Animal Farm Characters Analysis

"Power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely".

People
Mr Jones - Mr Jones is a farmer, and the owner of Manor Farm. He represents the last Tsar of Russia,
Nicholas Alexandrovich Romanov (Nicholas II).
Mr. Pilkington - Owner of Foxwood (Leader of England). He doesn't represent one person in particular, but
rather is a composite of all of the leaders of England.
Mr. Frederick - Owner of Pinchfield (Leader of Germany). Frederick is a composite of the leaders of
Germany. However, throughout most of the book, Frederick is a representation of Hitler. It is said that
Frederick had ''flogged an old horse to death (A reference to Hitler's euthanasia program), he had starved his
cows (A reference to the Jews?), he had killed a dog by throwing it into the furnace (Most likely a reference
to Night of Knives), and that he amused himself in the evenings by making cocks (French? / Children?) fight
with splinters of razor-blade tied to their spurs.''
Mr. Whymper - A solicitor living in Willingdon. Acted as an intermediary between Animal Farm and the
outside world in matters of trade. Represents capitalist who did business with the Soviet state.
Animalism: communism

Pigs
Napoleon - Napoleon is Joseph Stalin, the second leader of the Soviet Union. Animal farm skips the short
rule of Lenin (and seems to combine Lenin with the character Old Major), and has Napoleon leading the
farm from the beginning of the revolution.
Squealer - This pig represents the Russian media, which spread Stalin's version of the truth to the masses.
Snowball - Snowball represents Leo Trotsky. Trotsky was one of the original revolutionaries. But as Stalin
rose to power he became one of Stalin's biggest enemies, and was eventually expelled from the Politburo in
1925 - one year after Stalin took control of the nation. In the novel, Snowball was exiled from the farm just
as Trotsky had been in 1929. But Trotsky was not only exiled in body, he was also exiled from the minds of
the Russian people - His historical role was altered; his face cut out of group photographs of the leaders of
the revolution. In Russia he was denounced as a traitor and conspirator and in 1940 a Stalinist agent
assassinated him in Mexico City.
Old Major - The father of 'Animalism'. He represents Karl Marx, but in some ways also symbolizes the
original communist leader - Vladimir Lenin. (In the book, Old major's skull is displayed in a similar manner
to the way Lenin's remains were displayed to the public) The book also says that Old Major had been
exhibited at shows under the name Willingdon Beauty, but I'm not sure whether or not this is a reference to a
real-life.

Horses
Boxer - Boxer represents the working class. Boxer is portrayed as being a dedicated worker, but as
possessing a less-than-average intelligence. His personal motto was, "I will work harder!" The novel
describes the horses as being the pig's "most faithful disciples" and that they "absorbed everything that they

were told [by the pigs], and passed it on to the other animals by simple arguments".
Mollie - Mollie seems to be some sort of representation of Russia's upper classes. But, since Orwell portrays
her as a horse - the same animal used to represent the 'working class' horses Boxer & Clover - Mollie may
simply represent members of the working class that remained faithful to the Czar. In either case, Mollie was
never really in favor of the revolution. She went along with it, but she didn't actually engage in the fighting.
Mollie didn't mind being a 'servant' to the humans, since she was constantly being pampered by them. After
the revolution, Mollie begins to miss the beautiful ribbons (fine clothes) and sugar cane (fine food) she used
to receive from her human masters. She eventually flees the animal farm to live elsewhere in Willingdon.

Dogs
Dogs - The dogs represent the military/police. In the beginning of the book, they voted against accepting the
rats & rabbits as 'comrades'. Shortly after the revolution, several 'pups' are stolen from their mothers. Later
in the book, these pups (now fully grown - and fully trained) protect Napoleon from a second potential
revolution, and help to enforce his decrees.
Benjamin
The donkey. He is the oldest animal on the farm and stereotypically stubborn and crotchety. He is also
intelligent, being the only animal (aside from the pigs) that can read fluently. He never laughs, preferring to
make cynical comments, especially the cryptic line, donkeys live a long time. Despite Benjamins
unfriendly nature, he has a special affinity for Boxer. The Rebellion does not change Benjamins personality,
although he eventually helps the animals read the lettering on the side of the van and the maxim that
replaces the Seven Commandments. Benjamin represents the human (and also stereotypically Russian)
tendency towards apathy; he holds fast to the idea that life is inherently hard and that efforts for change are
futile. Benjamin bears a similarity to Orwell himself. Over the course of his career, Orwell became
politically pessimistic and predicted the overtake of the West by totalitarian governments.

