Animal Farm: Wider Critical Reading Pack (TO USE LESSON 1)

Read through this pack to become familiar with some key political and societal concepts which could be useful to reference.

Good books to read:Nineteen Eighty Four, George OrwellBrave New World, Aldus Huxley

Good programmes to watch:‘Big Questions’‘Have I got News For You’‘Charlie Brooker’s Weekly Wipe’‘Last Week Tonight’ (YouTube)Charlie Brooker’s ‘Black Mirror’ (4OD) - warning - some of these episodes are very distressing.

Key concepts:

Equality – this phrase conveys the sense that the government is being over-protective of its people and interfering more than it should with personal choice. A good example was the decision to ban smoking in pubs. Whilst some people saw this as a necessary way of improving the nation’s health, many people feared it was symptomatic of a ‘Nanny State’ in which the government told people what to do too much.

Corruption – this is the idea that people have different identities and moral codes depending on whether they are acting in the public or in private sphere. Some people may be very different outside of their homes to how they are within them. This is a crucial concept for the tax avoidance debate. If laws don’t punish you for doing something, your private desires may well override your desire to contribute to society as a whole (the ‘public’). E.g. if your company is not punished for not paying as many taxes as you morally should and your job is to make money for your company, can you be expected not to act in your private interests and avoid paying tax?

Revolution – although many countries have private schools, England is possibly the country where they are most dominant, i.e. where your life chances differ hugely according to where you went to school. 7% of students attend private schools (a school that typically charges your parents money to educate you). This 7% goes on to make up around 30% of our politicians and, some estimate, 80% of those who hold the most power in society.

Many people believe that private schools shouldn’t exist as they give wealthier students an unfair advantage. Other people argue that: by sending their children to a private school they are reducing the amount of money they cost the government; that if parents have worked hard they should be entitled to do what they think is ‘best’ for their children; that if they were abolished the education system would basically stay the same because

wealthier areas would just have better schools or that, given that the most powerful people in the country went to private schools, it is practically impossible to change the system.

Alliances – the concept that a select group of individuals are viewed as superior (usually wealthier or cleverer than others), enjoying special privileges. Many argue that Britain is a deeply elitist society as so many people in power went to private schools and Oxford or Cambridge. Do you think it depends on whether it’s due to wealth or intelligence? I.e. should the cleverest people be running the country, but not necessarily the richest? Given that Britons are less likely to go to university if they do not come from wealthy backgrounds is this even possible? Do you think both are wrong or that both are right? It’s up to you to decide!

Communism: useful to be aware of. It’s a very exclusive and ancient club at Oxford University of no more than 30 people. To join you must be male, very wealthy and influential and not have to ask to

join. It’s members are famous for trashing restaurants and then leaving a blank cheque to cover the damage. The film, ‘The Riot Club’ is all about the Bullingdon Club and its activities today and is well worth a watch. The photograph below shows both the Mayor of London (Boris Johnson) and the Prime Minister (David Cameron) in the society whilst they were at Oxford.

Social Class is a concept invented by George Orwell in his novel, ‘Nineteen Eighty Four’. In this novel, ‘Big Brother’ is the government who is always ‘watching you’. There are cameras everywhere, even in every room of the characters’ houses. If people show any indication of disagreeing with the government they disappear. This is where the Channel 4 programme ‘Big Brother’ comes from and some people argue it is strange to have taken such a sinister concept and made it into a reality TV show. Britain is the country with the most CCTV cameras in the world, leading many to fear that, if the government wanted to, they could make Orwell’s world a reality. Big Brother is an extreme version of the ‘Nanny State’.

Dystopia and Utopia : terms used to describe worlds presented in literature. A Utopia is an ideal world, originating with Sir Thomas More’s 1516 work of the same name. A Dystopia is the opposite – good examples are Orwell’s ‘Nineteen Eighty Four’, ‘The Hunger Games’ and ‘Divergent’.

Dictatorship he was a writer and politician during the 16th century in Italy. He wrote ‘The Prince’ which

argued that to be a leader one has to be completely ruthless. Machiavellian has now become a word to describe someone who is willing to do anything for power and associated with being both coldblooded and incredibly tactical. Famous Machiavellis include: Tony Soprano, Francis Underwood from ‘House of Cards’, Lord Varys and Lord Baelish from ‘Game of Thrones’, Milton’s Satan in ‘Paradise Lost’, Becky Sharpe in ‘Vanity Fair’ and Marquise Isabelle de Merteuil in ‘Dangerous Liaisons’. Probably the most typical Machiavelli is Iago from Shakespeare’s Othello because he does unspeakable things with apparently no real motivation other than power over other people.

Immigration: one of the key issues for the general election in 2015. In general, more ‘right wing’ or conservative parties think that immigration – the number of people coming to live in the UK from different countries – should be limited as they are taking up jobs and benefits and costing the country money in terms of schools, hospitals and transport. They believe that our priority should be the people who already live here, or at least people from other countries who have skills that would benefit our society. More ‘left wing’ or liberal parties think that immigration shouldn’t be as limited. They believe that different cultures benefit our society and that most people who move to this country will earn and spend money here, boosting our economy.

