Beasts of England

"Beasts of England" is a fictional song in George Orwell's novel "Animal Farm". In the allegory, it corresponds to the famous socialist anthem "The Internationale". It also alludes to Shelley's "Men of England".

In the book, the pig Old Major explains his dream of an animal-controlled society three nights before his death. In this dream, he recalls a tune sung to him as a piglet, entitled "Beasts of England". After a few minutes of singing, the pigs memorize the song and the other animals at least pick up the tune.

The animals sing Beasts of England frequently after the revolution, especially after meetings. However, as Napoleon grows more powerful, he orders that the singing of "Beasts of England" be outlawed, and replaced the song with an anthem praising himself. This mirrors the history of "The Internationale" in the Soviet Union: it was the country's national anthem until 1944, when Joseph Stalin replaced it with the "Hymn of the Soviet Union". However, "The Internationale" was not banned by the Soviet Union at any time, and remained as the anthem of the Communist Party.

Although the songs are different structurally, the content of "Beasts of England" mirrors that of "The Internationale". The first line, 'Beasts of England, beasts of Ireland, shows the international nature of 'animalism', just as "The Internationale" included the line 'unites the human race'. It speaks of a future utopia free from human control, and a time of plenty. In "The Internationale" this is only briefly mentioned 'And give to all a happier lot. Instead, "The Internationale" is more militant. More similar is the talk of shackles and chains. Compare 'Our own right hand the chains must shiver/Chains of hatred, greed and fear' in "The Internationale" with 'Rings shall vanish from our noses/And the harness from our back/Bit and spur shall rust forever/Cruel whips no more shall crack' in "Beasts Of England". Chains in "The Internationale" are metaphorical, and those in "Beasts Of England" are literal. The final similarity is between 'Tyrant Man' and 'No faith have we in prince or peer'.