Hello and welcome to the lesson.

I'm Mrs. Butterworth and I'll be guiding you through the learning today, which is all about the wonderful Boxer from "Animal Farm".

So we'll be looking at his characterization, as well as exploring how he is an inextricably linked to the theme of education present in the novella.

So, let's get started.

So by the end of the lesson, you'll be able to describe how the character of Boxer is used to present the theme of education in "Animal Farm".

So before we delve into the lesson, there are a few key words to be aware of that will help with our understanding of the lesson that you could also try using in your own writing.

In a moment, the definitions will appear on the screen.

You may wish to pause the video so you have time to read them, or even jot them down.

So the outline of our lesson looks like this.

We're going to start by exploring the role of language and education.

So we'll be considering Orwell's own viewpoint on this before moving on to looking at how we can write about Boxer and education.

So let's start by looking at the role of language and education within "Animal Farm".

So as well as novels, Orwell always also wrote many essays and works of non-fiction.

In his seminal essay, so this essay has been really influential and really popular.

So this essay, "Politics and the English Language", he argues that those in power use unclear and inflated language to manipulate and hide the truth.

And it's really interesting when you read this essay how many of the ideas that Orwell feels so passionately about are used in "Animal Farm" and directly referenced in "Animal Farm".

Together, we are now going to read some quotes from Orwell's essay.

After each quote, I would like you to discuss how they link to "Animal Farm".

So let's read that first quote together.

"The invasion of one's mind by ready-made phrases can only be prevented if one is constantly on guard against them, and every such phrase anaesthetises a portion of one's brain." Now, this may seem quite wordy and quite complex, but just really focus on those highlighted phrases and think about how they might be presented in "Animal Farm".

So pause a video to give yourselves time to discuss and think.

Well done, everyone, a really great effort.

I love hearing how you were grappling with what this quote could possibly mean.

So let's link it to "Animal Farm".

So what this quote is really talking about and is so reminiscent of maxims and short pity statements.

So if we think back to Boxer and the sheep's maxims, so we got, "I will work harder, Napoleon's always right, and four legs good, two legs bad," they almost become like chants and they become mindless chants that the animals keep saying over and over again.

And we see this happening in real life politics where we get these kind of political slogans that are just repeated over and over again, and Orwell calls these ready-made phrases.

And Orwell thinks these are really dangerous because what he says is that because of this repetition, they lose meaning.

People forget what they actually refer to.

And what this then does is it means it's able to conceal truth, or people stop engaging with the real issues.

You know, there's a reason why Squealer takes a sheep away to teach them those maxims, those chants, because they're really powerful.

And for Orwell, this idea anaesthetises a portion of one's brain is the idea that slogans and maxims almost hypnotise people, that we forget to look for the meaning and just look for the slogans.

Well done.

Let's look at another.

Okay, so let's try another one.

Let's read the quote together.

"Political language is designed to make lies sound truthful and murder respectable, and to give an appearance of solidity to pure wind." So it's an interesting quote this one, especially this idea of giving solidity to pure wind.

So the idea that you are making wind something tangible.

And also, who does this sound like? Which character, this idea about making lies sound truthful? There's a real link to "Animal Farm" there, which I'm sure some of you will pick up on.

Okay, so over to you to discuss how you think this quote links to "Animal Farm".

Excellent.

Well done, everyone.

Let's just see the comments.

Okay, so Orwell proposes in this quote that those in power use language to manipulate truths and rewrite narratives.

So this idea that lies sound truthful.

Now, interestingly, and I heard some of you commenting on this, this sounds almost like the quote describes Squealer, doesn't it? So when with Squealer, it says he could turn black into white.

And here we have Orwell saying lies sounds truthful.

So we can see how this idea about how people in power use language is a really important theme or idea to Orwell, and it really reveals how important he considers language use in the role of propaganda and how language can rewrite and turn really quite awful things, so in this case, murder.

So all of these things to not only be truthful, but to seem respectable, to be seen as good.

Okay, now, this one is very interesting.

If thought corrupts language, language can also corrupt thought.

So again, focus on the highlighted parts.

Again, you may want to pause the video so you have time to discuss, but how might this idea link to "Animal Farm"? Well done, everyone, it's a tricky quote, but again, once we start thinking about linking it to "Animal Farm", it really makes sense makes.

So in "Animal Farm", we see how even the thoughts of the animals are continually manipulated and they actually struggle to think independently.