UKIP: UKIP is at the centre of the immigration debate, as they very strongly feel that the laws must be tightened. Some hail them as representing working class British families to protect their jobs. Others claim that this party borders on racism. Nigel Farage is their leader and gains a lot of popularity by appearing to be a ‘normal’ person, rather than an Etonian/ Oxbridge snob – he is often photographed with a pint, for example. Al Murray (the comedian whose persona is that of a Pub Landlord) is standing against Farage in his constituency, presumably to mock Farage. Despite their personas, both men come from wealthy backgrounds and are very well educated. The posters opposite were particularly controversial pieces of UKIP propaganda. Channel 4’s programmes such as ‘Immigrant Street’, ‘The Romanians are Coming’ and ‘100 Days of UKIP’ have all been very hotly debated for their portrayal of both sides of the immigration debate and are worth watching.

The European Union or ‘The EU’: another political issue that will be key in the 2015 election. The European Union is a collection of European countries that support each other with business, economics, the environment, education etc. In order to be a member you have to follow their rules. Supporters of the EU say that it is worth it because the UK benefits in lots of ways – we are part of a group of people working together, rather than being just an island, we can benefit financially and

generally get more things done. Others, especially UKIP, claim that we don’t get as much out of the deal as poorer countries as we end up propping them up economically and having to follow their immigration rules.

Tax and welfare: the third big topic for the upcoming election. Right wing parties like the Conservatives believe that money should be saved by preventing people from cheating to get benefits, for forcing more unemployed people into work and from cutting the amount spent on

supporting people who can’t survive without government handouts. More left wing people think that the focus should be on saving money by preventing super rich companies from avoiding tax. Tax means that everyone who earns over a certain amount automatically gives money to the government – it comes out of your pay packet before you even get your salary. The more you earn, the more you pay. This money is then spent on schools, hospitals, roads etc. Although it is illegal not to pay your taxes laws currently make it quite easy for very wealthy people

and companies to find ways to avoid doing so. Many celebrities have been criticised because they, some of the richest people in the country, have been avoiding paying tax, including Gary Barlow, George Michael and Sir Michael Caine. The diagram above shows the amount of money spent on benefits compared to the amount of money wasted through tax avoidance. The tiny yellow dot represents the amount of money wasted through benefit fraud, whilst the big red dot, 100 times bigger, shows the amount wasted through tax avoidance. However, the difficulty for politicians is that they rely on funding from big businesses so find it had to introduce laws that would hurt them. Many also argue that it is better to have huge companies employing people and bringing money to the country than to put them off with strict tax rules.

The deficit: a term that will be used a lot during the 2015 election. It’s the gap between what the government spends and what it gets from taxes and other sources. At the moment, partly due to the financial crisis of the last few years, our deficit is very large. Many parties will be trying to show that they have the best way to reduce the colossal gap that has formed. The gap is best shown in the graph opposite. Right wing vs. Left wing:

Generally everyone is on a scale when it comes to politics and may be at different points on the spectrum for different issues.

However, the American infographic below sums up the main ideas associated with the different perspectives. If it’s not clear enough google ‘right wing vs. left wing infographic’ and it should come up.

Communism vs. Capitalism:

Very big ideas that tie in with the diagram above and are best summarised in the table below. For a more sophisticated understanding and which politicians were where on the scale, see the diagram on the next page.

Issue Capitalism Communism

How money is distributed (given out)

Resources (money, oil, water, businesses etc.) are owned privately – by people outside of government.

Resources are owned by the ‘state’ – i.e. by the people, represented by the government.

The way to bring the best out in people

Competition (working against each other) brings out the best in people.

Cooperation (working together) brings out the best in people.

What people work for Everyone works for their own wealth.

Everyone works for each other.

Rules for businesses Very few rules for businesses. Lots of rules for businesses.

Government involvement Government only interferes if laws are broken.

Government very involved in people’s lives.

Advantages People have to be highly motivated because of competition, which can result in a more wealthy country. Individuality and expression are encouraged.

People are less motivated as they don’t need to be because wealth is evenly distributed. Individuality is suppressed in favour of group identity.

Disadvantages In reality most wealth is owned and passed between very few people, whilst lots of people are poor.

In reality people have a lot less freedom to do what they want and the government can exploit the system so that they end up with more than everybody else.

Countries and examples USA and the UK: the London Olympics opening ceremony was a display of the strengths of Capitalism – a diverse range of individuals all expressing themselves their own way.

China: the Beijing Olympics opening ceremony was a display of the strengths of Communism – thousands of people working in unison to create one whole effect.

Debate lesson 1

Gather evidence to support evidence for either of the statements below:

My arguments Evidence, counterarguments and how I will respond.

1.

2.

3.

4.

1.

2.

3.

4.

Peer Assessed Debate:

‘Above all, people should look after themselves and their families’.

‘Above all, everybody should look after everybody else’.

or

DEBATE LESSON 1: Phrases you might like to use to help you:

A bit more advanced

A bit easier

To introduce your point

To argue against someone

To give evidence To use a counterargument to your advantage.

‘In my opinion…’

‘I think…’

‘It’s clear that…’

‘It’s plain for anyone to see that…’

‘Surely, you don’t think that..?’

‘Even an idiot could tell that…’

‘However…’

‘In contrast...’

‘On the other hand…’

‘You and I both know that that’s not true!’

‘I simply cannot believe someone as sensible as you would think that!’

For a fact: ‘Researchers have found that…’

For a picture: ‘This image clearly demonstrates that…’

For a quotation: ‘As… once said, “…”’

‘There is much stronger evidence to suggest that’

‘Whilst some people might think… I know that…’

‘Although, …’

‘I can see that… but…’

‘On the on hand… but on the other hand…’