What is the great challenge of any revolution?

Every revolution faces the challenge of effectively creating a new and enduring
system of government. As seen throughout George Orwells Animal Farm and in the
parallels to Joseph Stalins rule, it is difficult to do so. Those granted power are expected
to make changes, however, they must at the same time balance these changes so that they
themselves, do not become the object of yet another revolution.
The ideas and beliefs of past powers are easily thrown out. Difficulty arises only
in the task of creating a new set of ideals and rules to follow. In the beginning of the
book, soon after the animals drive Mr. Jones from the farm, the pigs come up with the
seven commandments. These make up the foundation upon which their new and
improved society is based. The seven commandments can be compared with the start of
Stalins rule when he continued the use of Lenins New Economic Policy (N.E.P.). Either
way, these original guidelines for society were not perennial and had to be adjusted or
changed. In Animal Farm, Napoleons first change is the allowance of trade with other
farms. This not only goes against the commandment stating, Whatever goes on two legs
is an enemy.(18), but also against the agreement to never deal with humans, money, or
trade. Similarly, Stalin changed his position from agreeing with Lenin to creating his own
five-year plans favoring his beliefs. Both the pigs and Stalin continued slightly altering
and tweaking the laws often to their benefit, to the point where the original concepts were
unclear. It was at this point that the populace began to take greater notice of their
predicament.
Similar to the pigs earning the trust of the other animals, the Russian population
also grew to trust Stalin. After this was achieved, the pigs doing so through their

intelligence and Stalin through his gradual ascent to power, it was easy for the leaders to
gradually manipulate things as they wished. The pigs soon took up residency in the
human house and began sleeping in beds through a slight deception of the others. Stalin
began a purge in which more times than not, people were expelled from the country for
no reason other than being unwanted by Stalin. Still, trust in these rulers endured. The
animals watched as Napoleon ordered the execution of the four pigs that opposed his
decision. However, they continued to express their deep trust in him by confessing to
crimes of their own even when the consequence of doing so became apparent. Stalin also
had a similar hold on the population, maintaining support throughout purges, famines,
and other relative disasters.
Only after many more beneficial changes were made did the animals begin to
realize their entanglement in the disastrous situation. They finally lost faith in Napoleon
and saw him in the same light they saw humans in. It was at this point that all hope for
the system was lost. Napoleon had changed the original plan too much, until his rule
became no different from those before him. Thus, the challenges of the revolution may
have appeared to be overcome, when in reality, society merely travelled in a full circle.
This is where Stalin and Napoleon differ. Stalins success increased peoples tolerance
and maintained this power to his death.
Consequently, change is not the enemy of a revolution but in fact the definition of
it. However, in order to facilitate the trust of the population, one must be careful, dealing
with change in a manner that is understandable and accepted by the population. Leaders
must monitor their power and their people, because at any time the change may reach an
intolerable level. The challenge of any revolution is to never reach that point.