So if we think about how Orwell describes Clover, it says that if she could, she would have spoken her thoughts.

And Clover is illiterate, so she cannot read, and therefore she actually lacks the ability to articulate herself.

So what Orwell is doing in this quote is showing that language isn't just about the spoken word, or what you hear, it can also manipulate your very thoughts, or limit what you are able to think about.

And we really see this in a lot of the animals where they completely struggle to think independently and just blindly follow the pigs.

So it's a really interesting idea about language corrupting thought as well and this sense of independent thought.

So, in this sense, and arguably Orwell's novella of "Animal farm", it could be seen as his treaties on education and language, almost like an extension of his essay, "Politics and the English Language".

Because really, it's interesting how it totally encompasses the novella, how it totally encompasses his anxieties, his viewpoints, his interests about education and language.

So if we think about it in the following messages, both "Politics and English Language" and "Animal Farm" talk about these ideas that those who are uneducated are at the mercy of their leaders.

And we see this in "Animal Farm", what happens to the animals and how the pigs gain that power so quickly.

How those are uneducated are prevented from being leaders.

We're going to explore this idea in a little bit more depth through the lesson when we consider characters like Boxer, who are actually, they actually have quite a few leadership qualities, but due to his educational lack of, he's prevented from taking that role.

This idea that language and education can be used to limit independent thought.

And actually, we see this from quotes from Stalin, and also we see this happening in "Animal Farm".

You know, totalitarian leaders don't want people to be too aware or too intellectually engaged, because this could evoke another rebellion.

You need them to be uneducated and incapable of independent thought to keep them under control.

It's a really good method of control.

And then language and educational are instrumental in maintaining unchecked authority and control.

So like I've just said, kind of manipulating how educated people are, or how much language they have access to, or how language is used is really successful in maintaining authority and control.

It may not be ethical, or it may not be humane, but in "Animal Farm", it shows how it is an effective method of power and control.

Okay, can we complete this quote? Which word does Orwell use in this quote? If thought, language, language can also thought.

Yes, well done everyone who picked up on that word corrupt.

So if thought corrupts language, language can also corrupt thought.

All to do with that inability to think independently.

So let's move on to Boxer.

What do you remember about him? So I'd like you just to spend a few moments mind mapping any adjectives and key quotes you remember.

You could jot this down or discuss, but pause a video so you have time to collect your thoughts.

Excellent, lots of excellent memories of Boxer there.

So let's just gather these together.

So let's do the adjectives first.

So we've got that he is self-sacrificing, he's devoted, naive, arguably, loyal, obedient, strong, gullible, gullible is an interesting word.

It links to that idea of him being naive as well.

He believes everything he's told in "Animal Farm", almost to the point when you're reading the novella, you almost want to shout out loud at him to stop believing everything that he's told.

Inspirational and diligent.

He's incredibly hardworking, but not only that, he takes a lot of pride in his work.

It's an intrinsic part of his identity.

Okay, let's explore some quotes.

"He was not of first-rate intelligence, but he was universally respected." And this is a really key quote to describe Boxer, and we'll be looking at this in a little bit more depth throughout the lesson.

And this physical description of boxer, "A white stripe down his nose gave him a somewhat stupid appearance." His maxim, I'm sure you'll remember this, "I will work harder." And how he's described is, "Boxer could not get beyond the letter D," really emphasising his lack of education, his illiteracy, his inability to pick up the language required to understand what's happening.

And "Napoleon is always right." So Boxer is the most useful character when it comes to exploring the theme of education in "Animal Farm".

So just to see what we remember.

Which is not an adjective that would be used to describe Boxer? Irresponsible.

Yes, absolutely.

That was not on our list.

And I think we can safely say that Boxer is not irresponsible.

So let's think about this statement.

Arguably, Boxer is one of the most powerful animals on the farm.

So I'd like you to pause this video so you can discuss how far you agree with this statement.

Excellent.

I heard some disagreements there and many agreeing, so that's fantastic.

It's an interesting question, isn't it, about if he is one of the most powerful animals on the farm and what evidence we get in the text.

So let's just gather some of our thoughts.

So, this disagree here that he isn't one of the most powerful.

So Boxer's blind commitment makes it impossible for him to have any power.

And I guess in this sense, this is true, that there was never any sense that Boxer could have power because he is so naive.

Boxer is a follower, not a leader.

So somewhere in the middle there, because however, he does have the respect of the other animals.

And this is a really interesting point.

