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Boxer
A jaded donkey with the skeptical view that life will always be difficult and painful. Because of this outlook, Benjamin isn’t surprised when the pigs corrupt the revolution and transform Animal Farm into a totalitarian state. Though his skepticism proves to be well-founded and he alone among the animals seems aware of what’s going on, it also renders him ineffective as he’s unwilling to speak up or do anything to stop it. He also consistently refuses to explain what’s going on to his friends, as when he refuses to read the Seven Commandments to Clover and alone understands what he’s seeing when the animals find Squealer and paint next to a broken ladder and the Seven Commandments. This comes back to haunt him when Napoleon betrays Boxer and sends him to the glue factory—though Benjamin does speak up and tell the animals what’s going on, it’s too late to save Boxer. Benjamin represents those who were aware of Stalin’s unjust and oppressive policies but did nothing to try to stop them.
Benjamin Quotes in Animal Farm
The Animal Farm quotes below are all either spoken by Benjamin or refer to Benjamin. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Chapter 8
Quotes
At the foot of the end wall of the big barn, where the Seven Commandments were written, there lay a ladder broken in two pieces. Squealer, temporarily stunned, was sprawling beside it, and near at hand there lay a lantern, a paint-brush, and an overturned pot of white paint. [...] None of the animals could form any idea as to what this meant, except old Benjamin, who nodded his muzzle with a knowing air, and seemed to understand, but would say nothing.
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Chapter 10
Quotes
ALL ANIMALS ARE EQUAL, BUT SOME ANIMALS ARE MORE EQUAL THAN OTHERS.
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Get the entire Animal Farm LitChart as a printable PDF.
Benjamin Quotes in Animal Farm
The Animal Farm quotes below are all either spoken by Benjamin or refer to Benjamin. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Chapter 8
Quotes
At the foot of the end wall of the big barn, where the Seven Commandments were written, there lay a ladder broken in two pieces. Squealer, temporarily stunned, was sprawling beside it, and near at hand there lay a lantern, a paint-brush, and an overturned pot of white paint. [...] None of the animals could form any idea as to what this meant, except old Benjamin, who nodded his muzzle with a knowing air, and seemed to understand, but would say nothing.
Related Characters:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 10
Quotes
ALL ANIMALS ARE EQUAL, BUT SOME ANIMALS ARE MORE EQUAL THAN OTHERS.
Related Characters:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
