A Confused ‘Animal Farm’ for a Confused Time

Some authors make such an impact they become adjectives. Without even reading their work most know what “Byronic,” “Dickensian,” and “Kafkaesque” suggest, but no term is as chilling as “Orwellian.” It connotes a dystopian society ruled by a ruthless and manipulative government that suspends its misinformed populace in fear while under constant surveillance. These themes of course permeate George Orwell’s final major work, 1984, but these dark seeds are also found in the “fairy story” (its original subtitle) that he published four years earlier: Animal Farm, a novella still taught to middle school kids.

Indeed, Andy Serkis, director of a new computer-animated movie version of the thinly veiled allegory of the Soviet Union, said in an interview that he first encountered the story at age 11 and that it spoke to him deeply. The 2026 version, which took Serkis 15 years to realize, is a bit of a headscratcher, but it is also, in its way, perfect for our current cultural climate. It moves the story from the United Kingdom to the United States, it’s got fart jokes, the distribution company is shilling merch riffing on the MAGA hat, and there’s a gloriously irrelevant rap song at the end. (You must listen to this. You absolutely must.)

Some authors make such an impact they become adjectives. Without even reading their work most know what “Byronic,” “Dickensian,” and “Kafkaesque” suggest, but no term is as chilling as “Orwellian.” It connotes a dystopian society ruled by a ruthless and manipulative government that suspends its misinformed populace in fear while under constant surveillance. These themes of course permeate George Orwell’s final major work, 1984, but these dark seeds are also found in the “fairy story” (its original subtitle) that he published four years earlier: Animal Farm, a novella still taught to middle school kids.