Chapter 8

Chapter 8

1. Manipulation

   • Revising the commandments
     • The vague recollection the animals have that one of the commandments ruled "No animal shall kill any other animal" is proved unfounded when Muriel reads "No animal shall kill any other animal without cause." We, as a reader, realise that the pigs have been altering the commandments for their own benefit and the addition of these two words gives Napoleon free rein to kill whomever he wishes (since he determines the "cause(s)"
       • Furthermore, these two words also echo the other additions to the to the commandments: "with sheets" to the Fourth and "to excess" to the Fifth. In all three cases, a minor grammatical revision permits major revision of a law that legitimises and excuses Napoleon's tyranny
   • Statistics
     • As the work on the windmill continues, the animals do begin to starve, ironically as Napoleon originally said they would in his debates with Snowball. Ever the happy sycophant, however, Squealer readily provides lists of figures to prove to the animals that they are not starving. Like many people, the animals are dazzled by the numbers - even if they don't understand them - as they indicate scientific research and concrete information despite the fact that "they would have sooner had less figures and more food."
       • This official sounding "evidence" thus convinces the animals that their own rumbling stomachs must be in the wrong, just like the "secret documents" convinced them of Snowball's treachery and is yet another example of how they end up finding fault with themselves where none exists
       • As more and more time passes since the Rebellion it becomes easier for the pigs to manipulate the memories of the animals and change history so the animals didn't have much trouble believing the stastics because "they could no longer remember very clearly what conditions had been like before the Rebellion."
   • Frederick and Pilkington
     • Napoleon's alternating relationships with Frederick and Pilkington and how each time he manages to convince the animals that one of them is now a friend or enemy is another example of how Napoleon is able to manipulate the animals' perceptions in order to make himself appear in complete control
       • The pigeons that Napoleon releases with their varying slogans ("Death to Pilkington" and "Death to Frederick" resemble government-controlled media, spreading the official word on a topic to the world and completely contradiciting all previous statements when necessary. The treachery of Frederick also represents the treachery of Hitler regarding the Hitler-Stalin pact

2. Napoleon

   • Now that he is in total and undisputed control of Animal Farm, Napoleon becomes a paranoid egomaniac and Orwell stresses this new phase in his character in numerous ways in this chapter. The cult of personality is similar to what happened in Soviet Russia with Stalin
     • Paranoid
       • He virtually vanishes from public - "Napoleon himself was not seen in public as often as once in a fortnight" and when he does appear he is "attended...by his retinue of dogs"
       • "a young pig named Pinkeye was given the task of tasting all his food before he ate it, lest it should be poisoned."
     • Egomaniac / cult of personality
       • He "announced that the mill would be named Napoleon Mill."
       • Minimus writes a glorified poem about him which he orders "to be inscribed on the wall of the big barn" and it was "surmounted by a portrait of Napoleon,"
       • "It was also announced that the gun would be fired every year on Napoleon's birthday,"
       • The pigs give all sorts of titles to him for the other animals to refer to him as like "Father of All Animals" and "Protector of the Sheepfold" and the animals begin to "give Napoleon the credit for every successful achievement" such as laying "five eggs in six days"

3. The poem

   • The poem is like a prayer or a hymn and portrays Napoleon as an omniscient force and makes the animals worship him. It likens Napoleon to "the sun in the sky" and says that "Thou art the giver of / All that thy creatures love." The use of formal poetic diction found in words like "Thou," "Ere," and "thee" seems to elevate the dignity of the poem's subject and make the poem as a whole sound older and more like a prayer / hymn
   • However, the reader understands that the poem is another weapon in Napoleon's propaganda arsenal and can "read between the lines" of the poem to perceive the irony of it (i.e. "Full belly twice a day" at a time when the animals are starving) and, particularly in the final verse, see references to Napoleon watching over the animals to make sure they are toeing the line and brainwashing and indoctrinating his subjects from their first living moments (i.e. "Had I a sucking-pig...He should have learned to be / Faithful and true to thee"
     • It is also clear to the reader how the poem goes against the principles of Animalism. It portrays Napoleon as a greater and better animal than all others, deserving their full devotion, whereas, for example, "Beasts of England" called for an uprising against tyranny and an increased sense of unity among all animals

4. The Battle of the Windmill

   • This battle reminds us of the Battle of the Cowshed but this battle is more chaotic, more bloody and less effective than the former: "A cow, three sheep, and two geese were killed, and nearly everyone was wounded." This failure may also be down to the absence of Snowball who originally formulated a plan based on Julius Caesar's tactics which were very effective. This is another example of the lack of organisation now that Snowball has gone
     • In his depiction of the animals' response to Frederick's destruction of the great windmill, Orwell also aptly conveys the tremendous sense of betrayal and feelings of anger that Russians felt toward Germany during and after World War Two

5. Squealer

   • Squealer's logic in proving that the battle was a victory is an incredible display of political doubletalk at its most obvious and ludicrous: Boxer, bleeding and wounded, cannot conceive how Squealer can call the battle a victory, until the pig explains, "The enemy was in occupation of this very ground that we stand upon. And now - thanks to the leadership of comrade Napoleon - we have won every inch of it back again!" Boxer's matter-of-fact reply to this - "Then we have won back what we had before" - contains a wisdom that even he cannot appreciate, for he is attempting to follow Squealer's logic while simultaneously (and unknowingly) pointing out the laughable nature of Squealer's claim. Here, as elsewhere, the satire of Animal Farm grows exponentially sharper and more bitter with each chapter

6. Alcohol

   • The episode involving the alcohol further characterises the pigs as gluttonous and self-serving and shows how human they have become - surccumbing to the addictiveness of alcohol
     • Napoleon's decision to use the paddock as a place to harvest barley instead of as the old-age home it was supposed to be clearly indicates that Napoleon values profits (and alcohol) over revering the aged

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