If we think back to that quote about him being of not a first rate intelligence, but well respected by the others, and it's referenced throughout the novella.

Many of the animals do look up to him, which technically makes him very powerful.

And then finally, total agreement here that Boxer is huge compared to the other animals.

His physical strength alone makes him powerful.

So we can see here that actually, this idea that Boxer is this weak character is only one way that we can look at him.

So let's look at these quotes that are all about Boxer.

What do you notice about how he is presented? So Boxer was the admiration of everybody.

He was universally respected for his steadiness of character and tremendous powers of work.

The other animals found more inspiration in Boxer's strength.

Interestingly, that quote is about Squealer's speeches, so the narrator explains that the animals actually find Boxer more inspirational than Squealer.

The most terrifying spectacle of all was Boxer rearing up on his hind legs.

Okay, and what about these quotes? Boxer tried hard to marshal his thoughts, but in the end he could not think of anything to say.

He had great difficulty in thinking anything out for themselves.

Even Boxer, who seldom asked questions, was puzzled.

So you may have noticed that when we put these quotes side by side, that on this side we have this idea of power and leadership.

All of these quotes actually show a side of Boxer that is quite powerful and shows leadership qualities.

He's admired and respected by everyone.

You know, the fact that people find him inspiration even over Squealer says a lot.

And he's also got this physical strength.

You know, when he realises his size and uses his physical strength, he's actually described as being terrifying.

He's this terrifying spectacle.

So on this side, we've got this idea of Boxer as this powerful figure.

On the other side, however, we've got this presentation of him as uneducated and illiterate.

He cannot marshal his thoughts, so he's unable to even think clearly.

He has great difficulty in thinking, and we know that he cannot read and write.

And if we think back to Orwell's message, we can see here that perhaps it is Boxer's education or lack of it that really prevents him from being aware of all of the power that he actually has.

So just to summarise, interestingly, Boxer is described as having many leadership qualities.

He is strong and brave, for example.

Now, this is an interesting point.

He also caress deeply about the other animals, which would potentially make him a really fantastic leader, especially if we think in comparison to Napoleon.

But most importantly, the animals all respect him and look up to him, revealing his position on the farm.

And to summarise this side, due to his lack of intelligence and critical thought, he's completely oblivious.

He has no idea about his power and potential on the farm.

And his illiteracy, so the fact he cannot read or write, means he struggles to articulate his thoughts and challenge what is happening.

So he is unable to see the pigs' methods of control and is therefore too easily manipulated.

And this would also mean that to oppose the pigs would be very difficult for him without that independent thought.

And arguably, his lack of education also makes him gullible.

So this lack of critical awareness means that he will just believe anything that the pigs tell him.

And again, he doesn't understand that this needs to be challenged.

So let's return back to this question.

Arguably, Boxer is one of the most powerful animals on the farm.

Have you changed your mind? So if we look at our students here, we can see some of them have shifted around somewhat.

So here, our student here has moved up towards the agree.

I still think although he's presented as powerful, his illiteracy renders him powerless.

So there's more of a nuance there.

Yes, he's presented as powerful, but it's that illiteracy that that makes him powerless.

So he is both powerful and powerless, if you like.

And it's interesting to see how Boxer has leadership qualities, but he isn't able to utilise them.

And again, Boxer has powerful qualities, but his lack of education means he's completely oblivious.

And if we think about it, this lack of education completely works in the pigs' favour.

If Boxer had the education and the intellect to realise how powerful he was, this would not be great news for the pigs, would it? So through the character of Boxer, Orwell shows how the uneducated are prevented from being leaders and they're at the mercy of those in power.

True or false, Boxer is completely powerless? Well done.

I had lots of shouting for false.

Excellent.

Yes, he is presented as having some powerful qualities, isn't he? Okay, now justify your answers.

Well done to everyone that said a, he does have many leadership qualities, but due to his lack of education, he is oblivious.

I just want you to look at answer b, where it says he has many leadership qualities, but chooses to remain cynical and refuses to use them.

Does this sound like another character from "Animal Farm"? Hmm.

Yeah, that's right.

It's Benjamin, isn't it? So again, Benjamin's another character who is presented as having leadership qualities.

He's as educated as the pigs.

He is aware of what is going on, but actually, unlike Boxer, who isn't able to articulate his thoughts and challenge, Benjamin chooses not to challenge the pigs, which is really interesting when we come to think about these ideas of leadership and who's in charge.

Okay, we are onto our first practise task, which is going to be a discussion task.

