Animal Farm

Major, an old Middle White prize boar, is 12 years old, stout, and majestic, with a wise and benevolent appearance (3). Major is a stand-in for Karl Marx (1818-1883), whose theories about socialism and communism inspired the instigators of the Russian Revolution several generations later. In his big speech to the animals in Chapter 1, Major rallies his fellow animals to revolt against their miserable living conditions on the farm; just as Marx and his Communist Manifesto publicized the slogan “Workers of the world, unite!” Like Marx, Major has intellectual disciples who build his ideas into a complete system of thought, Animalism (similar to Marxism), after his death. He calls his fellow animals “comrades,” the term used by the communists in Russia. Although his speech is inspiring, Major's ideas oversimplify the situation, arguing, for example, that humans are the only impediment to animals’ happiness. Orwell leads us to wonder whether Major’s theories could ever really work in practice, just as Marx’s ideals collapsed when Communism attempted to apply them.

Napoleon, the villain and antagonist of the book, is a “large, rather fierce-looking Berkshire boar” (12) who does not talk much (Napoleon delegates most of his talking to Squealer) but has a reputation for getting his way. Like the other three pigs, Napoleon is highly intelligent and easily learns to read and write. He, Snowball, and Squealer form a triumvirate to shape the doctrines of Animalism and teach and organize the animals for the revolution.

After the establishment of Animal Farm, Napoleon’s selfish and authoritarian nature comes to the fore. He and the other pigs take the cows’ milk for themselves without telling the other animals. He confiscates the new puppies of Jessie and Bluebell and raises them to act as loyal bodyguards (thus enacting social theories going back to Plato, which describe having the state raise children to inculcate loyalty). Whereas Snowball is articulate, with an idealistic vision for the future, Napoleon is a shrewd politician, sabotaging Snowball’s plans and wresting power from him. After Snowball is driven away, Napoleon shows all the traits of a classic totalitarian dictator. His only goal is to maintain power over the farm and all the other animals and to sustain a comfortable life at their expense.

Like Napoleon, Snowball is a young boar who is being bred for sale by Mr. Jones. Snowball is “more vivacious” than Napoleon, “quicker in speech and more inventive” (12). He is the more eloquent and inspiring leader, giving “brilliant speeches” (36) that win over most of the crowd. Snowball and Napoleon present a stark contrast in personality and ways of thinking.

Snowball believes that by dedicating themselves to a visionary project—the windmill—the animals can enjoy leisure and a better way of life. Napoleon, by contrast, presents a narrowly practical vision that emphasizes producing food and living frugally. Snowball is an idealist; Napoleon is a pragmatist. Snowball is creative, making elaborate plans for the windmill that the other animals admire. Napoleon takes one look at the plans, soils them, and walks away.

Napoleon and Snowball differ in their views of warfare. Napoleon believes that acquiring and using firearms will suffice for defense; Snowball believes in gaining the support and protection of animals on other farms by stirring up revolutionary fervor the world over. Snowball is heroic, fighting bravely in the Battle of the Cowshed, while Napoleon does everything he can to obscure and spread lies about Snowball’s record.

Snowball represents Leon Trotsky (1879-1940), the communist leader who participated in the Bolshevik Revolution, and whom Stalin removed from power and exiled in the power vacuum resulting from Vladimir Lenin’s death. The cabal against Trotsky was fueled by jealousy on the part of communist rivals, just as in Animal Farm the brutal, simple-minded Napoleon destroys the much more talented Snowball.

Snowball’s and Napoleon’s names are symbolic. Napoleon is corrupt, self-centered, and tries to come across as greater than he is—similar to how his namesake, the French general and emperor who conquered much of Europe—is often perceived. Snowball—named to evoke the phrase “pure as the driven snow”— wants only what is best for the animals on the farm. Orwell needs to present readers with an innocent, morally admirable character with whom to identify—after all, he does not want to condemn socialism as a philosophy and way of governing. Instead, he only wants to denounce tyrants like Stalin, who in Orwell’s view corrupt socialist ideals when they create communist systems. Snowball’s defeat by Napoleon is tragic and signals the loss of Animal Farm’s higher ideals. Even after Snowball leaves the farm, his presence remains: Napoleon uses him as a scapegoat for everything that goes wrong. Napoleon and Snowball represent the light and dark forces at work on Animal Farm.

Napoleon’s spokesman and public relations expert is a small fat pig with a “shrill voice” and “nimble movements” (12) that distract his listeners from the baselessness of much of what he says. Squealer is the public face of Napoleon’s administration, acting as an intermediary between him and the animals, and announcing and enacting his corrupt policies. Squealer is the archetype of all propagandists of every time and place who twist the truth for political purposes—someone who “could turn black into white” (13).

Boxer is a very large carthorse, “as strong as any two ordinary horses put together” (4), who is extremely hardworking and self-sacrificing. The animals depend on his strength and fortitude to carry out large projects like building the windmill. With his trademark slogan, “I will work harder,” Boxer represents the hardworking proletariat (working class) and is perhaps the most sympathetic character in the book.

