Lesson 30: Animal Farm, Chapters I–X, Comparing the Film to the Novel, Part 2

Students review similarities and differences between the film and text versions of Old Major’s speech.

• Say: In the previous lesson, we compared Old Major’s speech in the novel and the film and noticed that even when the main concept from the novel stays the same, the details in the movie can shift. Today, we are taking that same thinking into two later scenes so we can study how film choices can change a novel’s meaning or impact.

Turn-and-Talk

Say these Directions: Discuss the following question with your partner:

• Ask: What differences did you notice between the film version of Old Major’s speech and the novel’s version?

  • The main message about rebellion was still there, but the film made the speech feel more dramatic by changing some details and the mood. For example, Old Major is positioned high above the other animals, which feels more dramatic. Additionally, the movie kept transitioning between Old Major’s speech and the humans enjoying a party in Jones’s house, which made the speech feel even more serious and dramatic. Also, when Jones accidentally shoots Old Major in the film, this is important because it is a huge difference from the novel. And that decision matters because the filmmaker made Old Major seem more heroic and his death more emotional than it feels in the novel.

Connection to Today's Learning

• Say: Now that you have compared the film and the movie, you are ready to continue analyzing how the film stays true to the story, how it differs, and how this impacts the overall meaning of the novel.

Fluency Practice

Have students open their Animal Farm novels to Chapter IX. Have students turn to the paragraph starting with “‘Fools! Fools!’ shouted Benjamin, prancing round them and stamping the earth with his small hoofs. ‘Fools! Do you not see what is written on the side of that van?’” (p. 122) and going through the paragraph ending “Boxer was never seen again” (p. 123).

Model fluently reading the excerpt once all the way through.

• Ask: What is the gist of this excerpt of the text?

  • In this section, a van has arrived at the farm and taken Boxer. Benjamin yells at the other animals to read the text on the side of the van, which reveals that this van is taking Boxer away to kill him. The animals begin chasing after the van, yelling at Boxer to get out and trying to convince the horses pulling the van to stop. Boxer cannot get out, and the animals are unable to stop the van. Boxer is never seen again.

• Say: Let’s focus on the emotion in this scene by reading it again and paying special attention to the dialogue that is spoken by the animals. I am going to slow down at the important punctuation. Notice how I read Benjamin’s lines, which are a warning, not a calm comment. Also, pay attention to my voice when the animals panic because the pace of the scene changes—my voice will speed up slightly. If I read every line in the same flat voice, I miss the fear and urgency Orwell creates in this scene. After I read, I ask myself what is happening and how the punctuation helps me hear it. That is the key idea in fluency: good readers use pace, pauses, and expression to unlock meaning.

Conduct a second reading of the text aloud, emphasizing the spoken lines to demonstrate the emotions of the animals. Read one sentence at a time and invite students to echo read.

• Say: Notice how we used our voices to make certain lines of the text more emotional. Words like “shouted” and “cried” tell us that these lines of dialogue have a lot of emotion behind them.

Place students in pairs and share that they will read the text once more, practicing pacing and reading with expression to highlight the emotion of the scene.

Students decide who will be Partner A and who will be Partner B. Students partner-read the text.

• Partner A reads. Partner B provides feedback.

• Partner B reads. Partner A provides feedback.

Say these Directions: With your partner, take turns reading the text, starting with “Fools! Fools!” (p. 122) and going through the paragraph ending “Boxer was never seen again” (p. 123). One partner should read the whole text first, and the other partner should provide feedback. Then switch roles. Remember to think about the emotion of the scene and try to use your voice to express how the animals are feeling.

Connection to Today's Learning

Say: Now that you have heard how Orwell makes this scene urgent on the page, we will compare how a filmmaker creates urgency with images, sound, and pacing.

Part A: Comparing the Battle Scene (RL.8.7) (15 minutes)

Teach: Genre Study: Film Adaptation

A film adaptation is a version of a written story or book retold as a movie.

Present the following definitions for students to review. Remind students that they started comparing the film to the novel in the previous lesson, and these terms will be helpful as they continue that comparison work in this lesson.

• adaptation: a retelling of a story in a different medium

• shot: what the camera shows in one view

• soundtrack: music or sound that shapes mood

• pacing: how quickly or slowly a scene moves

Review these terms in the context of the film clips shown in the previous lesson. Note how the filmmaker uses shots, soundtrack, and pacing to compare how the adaptation stays faithful to or departs from Orwell’s novel.

• Say: In the previous lesson, during Old Major’s speech, we noticed that the soundtrack was serious, especially when Jones accidentally kills Old Major—the soundtrack gets solemn and tense. Also, we noticed that the pacing of Old Major’s speech was drawn out, with scene transitions back to the humans drinking at Jones’s home.