So the first thing I want you to do is to think about this question.

How does Boxer explore ideas around education? So you may wanna jot some ideas down, or just quickly discuss your initial thinking.

And then what I would like you to do is use the discussion grid to formalise those ideas.

So just to give your answers a bit more sophistication so that they're constructed and developed.

You can use this discussion grid to do that.

So let's look at the discussion grid.

So, the first column is all about drawing comparisons between the different presentations of Boxer.

So using words like although, whereas, whilst, and despite are a good way to do this.

So let's look at my example.

Although Boxer has many leadership qualities, he is rendered powerless by his illiteracy.

Then what I want you to do is develop those ideas.

We've got our initial idea, then we're gonna develop it using phrases like more specifically, precisely, in particular, or indeed.

So more specifically, he lacks a critical awareness to utilise his power and challenge the pigs.

So you can see how using one of those phrases encourages you to develop and expand on your original idea.

And then I want you to draw conclusions to your arguments.

So using those words like therefore, ultimately, as a result, and consequently can just add a nice conclusion to your argument.

So here's the example.

Ultimately, Orwell uses Boxer to show how the uneducated are at the mercy of those in power.

Okay, so it's almost over to you.

So have a really good go at this and really make sure you experiment and play around with that discussion grid, because being able to use these phrases verbally is a great way to talk about the text and to be able to make sophisticated comments as well.

So, over to you, pause the video, and I can't wait to hear what you come up with.

Well done, everyone.

It was so lovely to see that development from those initial ideas on the question to then how you use that discussion grid to formalise those comments.

It just makes your discussion so much richer.

And also hopefully you've generated some ideas for future written responses too.

So discussion tasks are a really great thing to do.

So let's just look at some of the ways you could have answered this.

So my first column, my drawing comparisons looks like this.

Whilst Boxer is highly respected and looked up to on the farm, he lacks the intelligence to mobilise power.

So you can see how these words help to draw out a more nuanced comparison that we can look at those two sides of Boxer's presentation.

Yes, he's presented as unintelligent, but there is another side to his character as well.

Then I'm going to develop it using this phrase.

So indeed, this lack of education makes him an easy target for manipulation and exploitation.

And then finally, my conclusion looks like this.

Ultimately, Orwell shows how the uneducated can be held back from being leaders.

So we've reached the second part of our lesson already.

Well done, everyone.

So this time we're going to be thinking about writing about Boxer and education.

So using everything we have done in the first part of the lesson, we'll be building on in this second part.

So thinking about writing and essays, I'd like you to discuss please, what makes a good topic sentence? Pause the video so you've got plenty of time to discuss and to consolidate your ideas.

Great, let's gather these together to put a success criteria together.

Okay, so first idea, a topic sentence should develop the argument outlined in the thesis statement.

So that's a really good one there.

So once we've got our thesis statement, our topic sentences should help develop that argument.

They should reference keywords or ideas from the question.

So yeah, try and keep your topic sentences really specific to the focus of the question.

They should use appropriate discourse markers.

So this is a really good thing to do.

So using things like initially and furthermore can really help elevate your writing.

Your topic sentence should summarise what is going to be explored in the paragraph, and it offers a clear example that allows for development.

So in that topic sentence, pick an example that you can then use to develop throughout your paragraph.

Okay, how much can you remember? Which of these would you not find in a topic sentence? Well done to everyone that said c.

Absolutely, a conclusive discourse marker.

Conclusive link to the word conclusion.

So we don't want to be using those 'till the end of the essay.

So thinking about this idea of how topic sentences expand on the thesis statement, we're going to look at a thesis statement in response to the question, how does Orwell use Boxer to explore ideas around education? So here's my thesis statement.

Through the novella, Orwell demonstrates that those who are uneducated are at the mercy of their leaders.

So you can see how I'm setting up my argument there.

So here's my topic sentence that goes with that thesis statement.

Indeed, through the character of Boxer, Orwell illustrates that language is empowering and a limited grasp of it means that Boxer, amongst other animals, is easily manipulated.

So that specific example in there means that I can then go through and find specific moments in the text where Boxer's lack of language means he's manipulated.

So it's an effective topic sentence in that sense.

Another thing that's good is using through the character of, so you can see here I've used indeed through the character of, and this is a really effective way to introduce the focus of your paragraph.

So try and use that in your future topic sentences.

I've also begun to link to Orwell's purpose.

So I've said here Orwell illustrates that.

