Lindsay 1

Brook Lindsay
Ms. Wallace
English II Honors, Periods 1-3
April 2, 2010
Sample Animal Farm Synthesis Essay
The history of most of the world is the story of male conquest and defeat, perhaps a
reason why the word history starts with his and some tongue-in-cheek feminists speak of
herstory when writing about past womens movements. With the exception of some isolated
cultures, societal roles have usually been defined along gender lines and then codified as cultures
became more complex, civilized, and industrialized. Men, the historical hunters, often became
the leaders of increasingly complex patriarchal societies and used their control to maintain their
reign (and spread beliefs about their superiority). In many industrial societies, womens base in
the home led to a devaluing of not only their (unpaid) work, but also abuse and oppression.
Despite past and current womens success at fighting for social and political equality, the
statistics in many countries indicate that disparities between male and female pay, a dearth of
female political leadership (coupled with male overrepresentation), and violence against women
are all still widespread. Although social campaigns have attempted to change these realities, the
book Animal Farm, the flyers produced by the Men Can Stop Rape organization, and the website
seeitandstop.org all prove that men have been and still are the gender most likely to seek and
abuse power.
In Animal Farm, the male pigs not only take the primary leadership role, but subjugate
the only animals identified specifically as female. All the leaders, starting with Farmer Jones, and
ending with Napoleon, are male. Indeed, the boar Old Major, who creates Animalism, is

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described as having a wise and benevolent appearance in spite of the fact that his tushes had
never been cut, (Orwell 1) a depiction that emphasizes his masculine physical traits, specifically
his tusks (or tushes). In addition, Orwell contrasts Old Majors gentle nature with his imposing
tusks (used for battling other males in the wild), indicating surprise that such an impressive pig
would also be benign in his intentions. Such surprise subtly communicates Orwells own bias
that males are most often violent and cruel. Indeed, the other male pigs, starting with Napoleon
and even the more altruistic Snowball, yearn for power and begin taking food and then rights
from the other animals. An additional quotation followed by commentary is needed here.
The assumptions underlying the Men Can Stop Rape flyers and the statistics listed in
them further support males tendency to exploit physical, financial, and social power. The very
existence of a Men Can Stop Rape organization and flyer campaign indicates that previously
men have not been that involved in efforts to stop rape or violence against women. In fact, the
organization dedicates an entire flyer to explaining why rape is a mens issue and argues that
every time a mans voice joins those of women in speaking out against rape, the world becomes
safer for us all (Men Can Stop Rape, Rape as a Mens Issue). This statement implies that
women are already doing their best to prevent sexual violence, but that the addition of a single
male voice to their collective effort will make the entire world safer for us all, (Men Can Stop
Rape, Rape as a Mens Issue) a comparatively large impact for one individual to have. It seems
that men have both the power to abuse and a disproportionate amount of power to stop that
abuse. The statistics and statements in the flyers also point to mens more cruel actions. An
additional quotation followed by commentary is needed here.
The assumptions imbedded in the vignettes on seeitandstopit.org, a website created by
Massachusetts teenagers to educate other adolescents about abusive dating relationships, and the

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suggestions on that site all point to mens dominance and their use of that dominance to oppress
others. Two introductions to quotations, quotations from the website, and then commentary
connecting those quotations to the thesis need to go here.
However, members of both genders may argue that men are not born with an innate
desire for power nor a drive to exploit that clout, but instead, are encouraged to do so by the
society around them. In fact, one of the purposes of the Men Can Stop Rape handouts is to
change societal views on what it means to be manly. Yet both of these arguments miss the point:
the reasons behind mens continuing exploitation of power do not matter quite as much as the
reality of mens continuing actions. Identifying the reasons for abusive behavior indeed may help
fight it, but the continuance of individual misogyny, widespread violence against women, and
institutionalized gender discrimination in many countries suggest that blaming social
conditioning has not been very effective at changing social reality. Perhaps in a future changed
by campaigns such as Men Can Stop Rapes women will be just as power hungry as men, but
that future has not yet arrived. History and current news events (such as the financial crisis) still
prove that the overwhelming majority of those who abuse power are male. So, although we may
be teaching our kids to be fearful of men, as Jeffrey Zaslow opines, the characters in Animal
Farm and the current rape statistics indicate that, at least in the short term, this may well be the
safest course.

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Works Cited
Men Can Stop Rape. 10 Ways Young Men Can Prevent Sexual Violence. Washington, D.C.: Men
Can Stop Rape, 2006. Print.
---. Alcohol, Masculinity, & Rape Information Sheet. Washington, D.C.: Men Can Stop Rape,
n.d.
Print.
---. Athletes as Men of Strength Information Sheet. Washington, D.C.: Men Can Stop Rape,
n.d. Print.
---. Male Survivors Information Sheet. Washington, D.C.: Men Can Stop Rape, n.d. Print.
---. Racism and Rape: How Are They Connected? Washington, D.C.: Men Can Stop Rape, 2006.
Print.
---. Rape as a Mens Issue Information Sheet. Washington, D.C.: Men Can Stop Rape, n.d. Print.
---. Stopping Rape: What Men Can Do. Washington, D.C.: Men Can Stop Rape, 2001. Print.
---. Supporting Survivors Information Sheet. Washington, D.C.: Men Can Stop Rape, n.d. Print.
Orwell, George. Animal Farm. New York: Signet Classics, 1956. Print.
Teen Action Campaign. See It and Stop It! The Family Violence Prevention Fund, Ad Council,
and CTIA The Wireless Foundation, n.d. Web. 8 December 2008.
Zaslow, Jeffrey. Are We Teaching Our Kids to Be Fearful of Men? The Wall Street Journal.
23 August 2007. N. pag. The Wall Street Journal. Web. 2 June 2009.