Marxist Philosophy and Animal Farm, by George Orwell

Summary of Extract - Marxist Philosophy According to Marx, the social being of mankind determines its consciousness, and there are three moments of consciousness, each corresponding to a stage in history where, socially, man defines his labour in a certain way. The initial primitive self-awareness is where nature dominates man. This is soon replaced by the second phase, known as Capitalism, where private property grows and nature becomes objectified by man. The capitalist Labour theory …

…blinded by the orthodox philosophies represented by Napoleon, resulting in his unconditional trust and failure to see the catastrophic consequences of Napoleon's rule. Animal Farm portrays the fouling of Marx's doctrines by human greed. By illuminating the practical ineffectuality of Marxism through an exemplifying scenario, it aspires for an alternate form of Marxism where moderate political goals are moderate, trust in revolution not as confident, and forecast of the future not as utopian as Marx's.