Napoleon's Cult of Personality
What Is a Cult of Personality?
A cult of personality is when a leader uses propaganda to create a god-like public image. Stalin was a master of this — portraits, statues, and songs praised him as the “Father of Nations,” and cities were renamed in his honour. In Animal Farm, Napoleon develops his own cult of personality as the novella progresses.
Napoleon is given titles such as “our Leader, Comrade Napoleon,” “Father of All Animals,” “Terror of Mankind,” “Protector of the Sheep-fold,” and “Ducklings’ Friend.” These increasingly absurd titles mirror the grandiose titles given to Stalin and other dictators.
Squealer attributes all good fortune to Napoleon personally — every successful harvest, every egg laid, every drink of water is credited to “the leadership of Comrade Napoleon.” A poem by Minimus, the poet pig, is inscribed on the barn wall alongside a portrait of Napoleon, placed at the opposite end of the barn from the Seven Commandments.
Napoleon’s Growing Power and Privilege
As Napoleon’s cult grows, so do his privileges. The pigs move into the farmhouse, sleep in beds, eat at the dining table, and drink whisky. Napoleon rarely appears in public — when he does, he is surrounded by dogs and announced with a ceremonial cockerel crow. He eats from Jones’s own Crown Derby china and takes his meals alone, with two dogs waiting on him.
Stalin lived in luxury in the Kremlin while millions of Soviet citizens starved. He had portraits in every public building, his name in every newspaper, and his birthday was a national holiday. Cities like Stalingrad were named after him.
Napoleon’s behaviour mirrors this precisely. He lives in comfort while the animals’ rations are repeatedly cut. His portrait is painted on the barn wall. His birthday is celebrated with a gun salute. Every success is attributed to him; every failure is blamed on Snowball.
Orwell highlights the irony that a revolution fought to end one form of tyranny (Jones/the Tsar) has simply replaced it with another. The pigs have not created equality — they have become the new ruling class.
Trade with Humans — Another Betrayal
Napoleon begins trading with neighbouring farms through a human broker named Mr Whymper. This directly contradicts the original principles of Animalism, which forbade all contact with humans. When the animals protest, Squealer insists that no such rule ever existed — it was a “lie” spread by Snowball.
The trading with humans represents the Soviet Union’s economic deals with Western capitalist nations. Despite communist ideology opposing capitalism, Stalin engaged in trade agreements when it suited him. Orwell uses this to show that ideological purity is always sacrificed when it conflicts with the ruling class’s interests.
The two neighbouring farmers represent rival political systems. Mr Frederick (Pinchfield Farm) represents Adolf Hitler and Nazi Germany — his farm is small, well-run, and he drives hard bargains. Mr Pilkington (Foxwood Farm) represents the Western capitalist powers, particularly Britain — his farm is larger but neglected.
Napoleon alternates between alliances with each, just as Stalin switched between hostility and cooperation with Germany and the West. The deal with Frederick (who pays with forged banknotes and later attacks the farm) mirrors the Nazi-Soviet Pact of 1939, which Stalin trusted before Hitler’s betrayal in 1941.
The Battle of the Windmill — when Frederick’s men attack and blow up the rebuilt windmill — represents Hitler’s invasion of the Soviet Union (Operation Barbarossa). The animals win but at enormous cost, just as Russia defeated Germany but suffered 27 million casualties.
Orwell’s Point About Power and Corruption
By Chapter 8, the novella’s central argument is clear: power inevitably corrupts. Napoleon has become indistinguishable from the human oppressors the revolution was supposed to replace. The commandments have been rewritten, the original ideals abandoned, and the working animals are worse off than ever. Orwell suggests this is not unique to the Russian Revolution — it is a pattern that recurs whenever a small group seizes power without accountability.