Chloe's Response

Fiver also dreams, but is his dream clouded by a personal vision?

The dreams presented in both Watership Down and Animal Farm are both very different with consideration of the intentions and the result of each book. Both dreams could be considered to be clouded by personal visions, however some stronger than others.

In both Watership Down and Animal Farm dreams are created and spoken of by all characters, however the intentions of the dreams are very different in comparison and can be clouded by a personal vision. In Animal Farm, the reader is only observing the dream which exploits the real intentions of the dream which is to manipulate and control. Major’s dream is clouded by a personal vision as he believes himself and the other pigs are the more skilful and intelligent animals on the farm and suggests the others are inferior. Throughout the speech, Major utilizes and uses manipulation to convince the other characters that all animals are equal and the only way to create a classless society is through revolution, however he suggests the most superior characters are the pigs in which reveals and makes his personal vision more visible.

Major persuades the other animals that his dream will create a utopia but human nature is corrupting this utopia and the only way it can be resolved is to banish the humans. Although Major may seem as though he has good intentions the deception of the dream is shown when the result of the revolution is poverty, death and corruption.

Comparing the dream in Watership Down to Animal Farm, the intentions are very dissimilar. Unlike Animal Farm, we see the dream through Fivers eyes. The dream Fiver had was seeing a field covered in blood ‘’There isn’t any danger here, at this moment. But it’s coming – it’s coming. Oh, Hazel, look! The field! It’s covered with blood!’’ which is different in comparison to Majors dream to create a utopia and gain power. Fivers dream was used to inform rather than manipulate and alter the society.

I believe Fivers dream was not clouded by a personal vision and the intentions of his dream were not to corrupt or deceive other members of the warren. Fivers dream may have been clouded by fear and which shows the terror rather than to create terror, but he has the dream to inform the other characters for their own awareness and for the good of the group rather than for individuals like Major. Fivers dream suggests that all characters are equal which different to Animal Farm as the intentions can be strongly argued.

To conclude, the dream in Watership Down did not carry any bad intentions nor was it clouded by a personal vision. Major’s dream in Animal Farm was intended to alter and manipulate the characters and make him, Napoleon and Snowball the more superior characters which is different to the intentions of Fivers dream which did not carry and element of manipulation or corruption.