Animal Farm

So, to summarize, the animals try to create a utopia because they feel oppressed by Jones, the owner of Manor Farm. They are worked hard and don't get to keep the fruits of their labors. They are given what they need to be relatively comfortable, but no more. So they rise up in a rebellion and run Jones off the farm. Then the pigs take charge of trying to organize everything so that the newly named Animal Farm can run smoothly. At first, things seem perfect. Everyone does their share of the work and they get to keep everything. But eventually the pigs start gaining more control and the animals are not smart enough to realize what is happening. The animals' rations are lowered, young dogs are taken to be guards for the pigs, the pigs begin trading with humans and making themselves exceptions to the commandments of Animal Farm, and animals are slaughtered for treason. The pigs eventually gain total control and the other animals' conditions are even worse than they were under Jones.

So what does this say for my big question? Strive for a utopia or avoid it? The animals tried to create a utopia and it worked for a time, until the pigs decided to take matters into their own hands. In the end, the conditions were worse than before. So wouldn't it have been better if they had just continued under Jones? If the pigs hadn't been there, the other animals would have been too ignorant to try seizing power themselves, so the utopia might have worked, but if the pigs weren't there, the rebellion probably would have failed anyway, or not have even happened, because the other animals wouldn't have been smart enough to make it work. But if they avoided it, wouldn't they have kept on believing that they could never achieve their dreams, that nothing could ever be done about humans ruling over animals, and that their position was hopeless? If they tried avoiding a utopia, they would never even try to better their conditions because it would be starting on the path to something they're trying to avoid. Rather than crush their dreams before even attempting them, I tend to stand on the philosophy of it's better to try and fail than to have never tried at all. Even if they couldn't achieve a utopia, they might have been able to make life a little more bearable.