
  3. Boxer’s maxims mean that he is a hard worker who won’t question orders.
  4. Boxer’s maxims mean that he likes to be known as the hardest worker and he likes to ingratiate himself to Napoleon.

7. Write a well-crafted response using examples from the text that explains why you think Orwell had the animals build a windmill, and then have it destroyed more than once?

8. What literary device does Squealer use when he is making his speeches to the animals and what is the purpose of those speeches?

  1. Squealer uses rhetoric to manipulate the animals’ perception of what was really happening on the farm.
  2. Squealer uses hyperbole to show the animals how good their lives are.
  3. Squealer uses similes to compare the other farms to Animal Farm, so that the animals can see differences and similarities.
  4. Squealer uses charm to talk the animals into voting for him as leader.

9. What similarities are there between Farmer Jones’ time and Napoleon’s rule? Choose all that apply.

  1. Napoleon and Farmer Jones were/are both benevolent leaders who care about the animals’ welfare.
  2. Napoleon and Farmer Jones were/are both dictators.
  3. Napoleon and Jones only care about themselves, not the animals’ welfare.
  4. Napoleon and Farmer Jones both make a lot of money while running the farm.

10. When Squealer admonishes the animals by saying, "You wouldn't want Jones to come back, would you?” what is he DOING?

  1. Squealer is using the name calling to make the animals laugh.
  2. Squealer appeals to the money minded animals to show them how profitable Animal Farm is.
  3. Squealer uses sweeping generalizations to show the animals that all farms are like theirs.
  4. Squealer uses scare tactics to frighten the animals into following Napoleon’s rules.

11. List three rhetorical devices and, using example from either Old Major's or Squealer's speeches write a well-crafted response that provides examples of each device from the novel.

12. How did Napoleon fool Whymper into believing that the farm had enough of everything?

  1. Napoleon has the animals fill supply bins with sand to make them look full.
  2. They perform a play that shows Whymper how nice Animal Farm is.
  3. Napoleon doesn’t ever let Whymper on the property, but goes out to meet him in town.
  4. The animals dress up in costumes and dance around.

13. Given the Seven Commandments:

Whatever goes upon two legs is an enemy.
Whatever goes upon four legs, or has wings, is a friend.
No animal shall wear clothes.
No animal shall sleep in a bed, with sheets.
No animal shall drink alcohol, to excess.
No animal shall kill any other animal, without cause.
All animals are equal, but some are more equal than others.

Which laws did Napoleon and the pigs break?

  1. They broke all the laws and then changed them to suit their needs.
  2. They broke two laws, but had very good reasons.
  3. They broke all the laws because they said that Snowball wrote them and they were treasonous.
  4. They broke six laws because they thought they were silly and didn’t apply to the pigs.

14. Given the Seven Commandments in the previous question, what can you infer about the pig’s attitude towards the laws? Choose all that apply.

15. Write a well-crafted response that explains the symbolism behind the character names Moses, Napoleon, Squealer, and Snowball.

16. Read the following fable, “The Musicians of Bremen”.

“A man had a donkey, who for long years had untiringly carried sacks to the mill, but whose strength was now failing, so that he was becoming less and less able to work. Then his master thought that he would no longer feed him, but the donkey noticed that it was not a good wind that was blowing and ran away, setting forth on the road to Bremen, where he thought he could become a town musician. When he had gone a little way he found a hunting dog lying in the road, who was panting like one who had run himself tired.

"Why are you panting so, Grab-Hold?" asked the donkey.

"Oh," said the dog, "because I am old and am getting weaker every day and can no longer go hunting, my master wanted to kill me, so I ran off; but now how should I earn my bread?"

"Do you know what," said the donkey, "I am going to Bremen and am going to become a town musician there. Come along and take up music too. I'll play the lute, and you can beat the drums."

The dog was satisfied with that, and they went further. It didn't take long, before they came to a cat sitting by the side of the road and making a face like three days of rainy weather. "What has crossed you, old Beard-Licker?" said the donkey.

"Oh," answered the cat, "who can be cheerful when his neck is at risk? I am getting on in years, and my teeth are getting dull, so I would rather sit behind the stove and purr than to chase around after mice. Therefore my mistress wanted to drown me, but I took off. Now good advice is scarce. Where should I go?"

"Come with us to Bremen. After all, you understand night music. You can become a town musician there." The cat agreed and went along.

