Animal Farm: Chapter 8 Summary & Analysis

A few days later, some animals think they remember that the Sixth Commandment said that animals shouldn’t kill other animals. Nobody says anything to the pigs or the dogs, but Clover feels that the executions aren’t in line with this rule. She asks Benjamin to read her the Commandment, but he refuses so, Muriel reads instead. The Commandment reads, “No animal shall kill any other animal WITHOUT CAUSE.” She sees that the Commandment wasn’t violated.

The animals work harder than they ever have. The windmill, in addition to regular farm work, means they sometimes wonder if they work harder now than they did for Mr. Jones, but possibly for less food. On Sunday mornings, Squealer reads lists of figures that prove production is up by at least 200 percent and sometimes up by 500 percent. The animals don’t question this, especially since many don’t remember clearly how things were before—but they also think some days that they’d rather have more food and less of the figures.

Napoleon is now seldom seen in public. He never goes out without the dogs, and now, a black rooster that marches ahead and trumpets. In the farmhouse, he lives alone and eats off of the Crown Derby dinner service. Squealer and the other pigs relay his messages, and it’s decided that the farm will fire the gun on Napoleon’s birthday. These days, Napoleon is referred to as “our Leader, Comrade Napoleon,” and the pigs refer to him as Father of All Animals, Protector of the Sheep-fold, and other such titles. Animals credit Napoleon for everything, from good laying rates to the clean water. Minimus expresses these feelings in a poem, which reads that Napoleon cares for everyone and everyone is faithful to Napoleon. Napoleon asks Squealer to paint it on the big barn next to a portrait of him.

Napoleon busies himself negotiating with Mr. Frederick and Mr. Pilkington about the timber. Mr. Frederick wants it badly, but he won’t offer a good price—and rumors still circulate that he wants to attack Animal Farm and destroy the windmill. Pinchfield supposedly still houses Snowball too, and in the summer, three hens confess that Snowball inspired them to try to murder Napoleon. After their execution, Napoleon begins sleeping guarded by dogs and appoints a pig to taste his food for poison. Napoleon eventually agrees to sell the timber to Mr. Pilkington and enters into an agreement to trade regularly with him. As the windmill’s completion approaches, rumors of an impending attack from Mr. Frederick grow stronger, and rumors circulate of all the cruel things Mr. Frederick does to his animals.

One Sunday, Napoleon announces that he never considered selling the timber to such a horrible human as Mr. Frederick. He commands the pigeons to leave Foxwood alone and also to spread the slogan “Death to Frederick.” Later in the summer, the animals discover that with the help of a goose, Snowball mixed the wheat and corn seeds with weeds. The goose commits suicide, and the animals learn that Snowball never received “Animal Hero, First Class.” Rather, he was punished for cowardice after the Battle of the Cowshed and made up the story of the honor to make himself look better. Squealer convinces everyone that their memories were faulty.

The animals finish the windmill in the fall, though Mr. Whymper is still in the process of negotiating for the machinery. The animals are tired but proud of their work, and they think of what the windmill will be able to do for them. Napoleon announces that they’ll name the windmill Napoleon Mill. Two days later, Napoleon announces that he sold the timber to Mr. Frederick. He changes the pigeons’ message to “Death to Pilkington,” says the rumors about Mr. Frederick’s cruelty are untrue, and insists that Snowball is living in luxury at Foxwood. The pigs are thrilled, as Napoleon’s dealings made Mr. Frederick raise his price by £12, to be paid in cash. The money will buy the machinery for the windmill.

Mr. Frederick’s men cart away the timber quickly and when it’s gone, the animals gather to reverently inspect the banknotes. Three days later, Mr. Whymper arrives with horrible news: the banknotes are forgeries. Napoleon immediately sentences Mr. Frederick to death and warns that Pinchfield might attack Animal Farm. He also sends pigeons to Foxwood with nice messages. The next morning, Mr. Frederick’s men attack. There are 15 men, many with guns, and the animals cannot stand up to the bullets. They’re forced to hide, and even Napoleon looks nervous. The pigeons return with a note from Mr. Pilkington reading, “Serves you right.”

Mr. Frederick and his men gather around the windmill. At first it looks like they’re going to try to knock it down, but Benjamin nods in amusement and notes that they’re going to blow it up. He’s right: after a deafening explosion, the windmill is gone. The enraged animals charge. Boxer kills three men and the dogs bite and terrify the rest. The animals win, but they’re bloody and tired. They gather around the windmill’s foundations and note that they won’t even be able to reuse the stones. Squealer skips up to them looking satisfied as the gun booms in the distance. Squealer cries that it’s to celebrate their victory. Boxer points out that this wasn’t a victory since the men destroyed the windmill. He insists that they just won back what they had before, which Squealer says is a victory.

At the barnyard, Boxer feels the pellets in his leg and begins to mentally prepare himself to rebuild the windmill. It occurs to him that he’s 11 now and maybe isn’t as strong as he once was. However, when he and the other animals see their flag, hear the gun, and listen to Napoleon’s speech, they all agree that this was a great victory. They solemnly bury the killed animals, name the battle the Battle of the Windmill, and Napoleon confers the new Order of the Green Banner on himself. Everyone forgets the forged banknotes.

A few days later, the pigs discover a case of whiskey. That night, the animals hear loud singing that sounds suspiciously like “Beasts of England” coming from the farmhouse, and Napoleon inexplicably gallops around the yard in Mr. Jones’s hat. In the morning, Squealer is the first to emerge at nine a.m. He announces that Napoleon is dying because Snowball poisoned his food. Squealer says that Napoleon’s final pronouncement that drinking alcohol is punishable by death. By the next afternoon, Napoleon is entirely well and asks Mr. Whymper to purchase books on brewing and distilling, and orders that the pasture for retired animals should be planted with barley.

One night at about midnight, the animals wake to a crash. They discover a broken ladder by the Seven Commandments along with Squealer, who is stunned on the ground next to a lantern, a paintbrush, and white paint. The dogs surround Squealer and escort him back to the farmhouse. No one but Benjamin seems to understand anything. A few days later, Muriel sees that the Commandment that she thought forbade drinking alcohol actually forbids drinking alcohol to excess.