Student Question
How does Orwell show Frederick and Pilkington's fear in Animal Farm?
Quick answer:
Orwell depicts Frederick and Pilkington's fear of the revolution by highlighting their concern over their own animals' perceptions. In Chapter 4, they attempt various strategies to tarnish the image of Animal Farm, including mocking the revolution, predicting its failure, and spreading rumors about poor conditions. Their persistent efforts to dissuade their animals from rebelling indicate their fear, as they cannot simply ignore the threat posed by the revolutionary success of Animal Farm.
I think that you can find the answer to this at the start of Chapter 4. Orwell shows that these two men are frightened by the revolution by showing that they are worried about what their own animals think. They are so anxious about this that they try lots of tactics to make their animals think badly of Animal Farm.
The two men first make fun of the revolution. Then they talk about how it won't last because the animals won't know how to run the farm. Then they try to talk about how terrible conditions are at Animal Farm. The point is that they are trying all kinds of things to persuade their animals not to rebel. This proves that they are afraid -- if you're not afraid of something, you can just ignore it. Since they are not ignoring it (and are actually seeming very eager to make the animals look bad) they are clearly frightened.
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