Controversy, Communism, and Creative Control

Hopewell Valley Student Podcasting Network 

Books, Ballads, and B-Roll

Controversy, Communism, and Creative Control

Episode #2

You are listening to Books, Ballads, and B-roll the podcast with your hosts Bee and Alastair.

In this episode of Books, Ballads, and B-Roll the Podcast we discuss: media that are controversial or that we might have some controversial opinions on. Specifically, we’re going to talk about George Orwell’s Animal Farm, the three Star Wars Prequels, and Taylor Swift’s song Better than Revenge. 

Segment 1: Animal Farm

George Orwell’s 1945 novella is a satirical allegory critiquing the Russian Revolution of 1917 and the Stalinist era of the Soviet Union that followed. It involves anthropomorphic animals who rebel against human farmers, in hopes of creating a farm where they can live in freedom, equality, and happiness. However, the rebellion degrades as it is taken over by autocratic pigs, first Snowball and then Napoleon, who mislead the other animals and ultimately bring the farm to a similar state as it was when under human control. The story overtly criticizes the Russian Revolution as failing to live up to its ideals, and its leaders as having become the same as the rulers the revolution tried to escape.

Our opinions on the novella:

• The Russian Revolution symbolism is very obvious. Farmer Jones represents Tsar Nicholas II; Snowball is Trotsky; Napoleon is Stalin; and Old Major likely represents Karl Marx, though some say he represents Lenin.
• We agree more with the Marx interpretation of Old Major, because he was painted in a more positive light, and wasn’t interested in ruling himself, unlike Lenin.
• However, Orwell’s intent is somewhat unclear.
• The book read more like a commentary on authoritarianism than an accurate critique of communism, and it seemed like it was only directly applicable to specifically the Russian Revolution. 
• Because of the positive portrayals of the animals’ initial dreams for their farm, maybe Orwell’s intent isn’t to say that communism is inherently bad. 
• However, there definitely is some anti-communist agenda behind the book.
• Orwell gave the rights to his work to the Information Research Bureau, a British anti-communist propaganda organization.
• He makes the animals seem foolish, incapable, easily manipulated, and overly idealistic, pointing to a possible critique of communism as maybe a good idea in theory,...