This GCSE English Literature quiz will challenge you on context in George Orwell's Animal Farm. A text’s context refers to the environment in which it was written. Context includes the political and social environment, as well as the time and geographical location in which the author was writing. If this combination sounds familiar, it is because these are the same specific elements which we discuss when we talk about setting, too. Where setting refers to these aspects of a text’s created, fictional world, context refers to these aspects of the author’s own world. Remember too that issues and events from the author’s past might have as much effect on a text as those occurring contemporaneously. The personal beliefs of an author also contribute to the context since they are likely to have had an effect on the text.
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How to write about context
Learning about the context of a fictional work will enable you to develop an insight into many of the important influences which helped to shape the text. As you will know, the relationship between context and meaning is not simple and straightforward. Sometimes context provides useful information to bear in mind as you read and think about a piece of writing. At other times, context is much more important, and Animal Farm is a text which really benefits from a good knowledge of its context. George Orwell was a highly political author, as well as one who wished to educate and warn others about the dangers he perceived.
This text works on multiple levels. You can read it as a pure depiction of tyranny and the betrayal of hope. If you wish to understand the satire, however, you will need to know some history, so you will have paid close attention in lessons. How much do you know about historic dictatorships? What do you know about George Orwell’s life and times? The more you know about the events upon which the novella is based, the more you will understand this text. Some of the shocking things which happen to the animals, and which can seem unrealistic, had actually happened in more than one country and on more than one occasion.
Research the context of George Orwell’s Animal Farm, remembering everything you have learned in English and (perhaps) history lessons, then try these questions to see how much you know.
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1.
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When was Animal Farm first published? |
|
[ ] |
1925 |
[ ] |
1932 |
[ ] |
1945 |
[ ] |
1952 |
|
|
2.
|
Which one of the following is NOT true of Orwell? |
|
[ ] |
He fought in the Spanish Civil War |
[ ] |
He was a Conservative MP for a few years |
[ ] |
He attended Eton |
[ ] |
He worked for the Indian Imperial Police |
|
|
3.
|
Animal Farm is most directly aimed at which of the following? |
|
[ ] |
The French Revolution |
[ ] |
The Russian Revolution |
[ ] |
The American Revolution |
[ ] |
The Cuban Revolution |
|
|
4.
|
Who does Napoleon represent? |
|
[ ] |
Joseph Stalin |
[ ] |
General Franco |
[ ] |
Mao Zedong |
[ ] |
Vladimir Lenin |
|
|
5.
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Who do Boxer and Clover represent? |
|
[ ] |
The middle classes |
[ ] |
The intelligentsia |
[ ] |
The working classes |
[ ] |
The aristocracy |
|
|
6.
|
Who was Eric Blair? |
|
[ ] |
Orwell's boss at the BBC |
[ ] |
The protagonist of Orwell's novel, 1984 |
[ ] |
Orwell's mentor and editor during the 1930s and 1940s |
[ ] |
Orwell |
|
|
7.
|
Orwell identified with which political ideology? |
|
[ ] |
Fascism |
[ ] |
Socialism |
[ ] |
Liberalism |
[ ] |
Nationalism |
|
|
8.
|
Which song was replaced by a new Soviet anthem in 1944? |
|
[ ] |
God Save the Tsar |
[ ] |
Russia, Our Sacred State |
[ ] |
Mother Russia |
[ ] |
The Internationale |
|
|
9.
|
Who wrote the The Communist Manifesto? |
|
[ ] |
Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels |
[ ] |
Leon Trotsky and Vladimir Lenin |
[ ] |
Joseph Stalin |
[ ] |
Tsar Nicholas II |
|
|
10.
|
Squealer's official reports on the farm's productivity are directly related to which of the following? |
|
[ ] |
The Soviet Union's five-year plans |
[ ] |
The Soviet Union's official education policy |
[ ] |
The existence of the Gulag |
[ ] |
The creation of the secret police |
|
|
1.
|
When was Animal Farm first published? |
|
[ ] |
1925 |
[ ] |
1932 |
[x] |
1945 |
[ ] |
1952 |
|
|
2.
|
Which one of the following is NOT true of Orwell? |
|
[ ] |
He fought in the Spanish Civil War |
[x] |
He was a Conservative MP for a few years |
[ ] |
He attended Eton |
[ ] |
He worked for the Indian Imperial Police |
|
|
3.
|
Animal Farm is most directly aimed at which of the following? |
|
[ ] |
The French Revolution |
[x] |
The Russian Revolution |
[ ] |
The American Revolution |
[ ] |
The Cuban Revolution |
|
|
4.
|
Who does Napoleon represent? |
|
[x] |
Joseph Stalin |
[ ] |
General Franco |
[ ] |
Mao Zedong |
[ ] |
Vladimir Lenin |
|
|
5.
|
Who do Boxer and Clover represent? |
|
[ ] |
The middle classes |
[ ] |
The intelligentsia |
[x] |
The working classes |
[ ] |
The aristocracy |
|
|
6.
|
Who was Eric Blair? |
|
[ ] |
Orwell's boss at the BBC |
[ ] |
The protagonist of Orwell's novel, 1984 |
[ ] |
Orwell's mentor and editor during the 1930s and 1940s |
[x] |
Orwell |
|
|
7.
|
Orwell identified with which political ideology? |
|
[ ] |
Fascism |
[x] |
Socialism |
[ ] |
Liberalism |
[ ] |
Nationalism |
|
|
8.
|
Which song was replaced by a new Soviet anthem in 1944? |
|
[ ] |
God Save the Tsar |
[ ] |
Russia, Our Sacred State |
[ ] |
Mother Russia |
[x] |
The Internationale |
|
|
9.
|
Who wrote the The Communist Manifesto? |
|
[x] |
Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels |
[ ] |
Leon Trotsky and Vladimir Lenin |
[ ] |
Joseph Stalin |
[ ] |
Tsar Nicholas II |
|
|
10.
|
Squealer's official reports on the farm's productivity are directly related to which of the following? |
|
[x] |
The Soviet Union's five-year plans |
[ ] |
The Soviet Union's official education policy |
[ ] |
The existence of the Gulag |
[ ] |
The creation of the secret police |
|
|