Compare the relationship the rabbits have with Man.

Compare the relationship the rabbits have with Man

In Watership Down and Animal farm, Man is seen as an enemy, but for different reasons in animal farm, this opinion changes over time and the relationship with man develops, whereas in Watership Down, the relationship remains consistent.

In the first part of Animal Farm,Jones (representative of man) is seen as the one enemy of the animals. He is the source of all of their oppression. Old major tells the animals that their lives are 'miserable, laborious and short,' and that this is due to Man. He says that 'Man is  the only real enemy we have'.  
   In the early part of the pigs reign, Man was still considered an enemy to all, and the pigs used the threat of Jones coming back to control the animals. This was only effective due to the hatred the animals had of Man. Later in the novel, however, the relationship between the pigs and Man starts to change as the pigs gain more power. When they begin trading with Man, they are showing that they see man as an equal, and as a resource to utilize. This eventually evolves into the pigs adopting the lifestyle of man, and although they initially claim to still hate Man, they begin to become friends, and so this show that they seen Man as equal, and as not an enemy but an ally.
   The animals always have an interactive relationship with Man throughout the novel, be it by Jones running the farm, or the trading and communication that happens later in the novel. This close relationship may be the reason that the pigs ended up being corrupted by Man and adopting the lifestyle.

In Watership Down, the rabbits live in complete detachment to Man. Unlike the trading that occurs in Animal Farm, Man has nothing to provide or offer the rabbits. He is just an enemy, just like another elil. When Man does intervene with their lives, it is always in a negative way, such as the wires set at Cowslips warren.
   Man is shown to be powerful, but incompetent and ignorant. This is shown by how the Men that shoot Hazel speak in a dialect that is stereotypical of ignorance or stupidity.
   Woundwort was raised by Man, but he rebelled and escaped. This may be because there is nothing that Man can provide that a rabbit cannot provide himself. Woundwart was however influenced by Man, and that became the reason for the failure of his warren - his warren was successful in that the rabbits survived, but due to the human influence, their nature was lost and none were happy, so overall the warren was a failure.
   Form the beginning to the end of the novel, from Man destroying the Sanford warren to the fight with the human-influenced warren of Efrafa, the rabbits relationship with Man has remained the same, and remained detached.