What is Orwell saying about the effect power has on both those who have it and those who don't?

Power and control is one of the most important themes in Animal Farm. Orwell explores political power - Mr Jones owns the farm and the animals and uses his men and whips to keep them under control and maintain his power.

Orwell shows that the animals have the power to challenge Mr Jones' control and take over the farm - using power in a positive way. He then explores how the pigs use rhetoric and propaganda to establish themselves in power and take control of the farm. It is interesting that the working animals, especially Boxer the horse, have great physical power but they don’t use it to break free from the control of the pigs.

Old Major is partly based on Karl Marx and Vladimir Lenin. Karl Marx, was a German philosopher who lived during the 19th-century. His ideas formed the basis of communism - his ideas are collectively known as ‘Marxism’, like ‘Animalism’ in the novel. He developed theories on how power structures in society keep people under control. Vladimir Lenin was a Russian revolutionary who established a form of ‘Marxism’ in Russia in the early 20th-century.

Orwell explores the idea of power leading to corruption. Many of the characters in the novel are eventually corrupted by the power they have, particularly the pigs, as they manipulate their position of leadership to exploit other animals.

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