Places
Animal Farm - The Soviet Union (U.S.S.R.). 'Animal Farm' is the name the animals gave their farm after
the revolution.
Manor Farm - Russia. 'Manor Farm' was the name of the farm when Jones ran it. Eventually, the Pigs
decided that they preferred this old name to the new moniker 'Animal Farm'.
Foxwood - Foxwood represents England. The novel describes it as "a large, neglected, old-fashioned farm,
much overgrown by woodland, with all its pastures worn out and its hedges in a disgraceful condition. Its
owner, Mr. Pilkington, was an easy-going gentleman farmer who spent most of his time in fishing or hunting
according to the season."
Pinchfiled - Pinchfiled represents Germany. Orwell described it as "The other farm, which was called
Pinchfield, was smaller and better kept. Its owner was a Mr. Frederick, a tough, shrewd man, perpetually
involved
in
lawsuits
and
with
a
name
for
driving
hard
bargains."
Willingdon - All of the farms mentioned in the book are located in the city of Willingdon, which is a

metaphor for Europe.

England - Since farms represent the various nations, England is a representation of the entire world.
The Farmhouse - (The Kremlin.) Home of Mr. Jones (the Czar). After the revolution, there were some that
wanted to destroy the farmhouse, but it was decided to preserve it as a museum. (The Kremlin was saved in
a similar manner). Eventually, Napoleon (Stalin) decided to take up residence there.
The Red Lion - A Pub in Willingdon. This may represent the Royal Palace in England, or could merely
represent one of the smaller nations in Europe.
Sugar Candy Mountain - An obvious reference to 'Heaven'. In the novel, Moses "...claimed to know of the
existence of a mysterious country called Sugarcandy Mountain, to which all animals went when they died. It
was situated somewhere up in the sky, a little distance beyond the clouds, Moses said. In Sugarcandy
Mountain it was Sunday seven days a week, clover was in season all the year round, and lump sugar and
linseed cake grew on the hedges. The animals hated Moses because he told tales and did no work, but some
of them believed in Sugarcandy Mountain, and the pigs had to argue very hard to persuade them that there
was no such place". Later in the novel, the Pigs quietly allow Moses (the church) to return the farm. Here,
Orwell is demonstrating religion's use an "opiate of the masses". The Pigs realized that by offering their
subjects the promise of a mystical reward after their death, it would help make their miserable over-worked
lives more bearable for them to endure.
Windmill - The windmill is a symbol for Stalin's 'Five-Year plan'. Just a the windmill was promised to make
the animal's life easier, the 'Five-Year Plan' was supposed to improve Soviet industry to the point that the
proletariats' life as well by increasing production and allowing the soviets to shorten the work-week. And
just like the windmill, Stalin's plan was an utter failure. After the destruction of the Windmill, the Animals
decided to build another one and in real-life, Stalin kept churning out new 'Five-year Plans' - promising that
each new plan would solve all of Russia's problems and bring the USSR closer to parity with the
industrialized nations of the west.
Destruction of the Windmill - This destruction is symbolic for the failure of the Five Year Plan.
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Utopia / Dystopia Novel?

The notion of utopia as an ideal state has been deeply rooted in history of man's culture, from the earliest of
antiquity to the present time. Even in antiquity utopia was an ideal living state as inferred from the work of
Plato, the great master of the classics; and Sir Thomas More, the great humanist and utopist. The first and
the most outstanding sample of this type of work is Plato's Republic which is in a dialogue form and
envisages an ideal state in heavenly paradise and the next is More's Utopia. More in his Utopia depicts an
ideal state in nowhere which has been the prototype of many modern utopias. But by the passage of time it
becomes clear that the happiness that the utopists aspire for is just fake happiness and at the end it leads to
horror and nightmare of dystopia.
George Orwells novel, Animal Farm, also depicts these two notions of utopia and dystopia. The novel is a
brilliant sample of utopia which turns into dystopia. In Animal Farm, the animals wish for a dreamy farm

with utopian characteristics but in the end they are all left alone with a farm, filled with darkness, lies,
conspiracy and broken dreams.
Animal Farm is a book which centers on the expectations of the animals of particular farm in order to have
an ideal society. The book opens in an optimistic mood: Old Major in his speech describes a simple, natural
farm in which all the animals are free and equal.
The first hint of dystopia is when the pigs secretly add the cows' milk to their own mash and Snowball
assent to this first act of inequity.