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Definition of Pathos
Pathos, along with logos and ethos, is one of the three "modes of persuasion" in rhetoric (the art of effective speaking or writing). Pathos is an argument that appeals to... read full definition
Pathos, along with logos and ethos, is one of the three "modes of persuasion" in rhetoric (the art of effective speaking or writing). Pathos is... read full definition
Pathos, along with logos and ethos, is one of the three "modes of persuasion" in rhetoric (the art of effective... read full definition
Chapter 8
Explanation and Analysis—Had Never Been:
In this passage, which comes immediately after the Battle of the Windmill, the narrator appeals to the readers’ sense of pathos through vivid descriptions of the wounded animals’ physical and emotional exhaustion:
They had won, but they were weary and bleeding. Slowly they began to limp back towards the farm. The sight of their dead comrades stretched upon the grass moved some of them to tears. And for a little while they halted in sorrowful silence at the place where the windmill had once stood. Yes, it was gone: almost the last trace of their labour was gone! Even the foundations were partially destroyed [...] It was as though the windmill had never been.
The Battle of the Windmill was a dubious victory, as the animals gained revenge on Mr. Frederick and the other humans swindling them for their timber but also lost the results of months of work when the farmers destroyed their windmill. The narrator’s description of the animals’ laborious return to the farm is dolorous and grief-stricken. It’s designed to deepen the reader's sympathy for the animals’ exhaustion and for the tragic destruction of the windmill itself. The pitiful imagery of the "weary and bleeding" army of beasts limping back to assess the damage to their shattered efforts is intentionally heartbreaking. Everything feels as though it has been ruined; many animals are dead, and their efforts to build the windmill have all been for nothing. This passage is full of a sense of hopelessness, as the “last trace” of the animals’ labor has been stamped out by their human enemies. The reader feels a deep sense of pity and resentment, as Orwell implies that all the animals’ effort and sacrifice have been in vain.
Related Themes:
Chapter 9
Explanation and Analysis—Boxer's Farewell:
When Boxer gets old and loses his strength, the pigs heartlessly sell him to be turned into glue. To demonstrate the cruelty and hypocrisy of this choice, Orwell appeals to the readers’ sense of pathos. Benjamin tries to warn the other animals as the knacker’s cart drives away with a terrified Boxer trapped inside:
“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?”[...] Do you not understand what that means? They are taking Boxer to the knacker’s!”
[...] All the animals took up the cry of “Get out, Boxer, get out!” But the van was already gathering speed and drawing away from them.
This kidnapping is a moment of heartbreaking emotional and moral betrayal for the farm animals. Orwell depicts Boxer as a kind and steadfastly loyal character throughout Animal Farm. Boxer defends all of Napoleon’s choices to the other animals, and Napoleon repays him by selling him to be killed and turned into glue. The reader’s outrage and sense of injustice is aligned with the horror the animals feel here, as they helplessly watch Boxer be taken to his death.
Because Boxer was a hardworking but ultimately expendable member of the working class, Napoleon and the pigs had no regard for his welfare once he outlived his usefulness to them. Benjamin the donkey’s frantic exclamations and “stamping” along with the collective “cry” of the aghast animals highlight the cruelty and deception of the pig leaders. The readers, whom Orwell ensures are aware of the truth behind the van's real destination, experience a nasty sense of injustice here. It’s an important turning point, after which the animals’ trust in the pigs is irrevocably shattered. Despite Squealer's later attempts to explain it as a misunderstanding, the animals know where Boxer has really been taken.
Related Themes:
