Extended Squealer Character Analysis

In George Orwell's Animal Farm Squealer is a "porker," or one of the fatter pigs, living on the farm. He has twinkling eyes, is great at public speaking, and is popular with the other animals. Squealer is said to be very persuasive; he is able to “turn black into white” with his debate skills. In the story's allegory of the Russian Revolution, Squealer represents Vyacheslav Molotov, who was Joseph Stalin's loyal supporter and a chief figure in the Communist government.

Squealer helps to elaborate on Old Major’s teachings along with Snowball and Napoleon and enthusiastically reinforces the belief that pigs are brainworkers; the others, laborers. He is only too happy to serve as the pigs’ propagandist. He uses his speeches to convince the other animals to follow the pigs and later to follow just Napoleon. Squealer thus also represents Soviet propaganda itself, in particular the newspaper Pravda, which at the time of the Russian Revolution was used to spread Soviet doctrine.

Squealer convinces the animals that the pigs are the ones who need the milk and the apples the most. He uses an effective scare tactic, claiming that if the pigs were unable to eat the milk and apples, they would become ill, and if that were to happen, Mr. Jones would return. The return of Mr. Jones is much worse to the animals than the pigs having full access to the milk and apples, so the animals agree. This is representative of the pigs' slowly taking from the animals what is supposed to be owned by all. Squealer employs this rhetoric several times throughout the novel, repeatedly threatening Mr. Jones's return if the animals do not comply.

When Snowball is run off the farm, Squealer is tasked with explaining Napoleon’s new role as leader to all the animals. He instigates a greater dislike of Snowball by spreading hateful rumors about him. He becomes the spokesperson for Napoleon, who has slowly withdrawn from speaking directly with the other animals. It is soon only Squealer who tells the animals any news or ordinance. This shows how the animals—like the Soviets—are only exposed to a single, highly biased source of information. Squealer is even able to convince Boxer, who at first believed that Snowball was not a traitor in league with Mr. Jones, to agree with Napoleon’s views.

Throughout George Orwell's story, Squealer serves as Napoleon’s greatest helper and spreader of propaganda. He pacifies the animals by encouraging them to sing Beasts of England, revising the seven commandments, and training the sheep to repeat new phrases to serve Napoleon's purposes. He also joins with Napoleon and the other pigs in acting like a human. He begins to walk on two legs, carry whips, and wear clothes. Even though this causes distress among the animals, Squealer had trained the sheep to bleat "four legs good, two legs better!" Finally, Squealer is the pig who writes the final formulation of the seven commandments of Animalism: “some animals are more equal than others.”