Start the film analysis work by showing students the Battle of Cowshed scene from the movie, where the animals drive Mr. Jones and the other farmers away after they try to attack. After screening the scene, transition students into partners to discuss the similarities and differences between the novel and the film.

• Say: We are going to watch the scene where the animals battle with Mr. Jones and the other farmers when they come back and try to retake the farm. Then we will reread that scene in the book and compare the film scene to the scene in the book.

Screen the scene in the movie where the animals drive Jones and the farmers away during the Battle of the Cowshed.

Turn-and-Talk

Say these Directions: Reread the Battle of the Cowshed scene in the book (pp. 40-43). Then talk with your partner to compare the movie scene to the novel.

• Ask: How does this movie scene stay true to the novel?

  • The movie stays true because the humans still attack the farm and the animals fight back to defend it, just like in the novel. The main conflict of the battle remains the same. The movie also features Snowball as the leader of the military strategy at the Battle of the Cowshed. Some of the key parts of the battle are the same, like the pigeons defecating on the farmers as they approach the farm.

• Ask: How does this movie scene depart from the original novel?

  • The movie clip departs from the novel by shortening some parts of the battle and putting less focus on Snowball’s planning. The movie features the men being surrounded by the animals and has fewer of the novel’s details about the actual events in the battle. That changes how much strategy we notice compared with the novel and changes how much focus is on Snowball’s leadership.

• Ask: What choices did the director or filmmakers make with shots, pacing, or the soundtrack?

  • The filmmaker adds choices like faster pacing, battle sounds, and visual focus on the action. Those are not on the page in the same way because Orwell uses words, while a film uses images and sound. Also, there is a scene in which Squealer and Napoleon hide from the battle, which is not in the novel.

• Ask: How do the filmmakers’ choices benefit or take away from the scene in the novel?

  • The choices can benefit the scene because viewers quickly feel the chaos of the battle, as opposed to just reading about it in the novel. At the same time, the choices can take away from the novel if the speed of the action makes us miss Snowball’s role or some of the irony Orwell builds.

Instruct a few student volunteers to share ideas for each question during a whole-class discussion.

Part B: Comparing Boxer’s End (RL.8.7) (15 minutes)

Continue the film analysis work by showing students the scene from the movie where Boxer is taken away, which is Chapter IX in the novel. After screening the scene, transition students into partners to discuss.

• Say: We are going to watch the scene where Boxer is taken away. Then we will reread that scene in the book and compare the film scene to the scene in the book. Pay close attention to Boxer’s fate and to the moment when the animals understand the truth. Be ready to explain how the film handles the betrayal and whether that choice strengthens or weakens the scene from the novel.

Screen the scene in the movie where Boxer is taken away by the knacker.

Turn and Talk

Say these Directions: Reread the scene where Boxer is taken away in the book (pp. 121-123). Then talk with your partner to compare the movie scene to the scene in the book.

• Ask: How does this movie scene stay true to the novel?

  • The movie stays true because Boxer is still taken away, and the other animals realize something is wrong too late. That keeps the main betrayal at the center of the scene.

• Ask: How does this movie scene depart from the original novel?

  • The film departs by changing how long the animals chase the van and by simplifying what Benjamin notices and says. That can make the scene feel more direct than the novel.

• Ask: What choices did the director or filmmakers make with shots, pacing, or the soundtrack?

  • The filmmaker uses visual focus, sound, and pacing to show Boxer’s fate in a way the page cannot. For example, the scene uses sad music to make the betrayal hit harder.

• Ask: How do the filmmakers’ choices benefit or take away from the scene in the novel?

  • Those choices can benefit the scene because they make viewers feel the loss right away. They can also take away from the novel if they reduce the shock of the animals realizing Boxer is going to the knacker.

Instruct a few student volunteers to share ideas for each question during a whole-class discussion.

Provide students with a confidence continuum (i.e., 1–5). As needed, model how to demonstrate a level of confidence using the continuum.

Turn-and-Talk

Students think about the scenes from the film version and the novel that they analyzed today.

Say these Directions: Choose either the Battle of Cowshed or Boxer’s ending and discuss the following questions with a partner:

• Ask: If you were a filmmaker creating a movie of Animal Farm, how would you film this scene? What would you keep the same, and what would you change, and why would you make those choices?

  • (Student responses may vary.) If I filmed Boxer’s end, I would keep the moment when the animals realize too late what is happening because that is the most powerful part of the scene. I would change the pacing by slowing it down and showing the other animals’ reactions longer because that would make the betrayal feel even stronger and connect to Orwell’s message about leaders abusing trust.

Students read their independent reading book for 20 minutes and complete a reading log entry.

Read your independent reading book for 20 minutes. In your reading log, record the date and pages you read, write 1–2 sentences about what happened or what you learned, and respond to this week’s prompt using evidence from the text.