As the pigs gain
power, it becomes
harder for them to
resist the
temptation of an
easier life.
Education and learning
The pigs can
dominate the other
animals because they
can read. As the other
animals are illiterate
or unwilling to read,
they are dependent
on the pigs.
Propaganda
Squealer uses several
methods to control
the animals and
convince them of
Napoleon’s wisdom
and justice.
Language and Power
Orwell shows us
Clover’s inability to
express her thoughts
and how this prevents
the animals from
protesting after the
executions.
How do Dictators keep power?
Squealer rewrites several
events on the farm to justify the
pigs’ actions and Napoleon’s
rule over them.
Characters
Napoleon
The pig who seizes
control of the farm
after the revolution
and becomes its
dictator.
Snowball
The cleverest pig on the
farm and Napoleon’s rival
for leadership of Animal
Farm.
Boxer
The hard-working horse who is the
most devoted supporter of the
revolution and who makes huge
sacrifices for the farm’s success.
Old Major
The oldest pig on the farm
whose speech sets out the
principles of Animalism and the
high ideals by which the pigs’
actions are later judged.
Squealer
Napoleon’s spin doctor and
the pig who alters the Seven
Commandments.
Language and structure
The seven commandments
Orwell uses this echo of Christianity’s
Ten Commandments as a structural
device to let the reader chart the farm’s
decline into tyranny.
Irony
When words suggest the opposite
of what they normally mean. For
example, we are told that the
animals have ‘a greater dignity’ in
their lives after the revolution.
Allegory
A story that mirrors historical
events or wider ideas. The Battle
of the Cowshed is an allegory of
the Russian Revolution, led by
Lenin
Satire
A written attack that makes
something look foolish or
unpleasant. For example,
Napoleon’s reinvention of
Snowball’s actions during the
Battle of the Cowshed mocks
Stalin’s reinvention of himself as
Lenin’s favourite