Characters
Most of the important characters in Animal Farm by George Orwell are anthropomorphised animals. Some of the animals are individually named and play specific roles, though others are mostly described as groups and become collective characters.
The book also contains a couple of human characters, though they are only relevant for how they relate to the animals and their society.
The main characters of the story are Napoleon, Snowball, Squealer, Boxer and Benjamin. We will begin this section by looking at these five characters in detail.
Afterwards, we will briefly describe some of the secondary animal characters, such as Old Major, Clover, Mollie and Moses. We will also lo…
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Napoleon
Napoleon is the main character of Animal Farm, as he is the driving force behind most of the plot. However, we generally do not have direct access to his perspective, but mostly learn of his actions and plans from the point of view of the other animals. This echoes the way in which Napoleon carries out most of his plans in secret and removes himself from the daily lives of the animals to become a figurehead.
He is a pig, described as a “rather fierce-looking Berkshire boar” (p. 9). His physical appearance changes at several points in the story – for example, he gradually grows fatter as he reserves more and more food for himself, and he starts to wear human clothes.
His appearance also changes dramatically in the story’s climax, when he beings to walk on his hind legs like a human being: “…Napoleon h…
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Snowball
Snowball is Napoleon's political rival in the first half of the story.
He is a pig, described as “...a more vivacious pig than Napoleon, quicker in speech and more inventive…” (p. 9). He creates the political philosophy of Animalism along with Squealer and Napoleon and plays a significant role in the early period of Animal Farm.
Unlike Napoleon, Snowball seems eager to improve the lives and minds of the other animals on the farm. He organises a number of ambitious projects, such as the attempts to teach the animals to read and wr…
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Squealer
Squealer is part of the trio of pigs who create the principles of Animalism, along with Napoleon and Snowball.
He is described as a “small fat pig [...] with very round cheeks, twinkling eyes, nimble movements and a shrill voice” (p. 9). We are also repeatedly told that is a brilliant talker, able to convince anyone of anything, as he can even “...turn black into white” (p. 9).
Throughout the story, Squealer plays the ro…
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Boxer
Boxer is a workhorse at the farm, whose labour plays a significant role in its development. He is introduced as “...an enormous beast, nearly eighteen hands high, and as strong as any two ordinary horses put together.” (p. 2).
Boxer is a workhorse in both the literal and figurative sense. He is very excited about the new freedom the animals enjoy and he works incredibly hard for everyone’s benefit…
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Benjamin
Benjamin is a donkey, the oldest animal on the farm. He is described as bad-tempered, and it is noted that he never laughs and often makes cynicalremarks. He does not seem to care much for the other animals, though he does have a close relationship with Boxer (p. 2).
His exact age is never r…
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Other characters
Old Major
Old Major is a prize-winning boar at the Manor Farm, twelve years old but still “majestic-looking” and with a “wise and benevolent appearance” (p.1).
Old Major only appears at the beginning of his story, but his speech creates the foundation of the Rebellion. He describes the evils of Mankind (pp. 4-6) and shares a vision of an England controlled by animals (pp. 6-8). He also presents a number of laws and principles that must be followed during and after the oncoming revolution (p. 6), which later become the foundation of Animalism (pp. 9-10) and the Seven Commandments (p. 15).
Even after his death, he continues to play some role in the story, as the other animals regard him as an important symbol of their Rebellion - his skull is even preserved as an almost religio…
