Terms to know:FABLE:-The fable is one of the oldest literary forms.

-A fable is usually short, written in either verse or prose, and conveys a clear moral or message.

-The earliest fables still preserved date back to 6th Century Greece

ANIMAL FARMNotes: Part Two

ANIMAL FARMNotes: Part TwoTerms to know:

FABLE:-The author of these fables, Aesop, used animal characters to stand for human "types." For example, a fox character might embody the human characteristics of cunning and cleverness.

-Though Aesop's animal fables were ostensibly about animals, they were really instructional tales about human emotions and human behavior. 

-With Animal Farm, Orwell took the short animal fable and expanded it to the length of a short novel.

ANIMAL FARMNotes: Part TwoTerms to know:

ALLEGORY:-Most fables have two levels of meaning. Each character in an allegory stands for something else. 

-The writer conveys a moral message, and the story has a literal and symbolic meaning.  On the surface, the fable is about animals. But on a second level, the animals stand for types of people or ideas. The way the animals interact and the way the plot unfolds says something about the nature of people or the value of ideas.

-Any type of fiction that has multiple levels of meaning

in this way is called an allegory.

ANIMAL FARMNotes: Part TwoTerms to know:

ALLEGORY:-a narrative that serves as an extended metaphor. The main purpose of an allegory is to tell a story that has characters, a setting, as well as other types of symbols, that have both literal and figurative meanings.

The difference between an allegory and a symbol is that an allegory is a complete narrative that conveys abstract ideas to get a point across, while a symbol is a representation of an idea or concept that can have a different

meaning throughout a literary work.

ANIMAL FARMNotes: Part TwoTerms to know:

SYMBOLISM:-a symbol is a word or object that stands for another word or object. The object or word can be seen with the eye or not visible.

-For example a dove stands for Peace. The dove can be seen and peace cannot.

ANIMAL FARMNotes: Part TwoTerms to know:

SYMBOLISM:-In literature, symbolism is used to provide meaning to the writing beyond what is actually being described. The plot and action that take place in a story can be thought of as one level, while the symbolism of certain things in the writing act on another level to enhance the story.

Symbolism can take place by having the theme of a story represented on a physical level. -A simple example might be the occurrence of a storm at a critical point, when there is conflict or high emotions.

-Similarly a transition from day to night, or spring to winter, could symbolize a move from goodness to evil, or hope to despair.

-A river in a scene could represent the flow of life, from birth to death. -Flowers can symbolize youth or beauty.

-In the novel Animal Farm, the entire story is a symbol for the evils of communism, with the main animal characters representing key figures in the Russian revolution.

ANIMAL FARMNotes: Part TwoTerms to know:

SATIRE:-A form of literature that uses ridicule to make events and people look foolish.  (Examples:  Saturday Night Live, Mad Magazine, etc.)  Satire often uses sarcasm to force us to see our ignorance in a new light.