So linking to the author, or the writer's purpose throughout your essay is a really good habit to get into.

And then what I've done here in this topic sentence is I've linked it to the thesis statement.

So I've offered a specific way to explore how the animals are at the mercy of the pigs.

So the key part of this is how the uneducated are at the mercy of their leaders.

And here I have said this limited grasp, I've given a specific example, this limited grasp of education means that they're easily manipulated.

So we're going to look at a second topic sentence that develops and proves the thesis statement.

So again, exactly the same thesis statement about those who are uneducated are at the mercy of their leaders.

Now let's see our second topic sentence.

So Orwell portrays Boxer as a character who is physically strong, however, lacks some mental capacity to resist exploitation because he's uneducated.

The illiterate characters in the novella are much more vulnerable to manipulation by the pigs.

So what's good about this topic sentence? Well again, there is a clear link to Orwell's purpose in the phrase Orwell portrays.

And then again, you use the character to think about how it links to those main themes.

So, this topic sentence uses Boxer as a specific example to develop the thesis statement, and it also introduces what is going to be explored in the paragraph.

So Boxer's my example about how the uneducated are at the mercy of their leaders, and I'm going to explore how his lack of mental capacity means that he's easily exploited, which is also linked to his lack of education.

And again, a clear link to the thesis statement and question because I've used keywords like uneducated and illiterate.

Okay, true or false time.

You should use keywords from the question in your topic sentences.

True, absolutely well done.

But now we need to justify those answers.

So is it a or b? Well done.

Absolutely.

Using those key words from the question in your topic sentence really helps to make sure your response is focused on the question.

We have reached our second and final practise task.

Well done, everyone.

So I'm gonna hand over to you and I'm going to get you to write two topic sentences to prove each of the following thesis statements.

I will also give you some sentence starters to help you.

Here are the thesis statements, let's read them together.

So the first one, "Animal Farm is Orwell's treatise on the power and importance of language and education.

Thesis statement two is through the novella, Orwell shows that those who are uneducated are prevented from being leaders.

So, as we have just demonstrated in the last few slides, you will need to write two topic sentences to prove each of these thesis statements.

Here are your sentence starters.

Think about everything we have explored in terms of Boxer and the role of education.

Pause the video to give yourself plenty of time to practise this task.

Well done, everyone.

I heard some excellent topic sentences being used there.

Really great work.

I like how you are starting to link Boxer to that theme of education and use some of the ideas that we came up with at the start of the lesson.

So really well done.

So here's the example of how you could have approached the task.

Now, you may have something completely different, which is absolutely fine, it may even be better than this.

But what I would say is just use these examples to compare to your own work.

So you may want to add to it, or it may just be something that you can think about for future responses.

So our first thesis statement is, "Animal Farm" is Orwell's treatise on the power and importance of language and education.

So my first topic sentence is indeed, through the character of Boxer, Orwell illustrates that language is empowering and a limited grasp of it means that Boxer, amongst other animals, is easily manipulated.

So again, using Boxer to link to that idea of language and power.

My second topic sentence, throughout the novella, three main pigs control or lead others through the power of their language, Old Major, Snowball, and Squealer.

And the second thesis statement, through the novella, Orwell shows that those who are uneducated are prevented from being leaders.

So here are my topic sentences.

Indeed, Orwell portrays Boxer as a character who is physically strong, however lacks the mental capacity to resist exploitation because he cannot get beyond the letter D in the alphabet.

The illiterate characters in the novella are much more vulnerable to manipulation by the pigs.

And then my second topic sentence, which is focused on Benjamin actually.

So the exception to this rule is Benjamin, who is literate, but chooses not to take any action to resist the oppression of the pigs and does not try to assume a leadership role.

So well done, everyone.

We have reached the end of the lesson.

I found it really interesting exploring Boxer in this way, because yes, we know that he is uneducated, but it's interesting to really look in depth at how his lack of education really impacts his role on the farm.

So it's great to draw out those nuanced presentations that Orwell creates.

So well done and I hope you found it as interesting as me.

Okay, let's just remind ourself of everything that we have learn.

So those who are uneducated are at the mercy of their leaders.

"Animal Farm" is arguably Orwell's treatise on the power and importance of language.

Orwell shows that those who are uneducated are prevented from being leaders.

And Boxer is the most useful character to explore when discussing education.

So hopefully there is lots in there for you to take forward in your understanding of Animal Farm.

I really hope to see you in another lesson soon.

And until then, goodbye.