If the video doesn’t load please try refreshing the page. If the problem persists make sure you have the latest version of the Flash player or watch the videos on our RecAPP iPhone and iPod application.

It’s nice to have someone to blame when things go wrong, right? Especially when you’re a leader. Helps to keep the blame off your shoulders. That’s exactly what George Orwell wants you to be alert to. In Animal Farm, he warns against the use of the common enemy. Theme 2? Yep.

Video Transcription:

In Recap Six, I mentioned the importance of a common enemy. In this Recap, we’ll look at the role the common enemy plays in maintaining power—and in revealing Orwell’s second theme.

In Animal Farm, there are two things that help Napoleon obtain and maintain power. Violence … and Snowball. By turning Snowball into the enemy, Napoleon creates fear in the other animals—and gives them a scapegoat. Nothing that goes wrong is the fault of Animal Farm’s citizens. And it’s especially not Napoleon’s fault. How could it be with the evil pig Snowball on the loose?

Now we readers know that the Snowball myth is just that—lies. But be alert: In politics, the use of the enemy isn’t always so obvious. It is, however, always dangerous.

Orwell’s second theme—the use of the enemy to manipulate the masses and to maintain power—won’t seem all that far-fetched if you look at recent history. Perhaps you remember George W. Bush’s enemy for America: He called it “The Axis of Evil.”

Don’t worry—I’m not comparing Bush to Napoleon. But there is something to be said for the way political greatness requires a common enemy. Napoleon whips his subjects into a frenzy with accusations about Snowball—and they’re left more fearful and complacent than ever.

To all of this Orwell offers one word: Beware.