Squealer's Propaganda Mastery

Follows Squealer's role as the pigs' mouthpiece, using rhetoric and lies to control the animals.

increasingBearing stren­gth in each eventdecreasing

The Brilliant Talker

The Persuader The Initial Role Squealer is a small, fat pig with a gift for language. He is said to be able to turn black into white. The Justifier of Privileges He explains why the pigs need milk and apples, why the windmill is Napoleon's idea, and why the Sunday meetings must end. The Manipulator of Fear His favorite argument is 'Do you want Jones back?' This unanswerable question silences all doubts.

The Rewriter of History

The Propagandist The Change of Facts Squealer claims Snowball was a traitor from the start, that he was secretly in league with Jones, and that his heroism was a facade. The False Statistics He reads out lists of figures showing increased production, even when the animals are hungry. The animals cannot remember the past clearly. The Shaping of Memory Squealer's words become the official history. The animals begin to doubt their own memories and accept his version.

The Final Lies

The Master of Deception The Boxer Lie Squealer tells the animals that Boxer died in hospital, happy and at peace, with Napoleon's name on his lips. The animals believe it. The Cover-Up He explains away the knacker's van as a vet's vehicle. He keeps the animals placated. The Indoctrination of the Sheep Squealer teaches the sheep to bleat 'Four legs good, two legs better!' He is the architect of the pigs' ideological control.

the early days

after the expulsion of Snowball

near the end of the story