Boxer is courageous, loyal, humble, and persevering, and has a strong moral conscience, as shown by his remorse when he believes he has inadvertently killed the stable boy in the Battle of the Cowshed (32) and by defending Snowball when he is accused of being a traitor (59). Boxer is the antithesis of Napoleon, who directly has Boxer killed without any pang of conscience.

However, Boxer is not very intelligent. He and his fellow cart horse Clover have “great difficulty in thinking anything out for themselves” (14) and accept everything the pig leaders tell them. With his second slogan “Napoleon is always right,” Boxer is incapable of grasping the nature of Napoleon’s tyranny and ignorant about his imminent fate. By being one of Napoleon’s most fervent followers, he writes his own death warrant.

Along with Boxer, she is one of the two cart horses on the farm, a “stout motherly mare” (4). She and Boxer are almost like a married couple—they often work and perform various functions together—and she shows great care and concern for him, especially after he is injured in Chapter 9. Clover shows protective care toward other animals too, including nestling a brood of motherless ducklings (4).

Clover’s moral fiber rivals that of Boxer: Despite finding fault with Mollie for consorting with humans, she does not inform on her but instead confronts her in private. Clover is deeply shaken by the spate of violent executions in Chapter 7, reflecting that this state of affairs is at odds with Animal Farm’s original intention. The other animals huddle around Clover, showing that she serves as the emotional heart of Animal Farm.

The oldest animal on the farm, Benjamin is a gloomy, ill-tempered, and cynical donkey. Benjamin functions as a clear-sighted prophet of doom, frequently pointing out things to which the other animals are oblivious. He is the one who realizes that the humans plan to blast open the windmill, and that Boxer is going to the slaughterhouse and not to the vet. To the end, Benjamin maintains his caustic perspective on life, which he believes will “go on as it always had always gone on—that is, badly” (38). At the same time, Benjamin shows warmth and friendship, especially toward Boxer and Clover; he is best friends with the former, and they spend Sundays grazing together in companionable silence. With his bitterly realistic outlook, Benjamin may be a stand-in for Orwell himself.

Mollie is a vain, attractive white mare with shaky loyalty to the principles of Animal Farm. Foolish and airheaded, Mollie hoards in her stall extravagances like lumps of sugar and ribbons, luxuries banned on the farm. In Chapter 5, Clover confronts Mollie about consorting with humans on another farm; Mollie looks guilty but denies the charge. Soon afterward, she disappears from Animal Farm to live a more conventional horse’s life among humans. Mollie represents the defector—those who, disenchanted with communism, deserted the Soviet Union for democratic countries.

Moses is a tame raven who is Jones’s household pet. Perching on a stump and flapping his black wings, Moses spreads tales about a mythical country, Sugarcandy Mountain, where all animals go after death. Moses claims to have been to this magical land with its “everlasting fields of clover” (83) and lump sugar growing on hedges.

Moses is a quasi-religious figure who represents the challenge that religion posed to the communist system. Moses was Jones’s pet (and consorts with humans), symbolizing the fact that the religious establishment in Russia was allied with the czars, while communism was officially atheist. Karl Marx referred to religion as “the opiate of the people.” The pig leaders use Moses as such; they tolerate his preaching because he gives the animals pacifying hope. At the same time, the pigs must counteract his stories and reinforce Animalist teaching, which emphasizes improving conditions in this life.

Moses is also a spy (13), who returns in Chapter 9 after disappearing from the farm for several years. He resumes his prophecies, which now find a more receptive audience in the suffering animals. Moses represents the potentially subversive nature of religion in a communist society.

Mr. Pilkington is the proprietor of Foxwood, one of the two farms neighboring Animal Farm. He is an “easy-going gentleman farmer” (28) who manages his property poorly and spends most of his time fishing or hunting. Pilkington is constantly at odds with Mr. Frederick, the owner of the adjacent farm of Pinchfield. However, both men are frightened by the rebellion on Animal Farm and want to do something about it. They spread rumors about the farm’s imminent failure, and then about the animals’ immoral behavior. Later, the self-serving Pilkington and Frederick become rival candidates to do business with Napoleon and Animal Farm. Napoleon eventually goes with Frederick because he offers a higher price, even though Frederick is cruel to animals. When Frederick turns out to be deceptive as well, paying Napoleon with counterfeit money, Pilkington sends Napoleon the message “serves you right” (73). However, by the end of the book, Pilkington has reconciled with Animal Farm and becomes one of its new human superintendents—a victory of greed over ideology.

When Napoleon decides to open Animal Farm to business with the outside human world, he hires Mr. Whymper as an agent. Whymper is a “sly-looking little man” (48) who shrewdly recognizes Animal Farm as a fine opportunity. At first, the animals fear and loathe Whymper, but they feel pride when they see Napoleon giving him orders. Whymper makes weekly visits to the farm, and Napoleon uses him to spread false propaganda about the farm’s successful food production.

Whymper represents journalists and outsiders from the West who visited the Soviet Union in the 1930s and ‘40s and were taken in by false propaganda spread by the Soviet government about the country’s success. In particular, Whymper as a useful dupe resembles Walter Duranty (1884-1957), the journalist whose award-winning reporting on the Soviet Union in the 1930s denied the famine taking place there.