Whatever goes upon four legs, or has wings, is a friend.Ħ. Whatever goes upon two legs is an enemy.Ģ. The pigs Snowball (Leon Trotsky) and Napoleon (Stalin) draw up seven golden rules based on Old Major’s speech:ġ. In its wake, the animals try to build a new, post-revolutionary society. However, Old Major does not live to see the revolution it breaks out suddenly and is soon over, with the animals successfully driving the humans out. He teaches the animals the song ‘Beasts of England’ (reminiscent of the Internationale) and tries to impress upon them the image and ideals of a post-revolutionary world.
The book opens in a farm barn where the animals have gathered around the venerable pig Old Major - a reference to Vladimir Lenin and his Marxist ideas - who calls on them to revolt against the humans. The parallels between the animals in Animal Farm and historical figures and events are indeed unmistakable.
