Squealer's Propaganda Machine

Traces Squealer's role as the chief propagandist, twisting words and memories to support Napoleon's regime.

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The Brilliant Talker

Squealer is a small, fat pig with nimble movements and a shrill voice. He can turn black into white. He is the intellectual enforcer of the pig regime, explaining away contradictions with persuasive arguments. He is essential to the pigs' control over the other animals.

Justifying Privilege

Squealer explains why the pigs need milk and apples: they are brainworkers, and the farm depends on them. He uses the threat of Jones's return to silence objections. He argues that the pigs' health is essential for everyone's welfare. His logic is unanswerable because the animals cannot articulate counterarguments.

Redefining the Commandments

When the pigs move into beds, Squealer reinterprets the Fourth Commandment to say "No animal shall sleep in a bed with sheets." Later, the Fifth Commandment is changed to "No animal shall drink alcohol to excess." He alters the Sixth Commandment to include "without cause." He exploits the animals' illiteracy and poor memory.

Rewriting History

Squealer systematically distorts the past: Snowball was a traitor from the beginning, Napoleon was the true hero of the Battle of the Cowshed, and the windmill was Napoleon's idea. He uses emotional appeals and threats to make the animals accept these lies. He even changes the story of Boxer's death to a noble end.

The Final Deception

Squealer teaches the sheep the new slogan "Four legs good, two legs better" to defuse the moment when the pigs walk on two legs. He also announces the abolition of "Comrade" and the return to the name Manor Farm. He is the ultimate architect of the pigs' humanization, using language to erase the last traces of the revolution.

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