In Animal Farm, is Mr. Jones really a cruel landowner or is he simply a businessman? Compare him to the people in our real world who control the...

Farmer Jones is supposed to represent the typical business or owner class rather than stand out as a particularly cruel farmer. He is a type rather than an individual, which means he is representative rather than individual: this is reflected in his generic name, Farmer Jones. He is comparable to a business person in today's society who simply wants to turn a profit. The animals are clearly meant to be the average worker. What Orwell is saying is that business as usually practiced exploits the average animal or worker by keeping them working hard for a very low standard of living. 

Interestingly, however, Farmer Jones is set apart by his heavy drinking. In this way, he is not simply a typical businessman. His drinking leads him to neglect the animals so that they go hungry and then revolt. This is why the animals ban drinking alcohol. Orwell seems to be saying that it takes events out of ordinary, such the neglect caused by alcohol,  to motivate a revolution.