Abusing Power: Animal Farm and Wicked History

Students explore human nature through careful study of the Russian Revolution, focusing on the ways in which leaders manipulated and oppressed their own people.

icon/ela/white

ELA

Unit 3

8th Grade

Unit Summary


George Orwell’s Animal Farm has had great international impact for its messages about power and political corruption in the 20th century. Orwell witnessed the atrocities sanctioned by Joseph Stalin under the guise of communism, and his famous novel is a satire of societies that allow leaders to lie, cheat, and oppress the naive, obedient masses. The author’s decision to feature animal characters recalls classic children’s fables, but there is nothing simple or childlike about this story. Orwell’s novel is not intended to entertain; rather, it is a criticism of historical events and a warning to future generations about the dangers of tyranny.

In order to provide students with necessary schema to understand the time period that Orwell satirizes, this unit begins with the nonfiction text Joseph Stalin (A Wicked History), which dives into the history of Joseph Stalin and the Russian Revolution. This text is intended to introduce students to the real-life atrocities committed during this time period and give them a small window into the lives of the tens of millions of people who were murdered, starved, exiled, imprisoned, or killed on the battlefield, all at the instruction of Joseph Stalin.

Through their work with these two texts, students will explore questions about the power of language and draw conclusions about the way it can be used as a method of control. They will dig deeply into the use and impact of propaganda. They will explore the genre of allegory, the impact of satire, and the way that historical knowledge can create dramatic irony within a text. Additionally, students will have the opportunity to think about artistic interpretation through two lenses: they will think about how authors use and interpret historical events in a fictional text and they will analyze how a film interpretation can differ from the source text and evaluate the decisions directors make.

As this unit follows directly behind the unit focusing on Elie Wiesel’s Night, students will continue their year-long study of justice/injustice, particularly in the context of extreme human cruelty and suffering. Much like Elie Wiesel’s message that the stories of human atrocities must continue to be told, so too does Orwell’s text continue to act as an urgent, relevant call-to-action.

Fishtank Plus for ELA

Unlock features to optimize your prep time, plan engaging lessons, and monitor student progress.

Texts and Materials


Some of the links below are Amazon affiliate links. This means that if you click and make a purchase, we receive a small portion of the proceeds, which supports our non-profit mission.

Core Materials

Assessment


This assessment accompanies Unit 3 and should be given on the suggested assessment day or after completing the unit.

Unit Prep


Intellectual Prep

Unit Launch

Before you teach this unit, unpack the texts, themes, and core standards through our guided intellectual preparation process. Each Unit Launch includes a series of short videos, targeted readings, and opportunities for action planning to ensure you're prepared to support every student.

Essential Questions

  • What is propaganda and how can it be used as a tool of social control?
  • Other than propaganda, what techniques do corrupt leaders use to establish and maintain power over people?

Enduring Understandings

  • Josef Stalin was the violent, tyrannical communist leader of the Soviet Union during and after the Russian Revolution, who is remembered by many as “the greatest criminal in history.”
  • Language can be used to manipulate and mislead others; propaganda is a powerful way to influence people’s behavior and beliefs.
  • It is essential that citizens are educated, informed, and willing to speak out when they see those in power acting against the best interest of the people.

Vocabulary

Text-based

adversary benevolent charismatic complicit dissident dictator laborious manipulate morose notorious perception propaganda shrewd toil treacherous tyranny tyrannical

Root/Affix

dict mal-

Academic

allegory connotation dramatic irony epigraph juxtaposition satire theme tone verbal irony

To see all the vocabulary for Unit 3, view our 8th Grade Vocabulary Glossary.

Supporting All Students

In order to ensure that all students are able to access the texts and tasks in this unit, it is incredibly important to intellectually prepare to teach the unit prior to launching the unit. Use the intellectual preparation protocol and the Unit Launch to determine which support students will need. To learn more, visit the Supporting all Students teacher tool.

Notes for Teachers

  • The beginning of this unit is focused on a complex historical period; it would take a lifetime to truly understand all the dynamics at play during the Russian Revolution. Students need not understand every detail of this time period, but it is wise to emphasize the events and people that appear in Animal Farm. Character charts, timelines, and visual anchors will be useful in helping students remember essential details.
  • Animal Farm is a relatively dense text, and students will be expected to read a substantial amount of text each evening for homework. It may be useful to review the gist of each chapter with students at the beginning of each chapter as well as to continue to track specific characters as the text progresses.
  • In addition to asking students to make connections between the text and the Russian Revolution, students should be encouraged to talk about their own reactions to the text. This book is full of infuriating injustices, and students will likely have strong feelings in response to events and characters. Additionally, it is essential that students think about this book as speaking to the present moment as much as it speaks to a specific moment in the historical past. We encourage you to draw on relevant current events as you teach this unit.

Fishtank ELA Connections

Lesson Map


Common Core Standards


Core Standards

L.8.1
L.8.1.c
L.8.1.d
RI.8.2
RI.8.3
RI.8.5
RL.7.9
RL.8.2
RL.8.3
RL.8.4
RL.8.6
RL.8.7
SL.8.1
SL.8.1.a
SL.8.1.c
SL.8.4
SL.8.5
W.8.1
W.8.1.a
W.8.1.b
W.8.1.c
W.8.1.d
W.8.1.e
W.8.2
W.8.2.a
W.8.2.b
W.8.3
W.8.3.a
W.8.3.d
W.8.3.e
W.8.5
W.8.7
W.8.8
W.8.9

Supporting Standards

L.8.2
L.8.2.a
L.8.2.c
L.8.3
L.8.3.a
L.8.4
L.8.4.b
L.8.5
L.8.5.a
L.8.5.c
L.8.6
RI.8.1
RI.8.4
RI.8.8
RI.8.8
RI.8.10
RL.6.6
RL.8.1
RL.8.10
SL.8.1.b
SL.8.6
W.8.2.c
W.8.2.d
W.8.2.e
W.8.2.f
W.8.3.b
W.8.3.c
W.8.4
W.8.6
W.8.9.a
W.8.9.b
W.8.10
icon/arrow/right/large copy

Unit 2

Encountering Evil: Night

icon/arrow/right/large

Unit 4

Surviving Repression: Persepolis

Request a Demo

See all of the features of Fishtank in action and begin the conversation about adoption.

Learn more about Fishtank Learning School Adoption.

Contact Information

School Information

What courses are you interested in?

ELA

Math

Are you interested in onboarding professional learning for your teachers and instructional leaders?

Yes

No

Any other information you would like to provide about your school?

Effective Instruction Made Easy

Effective Instruction Made Easy

Access rigorous, relevant, and adaptable ELA lesson plans for free