Complete working title: Animal Farm – A Fairy Story
Date of writing: 1944 to 1945
Location of writing: England
Date of original publication: 1945
Genre: Novel, Allegory, Fairy Tale
Location: A small farm in early 20th century England
Rising moment: When the pigs stand on their hind feet and the sheep can be heard echoing “Four legs good, two legs better!”
Main Character: Napoleon
Narration: Third person perspective
Despite having been regarded as one of the most influential works in Orwell’s literary arsenal, three publishers refused to take on the book. One of those publishers being T.S. Eliot, the inspirational poet and a representative of Faber & Faber publishing. Animal Farm was originally rejected by a number of American publishers as well. One editor was quoted as saying to Orwell, “it is impossible to sell animal stories in the United States of America.”