None of the old dreams had been abandoned. the republic of the animals which major had foretold, when the green fields of england should be untrodden by human feet, was still believed in. some day it was coming: it might not be soon, it might not be with in the lifetime of any animal now living, but still it was coming. . . it might be that their lives were hard and that not all of their hopes had been fulfilled; but they were conscious that they were not as other animals. if they went hungry, it was not from feeding tyrannical human beings; if they worked hard, at least they worked for themselves. no creature among them went upon two legs. no creature called any other creature “master.” all animals were equal. –animal farm, george orwell which statement best explains why this passage is an example of irony? an unexpected event occurs that surprises the reader. the text ridicules the animals for their naive way of thinking. the characters make statements that are the opposite of what they really mean. the reader knows that there is a difference between what is expected and what occurs.

On Edge the answer is, "The reader knows that there is a difference  between what is expected and what occurs."

The reader knows that there is a difference between what is expected and what occurs.

Explanation: In this excerpt from "Animal Farm" by George Orwell, the statement that best explains why this passage is an example of irony is the reader knows that there is a difference between what is expected and what occurs. The animals on the farm still believe in the Republic of the Animals. As they are very old they cannot remember if things are better or worse than before. The reader knows that the rebellion has taken place and that instead of human beings the pigs are the leaders, even if they are not called "Master".

overnment is strong when they have the ability to persuade those they govern to believe government has enough power to force them or should be forcing them to do government’s will.

when enough of the citizenry do not believe government can force them or should force them to do its bidding, government has lost or will lose its strength and power to coerce.

when enough of the citizenry do believe government can force or should force them to do its bidding, they become passive at the least or actively pro-government and repeat government’s own rhetoric to pass on what they have been persuaded by government’s propaganda.

a true majority isn’t always needed to govern or to stop government. many times all that is needed is a strong minority. if a determined 30% of the population rises up against government in a concerted effort to bring it down, this size minority usually will succeed as long as those actively opposing the minority are less in force than the minority. so if 41% of the population sits at home watching tv rooting for one side or the other, they don’t matter. it’s the active parties who make a difference.