Animal Farm and Watership Down Questions: CAND 1

CANDIDATE 1

Wednesday 8^th October, 2014                  Animal Farm and Watership Down Questions

How is tension built in chapter one of ‘Watership Down’?

If we look past the idyllic setting described by Richard Adams in chapter one of ‘Watership Down’, we can see that all is not right, and that tension is building in the warren.

Immediately, the reader is notified of the end of a particularly beautiful time of the year, as ‘The primroses were over’. This short, blunt sentence suggests that not only has beauty come to an end, but that something awful has begun. A sense of tension and foreboding is created, as we don’t know what will happen in the future for these rabbits. Although this is followed by a calm, pastoral passage, with a ‘blackbird singing’ and ‘rabbits looking for dandelions’, there are suggestions that everything is not as perfect as it may appear. The brook is overrun with flora, ‘half-choked’ by it, perhaps inferring that there are conflicts and struggles within nature. The verb ‘choked’ conjures up a strong image of suffering and death, which causes uneasiness for the reader. It is also a very violent action that would usually be performed by human, suggesting that pain faced by these rabbits could be down to people’s actions.

Another use of imagery in chapter one that builds tension, is the ‘sunset’ which is ‘red in the clouds’. The colour ‘red’ is often associated with negative emotions, such as anger and hatred, as well as reflecting blood and death. Sunsets are also a signal that the day is over, so much like the end of the primroses, the sunset signifies the end of peace in the warren. All of these subtly written ‘clues’ give us a small glimpse into the future of the animals, creating suspense.

  

Through dialogue, Adams creates an air of tension, with Fiver expressing a lack of comfort in his situation, ‘You know there is something queer about the warren this evening’. This shows us that Fiver is a very intuitive character, who is in-tune with his surroundings. He can sense danger, but ‘can’t tell exactly what it is’, again, providing the reader with some information, suggesting that something is not right, but not expressing what it is; the unknown is mysterious and worrying. Fiver also creates tension by his persona, he is generally at unease, ‘with wide, staring eyes’, jumping at bumble-bees. His ‘staring’ eyes openly show how nervous he is, and causes other rabbits in the warren to worry also. His nervousness causes the reader to wonder at why his disposition is this way-is there something to be concerned about?

Tension peaks when Fiver whimpers the horrifying line ‘the field’s full of blood’. It is immensely distressing and echoes the image of the ‘red sunset’ from before. The graphic description of the field being ‘full’ of blood highlights just how much pain will occur, as ‘full’ suggests that the field cannot take anymore; the rabbits couldn’t face any more pain than Fiver ‘sees’ happening. This forces the reader to feel concerned for the animals, because he has prophesised a horrific, violent event, but we still don’t know the exact details.

Adams uses dramatic irony at the end of chapter one, because he tells us what the board says, but the rabbits cannot read, so don’t know that their warren will soon be destroyed for the development of houses. At this point, tension is released, as we know the horrendous fate of the rabbits.

 Discuss the use of visions and dreams in ‘Animal Farm’ and 

‘Watership Down’ in the beginning of the novels.

Dreams and visions are a vital component in the novels ‘Animal Farm’ and ‘Watership Down’, as both George Orwell and Richard Adams highlight the journey we take when following them, and show that not everything will go to plan.

We are instantly confronted with Old Major’s dream in ‘Animal Farm’. This had already been discussed between animals and anticipation is shown to be high, as animals were ‘fluttering’ with excitement, waiting to hear it. However, Old Major puts this highly awaited dream on hold when all of the animals have gathered. This immediately demonstrates the control he has over the others, and the power to manipulate is present and utilised. This manipulation triggers the reader to question Old Major’s character, and therefore, the validity of his dream before he has even started to discuss it.

To contrast this, in ‘Watership Down’, Fiver is shown to be a nervous, sweet character, and is very small (he upholds no power in the warren). His ‘wide’ eyes link to innocence and youth, there is no part of his description that appears demanding or controlling. He has an awful vision, of the ‘field [‘s] full of blood’, and goes to warn the others about what he has ‘seen’. He does this with good intentions, but is not listened to straight away, even though what he has to say is vital to the survival of the rabbits. From this, we can infer that the power that an individual holds impacts on the gravitas of their words, of how their dreams are listened to; Old Major is greatly respected and can keep his audience in suspense, whereas Fiver has very little control, so is not heard.

Although the Old Major holds the animals under the pretence that his speech is emotive and fairly spontaneous, we can see that it is in actual fact, well-rehearsed and planned. Straight away, he evokes sympathy from his ‘comrades’ by expressing the view that he believes his death is imminent. By calling the animals ‘comrades’, they are tricked into believing that they’re equal and listen intently to the Old Major’s thoughts. He continues to tell the animals of the farm that they have ‘miserable, laborious and short’ lives. Due to the animals’ faith in the pig’s ‘wisdom’ and his seemingly fair treatment of them, they accept that their lives are poor, because they have been told so by a respected character. Another way in which it is clear that the speech was prepared is the order he speaks to collective groups, i.e. ‘He does not give milk, he does not lay eggs…’. Firstly, he talks to the cows, then to the chickens, and so on. The ‘spontaneous’ speech that he gives is well structured and organised, like propaganda. This shows us that the ‘dream’ that they begin to work towards is fundamentally flawed, because it was crafted in such a way for them to believe it. 

Fiver’s vision on the other hand, is very short, and happens to him in the moment we are reading; he does not make anything up for effect, or rehearse it in any way. There is an obvious sense of desperation and despair, when Fiver utters the words ‘We’ve got to get away before it’s too late’, showing his compassion for others, by using the collective ‘we’ve’. The evident emotion expressed by Fiver provokes the reader to feel compassion and sympathy towards him; we believe in his vision. Again, this reinforces our opinion that Fiver is a more honest, trustworthy animal than the Old Major, and that Fiver’s vision is perhaps more reliable.

However, you can argue that the Old Major’s intentions are good, as he vocalises his wish for ‘perfect unity, perfect comradeship’ for all animals. Although we can see that his speech has been crafted, it’s is debatable that the sentiment behind it is just the same. He seems to care for the animals’ welfare, and only wishes a better life for them in the future, free of all domination, free of humans. Here we can question whether the route of their unhappiness is humans, or whether this is just what they have been told, but nonetheless, the dream could lead to prosperous, happy lives for the animals. Unfortunately, as we progress through the book, we see that the dream only leads to downfall.

This is a major difference in ‘Watership Down’, as Fiver’s vision does come true, and a number of rabbits live happily together, after leaving their original warren. In Adams’ novel, we do understand that some things come at a price, because many rabbits never make it to ‘Watership Down’, and sadly Hazel dies. This does not tarnish the fact that Fiver was right and that they achieved a better life for themselves. Dreams can lead to prosperity and come true. ‘Watership Down’ ends in a better position than in the beginning of the novel, whereas ‘Animal Farm’ ends in an even worse condition than before. This could be down to the authors’ own opinions in dreams; Orwell mocks the idea of a utopia, highlighting the fact that it is ‘no place’, unlike Adams, who endorses the belief of dreams and freedom.

In summary, the authors of both novels have taken different stances on the idea of visions and dreams, and express this in their writing. In the beginning of both books the dream/vision is made clear to the reader and we can explore how sincere these are. ‘Animal Farm’ casts a generally negative light on following our dreams, as it often leads to disaster, but ‘Watership Down’ looks upon hope in a more fond way, suggesting that although it may not be easy, we can achieve our own idea of happiness.