Then the three refugees came to a farmyard, and the rooster of the house was sitting on the gate crying with all his might.

"Your cries pierce one's marrow and bone," said the donkey. "What are you up to?"

"I just prophesied good weather," said the rooster, "because it is Our Dear Lady's Day, when she washes the Christ Child's shirts and wants to dry them; but because Sunday guests are coming tomorrow, the lady of the house has no mercy and told the cook that she wants to eat me tomorrow in the soup, so I am supposed to let them cut off my head this evening. Now I am going to cry at the top of my voice as long as I can."

"Hey now, Red-Head," said the donkey, "instead come away with us. We're going to Bremen. You can always find something better than death. You have a good voice, and when we make music together, it will be very pleasing."

The rooster was happy with the proposal, and all four went off together. However, they could not reach the city of Bremen in one day, and in the evening they came into a forest, where they would spend the night. The donkey and the dog lay down under a big tree, but the cat and the rooster took to the branches. The rooster flew right to the top, where it was safest for him. Before falling asleep he looked around once again in all four directions, and he thought that he saw a little spark burning in the distance. He hollered to his companions, that there must be a house not too far away, for a light was shining.

The donkey said, "Then we must get up and go there, because the lodging here is poor." The dog said that he could do well with a few bones with a little meat on them. Thus they set forth toward the place where the light was, and they soon saw it glistening more brightly, and it became larger and larger, until they came to the front of a brightly lit robbers' house.

The donkey, the largest of them, approached the window and looked in.

"What do you see, Gray-Horse?" asked the rooster.

"What do I see?" answered the donkey. "A table set with good things to eat and drink, and robbers sitting there enjoying themselves."

"That would be something for us," said the rooster.

"Ee-ah, ee-ah, oh, if we were there!" said the donkey.

Then the animals discussed how they might drive the robbers away, and at last they came upon a plan. The donkey was to stand with his front feet on the window, the dog to jump on the donkey's back, the cat to climb onto the dog, and finally the rooster would fly up and sit on the cat's head. When they had done that, at a signal they began to make their music all together. The donkey brayed, the dog barked, the cat meowed and the rooster crowed. Then they crashed through the window into the room, shattering the panes.

The robbers jumped up at the terrible bellowing, thinking that a ghost was coming in, and fled in great fear out into the woods. Then the four companions seated themselves at the table and freely partook of the leftovers, eating as if they would get nothing more for four weeks.

When the four minstrels were finished, they put out the light and looked for a place to sleep, each according to his nature and his desire. The donkey lay down on the manure pile, the dog behind the door, the cat on the hearth next to the warm ashes, and the rooster sat on the beam of the roof. Because they were tired from their long journey, they soon fell asleep.

When midnight had passed and the robbers saw from the distance that the light was no longer burning in the house, and everything appeared to be quiet, the captain said, "We shouldn't have let ourselves be chased off," and he told one of them to go back and investigate the house. The one they sent found everything still, and went into the kitchen to strike a light. He mistook the cat's glowing, fiery eyes for live coals, and held a sulfur match next to them, so that it would catch fire. But the cat didn't think this was funny and jumped into his face, spitting, and scratching.

He was terribly frightened and ran toward the back door, but the dog, who was lying there, jumped up and bit him in the leg. When he ran across the yard past the manure pile, the donkey gave him a healthy blow with his hind foot, and the rooster, who had been awakened from his sleep by the noise and was now alert, cried down from the beam, "Cock-a-doodle-doo!"

Then the robber ran as fast as he could back to his captain and said, "Oh, there is a horrible witch sitting in the house, she blew at me and scratched my face with her long fingers. And there is a man with a knife standing in front of the door, and he stabbed me in the leg. And a black monster is lying in the yard, and it struck at me with a wooden club. And the judge is sitting up there on the roof, and he was calling out, 'Bring the rascal here.' Then I did what I could to get away."

From that time forth, the robbers did not dare go back into the house. However, the four Bremen Musicians liked it so well there, that they never left it again. And the person who just told that, his mouth is still warm.”

What connections can be made between this fable and the novel Animal Farm by George Orwell? Choose all that apply.

  1. The story is an example of animals with human qualities.
  2. The animals set out to find a better life.
  3. In the process they outsmart humans and earn their own property.
  4. The animals have the same personalities in the fable and the novel.

17. Who seems to be wisest of the farm animals? Do they try to warn the others? If so, why does no one listen? Write a well crafted response using cited examples from the text to support your answer.