Question

Conduct research on the philosophy of Karl Marx, and write an essay of at least 200 words discussing the similarities between his philosophy and the excerpt from Old Major's speech.

Answer 1

Karl Marx spent most of his life researching at the British Museum on the nature of class society and the role of the working class in developing its own ideology of socialism whereby society will no longer be run by the bourgeosie but instead, by the advanced elements of the working class to serve the needs of the vast majority of the people, similar to what the government does in Cuba to provide basic free healthcare, education and such conditions as a lower child mortality rate than the US for example. Karl Marx and his partner in Britain, Friedrich Engels believed that the working class was born out of the socialized production of the Industrial Revolution wherein large numbers of workers were concentrated in single factories or mines. They also believed that the new working class was the most scientific class and the strongest class and most numerous in the history of the world and totally capable of forging a new people oriented  society. Marx died before the Russian Revolution in 1917.
Old Major, the boar in George Orwell's book, the Animal Farm, exhorted the animals to rebel against their human masters who were oppressing them. He died before he could see the success of the animals in this endeavour. 

Answer 2

George Orwell wrote an allegory of the Russian Revolution, and used the character of Old Major to explore the philosophy of Karl Marx. Old Major states many of Marx’s ideas, such as a belief in equality and in the elimination of class divisions. Both Old Major and Marx also advocate for rebellion to end the oppression of workers. Marx says that the means of production should be held in common. Similarly, Old Major believes that the animals could run the farm together. The main difference between them is that Marx writes about people, while Major speaks about animals. Both call for a more just society.