Animal Farm Chapters 5-6

Mollie began to shirk work, and Clover soon discovered that Mollie had been fraternizing with humans as she discovered ribbons and lumps of sugar hidden in Mollie’s stall. Mollie disappeared and was reported to be serving a publican on the other side of the town by the pigeons who had seen her tied to a smart dogcart. The pigs continued to draft farm policy but it was always ratified through a majority vote. The arrangement became tiresome due to the enmity of Snowball and Napoleon, who seemed to disagree on all matters. Snowball’s eloquence allowed him to win over the votes, but Napoleon was skilled at canvassing and the sheep had taken a particular liking to him. The sheep often broke into chanting the maxim during important sections of snowflake’s speech.

None of the issues were as hotly debated as that of the windmill that Snowball believed would lessen the workload of the animals. He had spent long durations locked up in a closet as he worked on the plans for a windmill, which he believed would allow them to lead a more comfortable existence. He explained that the windmill would indeed require a lot of effort since they would have to quarry stone and build walls, but that it would lead to a lessened workload once the windmill had been completed. Napoleon argued that the animals needed to focus on increasing their food production to avoid starvation. The day for the vote finally arrived, and it became obvious that Snowball was going to win the vote as he was going through his speech. Suddenly, Napoleon used a shrill whimper to summon nine huge dogs with brass collars that charged at Snowball, however, he narrowly escaped through a hole in the hedge. The horrified animals soon learned that the dogs were the puppies that Napoleon had taken into his custody and that they seemed to treat Napoleon as other dogs had treated Mr. Jones. He then informed the animals that farm policy would now be decided by a special committee of pigs headed by him and that there would be no need for debates during the Sunday meetings any longer.

Squealer then went around to the worried animals and claimed that they needed to remain disciplined to prevent the return of Mr. Jones. He told the animals that Snowball had been a criminal and that Napoleon had taken control of farm policy to ensure none of the animals made any wrong choices. Boxer added another phrase to his existing motto “I will work harder” which said that Napoleon was always right. Some of the pigs had tried to protest but their voices had been silenced by the threat of the dogs. The Sunday assemblies required the animals to pay respect to the bleached skull of the Old Major that had been removed from his grave, and they were then given their orders for the week. Three weeks after Snowball's expulsion, Napoleon announced that the animals would begin working on the windmill, but offered no reason for his change of heart. Squealer told everyone that Napoleon had only opposed the idea as a tactic to get rid of the criminal Snowball, and went on to claim that Snowball had stolen the idea from Napoleon who had come up with it on his own. The animals were told that the laborious work could also cause them to have lower rations but that it would eventually be beneficial to them all.

The animals began the laborious task of mining stone by pulling it to the top of a hill and dropping it to shatter it into more manageable pieces. None of the animals worked as hard as Boxer, who began to work even earlier than before. Despite their hard work, the animals began to experience shortages of things that they could not hope to produce on their own, and Napoleon announced that Animal Farm would begin to trade with humans to procure tools that were needed for their survival. The animals were quite uneasy at this announcement as some of them felt that this decision contradicted the motions that had been ratified in the assembly in the beginning but Squealer’s words put an end to that discussion. He told them that no such motions had ever been passed, and told them that they would never have to interact with humans because Napoleon would bear that burden for them. Napoleon would be working through a solicitor who would act as an intermediary between the animals of the farm and the humans. It gave the animals some satisfaction to see the four-legged Napoleon give instructions to the two-legged man.

The pigs then moved into the farmhouse, and there were rumors that they slept on the beds in the farmhouse. Clover thought she had read a commandment that prohibited the use of beds but learned that the commandment prohibited the use of beds with sheets. Squealer saw the animals reading the commandments and offered his explanation for the pigs’ need for comfort owing to their difficult brainwork. The animals were overworked yet happy, and they were also proud of their rapidly ascending windmill. All of that progress was shattered by a storm, as the animals awoke to find the windmill destroyed. Napoleon claimed that Snowball was responsible for sabotaging the windmill, and announced a bounty of apples against him. He also told the animals that they could not let Snowball interrupt their plans and thus should aim to complete the windmill according to the previously set schedule.

Analysis

Animal Farm begins to function as a state, the pigs serve as the rulers, the police force of dogs maintains order and the animals form the working class. The farm has diplomatic concerns just like any other nation, and these concerns are sourced from the neighboring farms representing capitalist and non-communist nations like the United States. The enmity between Snowball and Napoleon finds a parallel in the history of the Russian Revolution as the Soviet Intelligentsia jockeyed for power after the revolution. Snowball is reminiscent of Leon Trotsky, who was a passionate orator that was ousted by the quiet and forceful Stalin, who is represented through the character of Napoleon. Stalin like Napoleon preferred to work behind closed doors through force and deals, and was responsible for unleashing a wave of violence and incarcerations throughout the Soviet Union. However, the novella doesn't truly provide Snowball as a just alternative political leader since he too was complicit in the theft of the milk and apples. Snowball is also shown to be the progenitor of the plans for the windmill which is merely a means for the pigs to accrue more wealth. The plans for the windmill represent the five-year plans that had been instituted by the Soviet government and involved several large projects that led to industrialization but also caused the common people to experience famine. Earlier in the novella, Snowball advocates spreading the news of their rebellion to prevent the neighboring farms from attacking them, this was a crucial part of the communist ideology. It postulated that the rise of communism in a political state would inspire the people of other nations to raise similar governments of their own, and this was described as the Domino effect.

The rituals in the novella serve as a powerful motif, and they represent how the government of the pigs consolidates its power. The pigs use state rituals to imbue the animals with a sense of purpose and patriotism while the pigs make themselves richer at the cost of the animals and bestow on themselves greater luxuries. The animals are required to pay homage to the skull of the Old Major, which is an allusion to the remains of Lenin that were displayed for similar reasons. Additionally, the barn wall that is used to write down the commandments of Animalism begins to function as a representation of history, as the pigs manipulate the contents of the wall to justify their actions. Later in the book, the animals find Squealer sprawled next to the wall with a ladder and paint but fail to realize that they are being manipulated.