Napoleon emerges as the leader of Animal Farm after the rebellion. He uses his nine loyal attack dogs to intimidate the other animals and consolidate his power, proving more treacherous than his opponent Snowball. Snowball challenges Napoleon for control after the rebellion, advocating for the socialist utopia envisioned by Major. Major inspires the rebellion with his vision of equality but dies shortly after, leaving Snowball and Napoleon to struggle for control of the farm.
Napoleon emerges as the leader of Animal Farm after the rebellion. He uses his nine loyal attack dogs to intimidate the other animals and consolidate his power, proving more treacherous than his opponent Snowball. Snowball challenges Napoleon for control after the rebellion, advocating for the socialist utopia envisioned by Major. Major inspires the rebellion with his vision of equality but dies shortly after, leaving Snowball and Napoleon to struggle for control of the farm.
Napoleon emerges as the leader of Animal Farm after the rebellion. He uses his nine loyal attack dogs to intimidate the other animals and consolidate his power, proving more treacherous than his opponent Snowball. Snowball challenges Napoleon for control after the rebellion, advocating for the socialist utopia envisioned by Major. Major inspires the rebellion with his vision of equality but dies shortly after, leaving Snowball and Napoleon to struggle for control of the farm.
Based on Joseph Stalin, Napoleon uses military force (his nine loyal attack dogs) to intimidate the other animals and consolidate his power. In his supreme craftiness, Napoleon proves more treacherous than his counterpart, Snowball.
The pig who challenges Napoleon
for control of Animal Farm after the Rebellion. Based on Leon Trotsky, Snowball is intelligent, passionate, eloquent, and less subtle and devious than his counterpart, Napoleon. Snowball seems to win the loyalty of the other animals and cement his power.
The prize-winning boar whose vision
of a socialist utopia serves as the inspiration for the Rebellion. Three days after describing the vision and teaching the animals the song Beasts of England, Major dies, leaving Snowball and Napoleon to struggle for control of his legacy. Orwell based Major on both the German political economist Karl Marx and the Russian revolutionary leader Vladimir Ilych Lenin.
A good-hearted female cart-horse
and Boxers close friend. Clover often suspects the pigs of violating one or another of the Seven Commandments, but she repeatedly blames herself for misremembering the commandments.
The
cart-horse whose incredible
strength, dedication, and loyalty play a key role in the early prosperity of Animal Farm and the later completion of the windmill. Quick to help but rather slowwitted, Boxer shows much devotion to Animal Farms ideals but little ability to think about them independently. He naively trusts the pigs to make all his decisions for him. His two mottoes are I will work harder and Napoleon is always right.
The pig who spreads Napoleons
propaganda among the other animals. Squealer justifies the pigs monopolization of resources and spreads false statistics pointing to the farms success. Orwell uses Squealer to explore the ways in which those in power often use rhetoric and language to twist the truth and gain and maintain social and political control.
The tame raven who spreads
stories of Sugar Candy Mountain, the paradise to which animals supposedly go when they die. Moses plays only a small role in Animal Farm, but Orwell uses him to explore how communism exploits religion as something with which to pacify the oppressed.
The vain, flighty mare who pulls Mr.
Joness carriage. Mollie craves the attention of human beings and loves being groomed and pampered. She has a difficult time with her new life on Animal Farm, as she misses wearing ribbons in her mane and eating sugar cubes. She represents the petit bourgeoisie that fled from Russia a few years after the Russian Revolution.
The long-lived donkey who refuses
to feel inspired by the Rebellion. Benjamin firmly believes that life will remain unpleasant no matter who is in charge. Of all of the animals on the farm, he alone comprehends the changes that take place, but he seems either unwilling or unable to oppose the pigs.
The white goat who reads the Seven
Commandments to Clover whenever Clover suspects the pigs of violating their prohibitions.
The often drunk farmer who runs the
Manor Farm before the animals stage their Rebellion and establish Animal Farm. Mr. Jones is an unkind master who indulges himself while his animals lack food; he thus represents Tsar Nicholas II, whom the Russian Revolution ousted.
The tough, shrewd operator of
Pinchfield, a neighbouring farm. Based on Adolf Hitler, the ruler of Nazi Germany in the 1930s and 1940s, Mr. Frederick proves an untrustworthy neighbour.
The easygoing gentleman farmer
who runs Foxwood, a neighbouring farm. Mr. Fredericks bitter enemy, Mr. Pilkington represents the capitalist governments of England and the United States.
The human solicitor whom Napoleon
hires to represent Animal Farm in human society. Mr. Whympers entry into the Animal Farm community initiates contact between Animal Farm and human society, alarming the common animals.
Two dogs, each of whom gives birth
early in the novel. Napoleon takes the puppies in order to educate them.
The poet pig who writes verse about
Napoleon and pens the banal patriotic song Animal Farm, Animal Farm to replace the earlier idealistic hymn Beasts of England, which Old Major passes on to the others.