"'And will I still be allowed to wear ribbons in my mane?' asked Mollie.
'Comrade,' said Snowball, 'those ribbons that you are so devoted to are the badge of slavery. Can you not understand that liberty is worth more than ribbons?'" (27)

This quote uses dialogue to illustrate Mollie's devotion to her decorative attire. Also, Snowball uses symbolism when saying that the ribbons represented slavery.

I chose this quote because Mollie is an interesting symbol in the story, and her central conflict is set up here; between her silly trifles and liberty.

Analysis: Mollie stands for Western vanity, and those who cling to empty amenities while remaining subservient. The question is, why do the animals want Mollie to agree with them so badly? Is freedom more important than happiness? I feel like happiness should be the ultimate goal of all people. What use is there to struggle and trudge through misery for an abstract and relative state of being when you would have been happier just as you are? Many would say, especially Revolutionaries of history, that they fight and struggle for the potential to have greater happiness than they have at the moment. This is a fair response, but if you go as far as to revolt, or even to consider that you are not as happy as you could be, then you must on some level be dissatisfied. That is what Capitalism is based on, dissatisfaction, or as its more positive connotation is known, ambition. Communism relies on people being satisfied with their basic needs and the satisfaction of a good day's work. That is why Communism is a practical impossibility; Capitalism is the natural state of humanity, and nature in general. 

Quote: "In Sugarcandy Mountain it was Sunday seven days a week, clover was in season all the year round, and lump sugar and linseed cake grew on the hedges" (27) 

This quote describes the imaginary land of plenty that animals go to when they die, called Sugarcandy Mountain. The tale is told my a raven named Moses.

I chose this quote because it makes use of tone when describing the land of plenty and happiness. Also Moses' name is an allusion to the Biblical Moses who led his people away from slavery, and is also part of the religion that Sugarcandy Mountain is a reference to.

Analysis: This is an example of the role of religion in many political situations. Here, Jones is using the prospect of Sugarcandy Mountain to soften the animals' longing for luxury, and subsequently, their propensity for rebellion. Later in the story, Moses returns and tells the same tales. At that point, the religion is a way to keep the animals hoping and dreaming of something better, again softening the edge of their hard life. The irony is that the second time that Moses tells his tales, the tyranny and oppression that the animals face is from their own comrades.

Quote: "'Man is the only creature that consumes without producing. He does not give milk, he does not lay eggs, he is too weak to pull the plough, he cannot run fast enough to catch rabbits. Yet he is lord of all animals'" (19)

This is another part of Old Major's manifesto speech, in which he describes the nature of Man's oppression. He uses repetition to drive home his point of human uselessness, as well as irony. It is ironic that Man gets the largest share when he contributes the smallest share. 

I chose this quote because it raises the question of why Man doesn't contribute to the pile and yet maintains control.

Analysis: Why does Man not produce his fair share? Is it because Man is more deserving? I think that it is because we can. The constant biological struggle of both life and evolution is to maximize comfort and minimize energy expenditure. Life is personal. If we can stand on others' shoulders and live our lives in comfort why would we not? That is not human nature, that is just nature. It is even better if you can keep the shoulders you are standing on unaware of their burden, or afraid to move. There are many methods of doing this, you could anchor them to you, create the illusion of freedom (unburdened), or threaten their lives if they leave. All of these have been employed by people to other people in history before, metaphorically and literally, so why on earth would Man not take advantage of lowly animals, the lowest of the classes. 

Quote: "'Now, comrades, what is the nature of this life of ours? Let us face it: our lives are miserable, laborious, and short...'" (18) 

This is part of the speech given by Old Major at the beginning of the story, he is laying the foundations for Animalism and extolling the miseries of their current lives. I chose this quote because the speech given here is the foundation upon which the story is built, and also the beginning of the allegorical nature of Animal Farm.

Analysis: Animal Farm is well known as an allegory for lots of communist uprisings, specifically the Russian Revolution. Many of the characters have an almost one-to-one correspondence to people in history, especially Soviets. Old Major, for one, is analogous to Karl Marx, whose philosophies, collectively known as Marxism, were the basis for Communism. Marx wrote and advocated for the proletariat, and also saw his ideas perverted into a way to control the people. Old Major, however, died before that occurred, and was unable to speak against it as Marx did.