The pigs do begin to appear to be more human, demonstrating the type of leaders they have become. The significance behind this, however, is less literal than that. It is important to note that Orwell chooses to portray the pigs in this way at the very end of the book to achieve one of his themes: that power may shift after a revolution, but oftentimes things will stay just about the same for the proletariat, or working, class. Power corrupts; as it did Mr. Jones in the beginning of the book, so it has the pigs. Life for the rest of the animals remains the same, or worse.
The major change in the pigs' appearance comes in the very last pages of the book. By acting more and more like humans, and through taking on human characteristics (which range from running things to living in the house), the pigs eventually become indistinguishable from humans. Squealer and the other pigs even start walking on their hind legs, until, as the final line of the book says, "The creatures outside looked from pig to man, and from man to pig, and from pig to man again; but already it was impossible to say which was which."
In what ways did the pigs in Animal Farm change during the course of the story?
Over the course of the George Orwell novel, Animal Farm, the pigs change from being oppressed workers in a capitalist system to framers of a socialist system in which all animals would be equal, to ultimately being the oppressors in a system much like the one from which they freed themselves at the beginning of the novel.
In a capitalist society, wealth is enjoyed by the few and the means of production are also an asset of the owner. The workers themselves do not enjoy the same profit as the owner. This is the system in place on the farm under Mr. Jones. The animals produced for Mr. Jones and were treated very poorly. They did not enjoy any of the fruits of their labor. When they were no longer of any use, Mr. Jones disposed of them. After the revolution, the animals put a socialist system in place. All animals were equal and the fruit of their labor was divided among them. After some time, the pigs began to take on the practices of Mr. Jones and the animals lost their equal footing on the farm. The seven commandments were changed to read that some animals were more equal then others. The fruits of labor were enjoyed by the pigs only, while rations and living conditions for the other animals declined rapidly.
By the end of the novel, the pigs had completely transformed from the oppressed to the oppressors on the farm.
Further Reading
In what ways did the pigs in Animal Farm change during the course of the story?
Sometimes I wonder if the pigs are really changing, or if they are simply revealing more of their true natures as the story moves along.
In the novel, the pigs start out seeming like they are on the same "side" as everyone else; particularly when Old Major and Snowball are...
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still alive and at the farm. However, as the story progresses, we seeNapoleon and the other pigs becoming hungry for more and more power than they had at the start. They begin to take advantages and privileges for themselves that the other animals don't have, and they coerce the other animals into doing all the work while they lounge around in the farmhouse. At the beginning of the revolution, the pigs are against humans and all that they stand for; as the story progresses, they come to imitate humans and live human lifestyles.
How do the pigs act in Animal Farm?
The pigs act in a manner that represents power. From the very start of the work, the pigs act with the full knowledge that they carry the power on the farm. In the first chapter, the pigs sit in the front of Old Major as he delivers his speech, readily absorbing every word as they understand that they are going to be the ones to carry out his vision. In the second chapter, the pigs are the ones who initiate the calls to revolution. In the third chapter, the pigs' actions are still reflective of the power distribution element as they are the ones who are still in the position of power, as shown by the situation with the missing milk. As the novel progresses, Napoleon and Squealer are able to act in a manner that consolidates their own power, while excluding Snowball. As the novel reaches its end, the pigs have successfully acted in a manner that demonstrates absolute power corrupts absolutely. They are fundamentally no different than the human beings in their use of power and abuse of the animals. It is in this where it is clear that the pigs' act in a manner that demonstrates a coveting of power and a desire to keep it, controlling the other animals at all costs.