March 12, 2020
Samantha Mekhael
Period 9
Sophomores 202
Aim:
How can a comparison of speeches reflect the continued relevance of ideas held in society today?
Do Now: Get started immediately on the work from yesterday: “I Have a Dream Materials”
Notes & Class Discussion:
Class started as usual; instead of the usual Aim & Do Now on the board, we had plans from the previous day to work on the “I Have a Dream” document.
We discussed the “What’s in a Name” document, which involved the interpretation of the animals & humans from Animal Farm by George Orwell.
Today, the majority of class time was spent working on two assignments from Google Classroom with our groups. One of the assignments was the chart that we had to finish under the “What’s in a Name” classwork. In this chart we evaluate the effects of naming and how it helps shape the reader’s impression of the character. In particular, George Orwell created his characters with specific people in mind.
Mr. Jones- Mr. Jones is a negligent alcoholic. He was a generic human to the animals (as hinted to by the common name: Mr. Jones). Mr. Jones represents Tsar Nicholas II who was overthrown in the Bolshevik revolution.
Old Major- Old Major is a revolutionary who unifies the farm animals under one common goal: the defeat of humankind. His passion & old age make him credible to the animals. He references Marx and Lenin.
Clover- Clover is a mother of four foals, in her middle age. Although she doesn’t have an allegorical reference in the text, she acts as a mother figure, even allowing the cat to nestle between her legs.
Boxer- Boxer’s name literally refers to the characteristics of a boxer. They are of slightly lower intelligence and withstand hard hits because of their physicality. Boxer represents the working class in the USSR.
Benjamin- Benjamin is a donkey representative of the older citizens in Soviet Russia. Although stubborn, his old age makes him less susceptible to future failure, & as Mrs. Peterson said, “His clock’s ticking; what does he care if it all fails?”
Mollie- Mollie represents the petit bourgeois. She tends to only care about menial things like vanity & appearance, noted by her attachment to the ribbons threaded in her hair.
Moses- Moses has a religious connotation, Therefore, he represents the Russian Orthodox Church. Moses has loyalty to Mr. Jones, but will often partake in the animals’ gatherings.
We then discussed the “I Have a Dream” document, & the persuasive elements of both Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” speech, & Old Major’s Animal Revolution speech.
Both speeches acknowledged the current state of affairs: who was obviously suffering & benefitting from the present union. For MLK, it was the segregation African Americans were facing before & during the time period of the Civil Rights Movement, under the overarching empowerment & “superiority” of white people. In Old Major’s case, it was the parasitic relationship in which the humans took & took from the animals, but never gave anything back.
To aid in the credibility of their speeches, & to further convince their audience, both MLK & Old Major utilize Ethos (Credibility & Reputation of the Speaker). In Old Major’s speech, we see this in his frequent mention of his old age & “many years on the farm.” For MLK, it is the reference of “The Emancipation Proclamation,” previously given by Abraham Lincoln. Logos (Statistics or logical arguments to pique irrefutable evidence) were not very much used in the texts, but can be seen slightly in the reference to the obvious current state of the union in both speeches, ie: the suffering & unfairness. Pathos (captivating the audience by stirring emotion among it) was seen throughout both speeches when most of the convincing came from tugging at heartstrings or speaking with assertiveness for both MLK & Old Major, respectively.
Reflection: Today’s lesson compared the book we are currently reading, Animal Farm by George Orwell, to important historical moments. Although there is an obvious allegorical connection to the communist revolution in Soviet Russia, one can also see the influence of speeches by captivating leaders, as in this case, Martin Luther King Jr.. It is interesting to note how similar they are in actuality, as many speeches tend to be, by having a similar format to further call to action. It puts it into perspective of how even a tyrannical & evil leader can rise & gain followers with simply slight credibility, a logical statement or two, & a pull of the heartstrings or assertiveness.
Samantha Mekhael
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