Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Rough Draft For Argumentative Paper
Rough Draft For Argumentative Paper
Ms. Price
Do people ever wonder why they do certain actions or think certain thoughts? Well those
people might have OCD or a disease very similar. According to Psych Central, the definition of
obsessions and compulsions, driving the person to engage in unwanted, oftentimes distress
diagnosed with OCD because he always has to be in control which is shown through his actions
in Animal Farm by providing and making the animals abaid by the Seven Commandments and
The first reason why Napoleon should be diagnosed with OCD is because he has control
issues. According to Health Central, “Rigid preoccupation with rules, lack of flexibility, lists of
must-and-must-not-do’s are all symptoms. So extreme cases of control could tip into the OCD
classification.” (Control Freaks Exposed, Health Central). This website proves that Napoleon has
OCD because throughout the book he shows these same symptoms. He made the animals work
from sunup to sundown which showed his lack of flexibility, he had the Seven Commandments
put into place which gave the animals a list of must-do’s and must-not-do’s, and lastly he made
the animals follow the Seven Commandments and if they did not follow the Seven
Commandments they would be killed or kicked off the farm which shows Napoleon’s rigid
preoccupation with rules. Since Napoleon shows his control issues through preoccupation with
rules, lack of flexibility with the animals work schedule, and has provided the animals with a list
The second reason Napoleon should be diagnosed with OCD is because he has a certain
way he needs tasks to be done. As Mayo Clinic said in one of their articles on OCD, “As with
obsessions, compulsions typically have themes, such as orderliness and following a strict
routine” (Obsessive Compulsive-Disorder, Mayo Clinic). Mayo Clinic helps to prove the fact
that Napoleon’s condition by providing symptoms that match his actions. In Animal Farm it says
that, “At the appointed time the animals would leave their work and march around the precincts
of the farm in military formation, with the pigs leading, then the horses, then the sheep, and then
the poultry” (Orwell, 115). This text shows that Napoleon has OCD because it says that at the
same time that animals would start marching around the farm which shows Napoleon following a
strict routine and since he makes the animals walk in a specific order each time that shows his
sense of orderliness. Since Napoleon shows both symptoms of OCD he should be diagnosed with
the disease.
It is often thought that OCD is only related to fear of contamination or dirt, needing
certain materials orderly and symmetrical, checking, and counting. However, what this argument
fails to consider is that OCD can also include control issues. Those that agree that control issues
are not a part of OCD fail to see that very extreme cases in fact can have symptoms which
include control issues. As said on Health Central, “So extreme cases of control could tip into the
OCD classification.” (Control Freaks Exposed, Health Central). Throughout the book of Animal
Farm countless examples of Napoleon’s OCD, how he has control issue and how he has to keep
the farm orderly and under a strict schedule which are also symptoms of OCD. Even though
control issues are not common for everyone with OCD these symptoms are still relevant in
extreme cases.
Napoleon should be diagnosed with OCD because he always has to be in control which is
shown through his actions in Animal Farm by providing and making the animals abaid by the
Seven Commandments and he also always has a certain way tasks should be done. It is shown
throughout Animal Farm and throughout this paper that Napoleon has OCD. After analyzing the
evidence, it is clear that Napoleon suffers from OCD and it is very likely that other literature