Snowball

= __ Snowball __ =



= = __ Leon Trotsky __ =



Leon Trotsky was a Russian revolutionary who helped lead the 1917 Bolshevik Revolution. After Lenin’s death in 1924 Trotsky was an important leader but was forced out of the Communist Party and into exile by Stalin. He was assinated by a Soviet agent in Mexico in 1940.

Orwell uses Snowball to represent Trotsky. Many of Snowballs action’s from the book are allusions to real actions by Trotsky.


 * __**Snowball’s action or trait;**__ || __**Trotsky action or trait being alluded to;**__ ||
 * Snowball is a leader of the Revolution, helping to organize it and taking on a leadership role after Jones is expelled. || Trotsky was one of the leaders of the Bolshevik Revolution and after the Revolution became the Commissar of War and a Central Committee Member ||
 * Snowball and Napoleon never agree || Trotsky and Stalin (Napoleon) were rivals for control ||
 * Snowball advocates spreading Animalism to other farms in England || Trotsky Theory of Permanent Revolution advocates exporting Communism around the world ||
 * Snowball leads the animals to victory in the Battle of Cowshed || Trotsky as Commissar of War defeated the larger pro-tsarist White Army during the Russian Civil War ||
 * Snowball advocates the building of the Windmill to improve the lives of the animals by supplying their stalls with electric lights and heaters || Trotsky developed many 5-year plans designed to jump-start Russia’s industrialization. Trotsky envisioned this new industry would produce luxuries to enhance the People’s lives. ||
 * Snowball is often interrupted by the bleating of the sheep while speaking || As Trotsky’s and Stalin’s rivalry grew, Trotsky was often interrupted by jeers and catcalls while delivering speeches ||
 * Snowball is chased off the farm by Napoleon’s dogs || Trotsky was forced into exile by Stalin and his secret police. ||

**__ Quotes __**

**__ Snowball __** · (To Molly) “Comrade, those ribbons that you are so devoted to are the badge of slavery. Can you understand that liberty is worth more than ribbons?” -Chapter 2

· “Let us make it a point of honour to get in the harvest more quickly than Jones and his men could do.” -Chapter 2 · “Four legs good, two legs bad.” -Chapter 3 · “War is war. The only good human being is a dead one.” -Chapter 4 · “Vote for Snowball and the three-day week.” -Chapter 5

**__ Orwell and Trotsky; __** **__ The Connection __**



Throughout __Animal Farm,__ George Orwell paints Snowball/Trotsky as an ideologue who, despite his flaws, is genuinely interested in improving the welfare of the animals. The reason Orwell portrays Trotsky so positively is due to his personal connection to Trotskyism. During the Spanish Civil War, Orwell served in a Trotskyist brigade, which influenced his view of the revolutionary.

**__ Works Cited __** "Commenter Of The Day: Snowball The Pig Edition." //Jalopnik: Obsessed With The Cult Of Cars//. Web. 07 Dec. 2010. [].

Deuel, Norman B. "Claims Trotsky Was British Spy." //UPI's 20th Century Top Stories//. 05 Mar 1938: n.p. //SIRS Researcher.// Web. 10 Dec 2010.

Smith, IH. (1973). //Trotsky//. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall.

SparkNotes Editors. (2007). SparkNote on Animal Farm. Retrieved December 1, 2010, from []

// Unknown. // "Trotsky, Leon." //The Hutchinson Dictionary of Ideas//. 2004: n.p. //SIRS Renaissance.// Web. 10 Dec 2010.

"WaPo: Neocon Movement Began with Leon Trotsky | Politics in the Zeros." //Progressive Politics. Politics in the Zeros.// Web. 07 Dec. 2010. .