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Napoleon
At first, a friend and companion of Napoleon’s. Together, Snowball and Napoleon develop the theory of Animalism from the ideas of Old Major’s speech, and later they distill these ideas down into the Seven Commandments. Snowball is responsible for generating the maxim “four legs good, two legs bad,” which he teaches to the sheep and other less intelligent animals in order to give them some version of the Seven Commandments to repeat. Despite being the generator of this maxim, in the months after, the phrase often gets used against Snowball during Sunday meetings, as the sheep often start bleating the maxim out of the blue during Snowball’s speeches. It’s implied that these interruptions are Napoleon’s work, as the two pigs develop an intense rivalry in the months after the rebellion. Snowball is somewhat of an idealistic individual; he proposes that the farm animals build a windmill in order to generate electricity, which he suggests will ultimately lead to a three-day workweek. He also comes up with a variety of other schemes and groups aimed at improving the animals’ lives and education status, and he also promotes spreading news of the rebellion far and wide. Despite his idealism, however, Snowball still shows himself to be willing to exploit the other animals for his own gain, as when he says nothing about taking the milk and apples for the pigs only. On the day that the animals vote to build the windmill, Napoleon exiles Snowball by setting his attack dogs on him. After this, Snowball disappears as a character, but Napoleon continues to invoke Snowball as a nefarious figure who conspires against Animal Farm, is in league with humans, and is intent on messing everything up on the farm. Through this, Napoleon discredits Snowball’s bravery and actions in the Battle of the Cowshed and makes it so no animal can feel any affinity for Snowball. Snowball symbolizes Trotsky, a rival of Stalin exiled from Russia and assassinated on Stalin’s orders in Mexico in 1940.
Snowball Quotes in Animal Farm
The Animal Farm quotes below are all either spoken by Snowball or refer to Snowball. 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 2
Quotes
THE SEVEN COMMANDMENTS
1. Whatever goes upon two legs is an enemy.
2. Whatever goes upon four legs, or has wings, is a friend.
3. No animal shall wear clothes.
4. No animal shall sleep in a bed.
5. No animal shall drink alcohol.
6. No animal shall kill any other animal.
7. All animals are equal.
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Chapter 3
Quotes
“Four legs good, two legs bad.”
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“Comrades!” he cried. “You do not imagine, I hope, that we pigs are doing this in a spirit of selfishness and privilege? Many of us actually dislike milk and apples. Milk and apples (this has been proved by Science, comrades) contain substances absolutely necessary to the well-being of a pig. We pigs are brainworkers. The whole management and organization of this farm depend on us. Day and night we are watching over your welfare. It is for your sake that we drink that milk and eat those apples.”
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Chapter 5
Quotes
At this there was a terrible baying sound outside, and nine enormous dogs wearing brass-studded collars came bounding into the barn. They dashed straight for Snowball, who only sprang from his place just in time to escape their snapping jaws.
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Chapter 6
Quotes
“Comrades, do you know who is responsible for this? Do you know the enemy who has come in the night and overthrown our windmill? SNOWBALL!”
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Chapter 7
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If a window was broken or a drain was blocked up, someone was certain to say that Snowball had come in the night and done it, and when the key of the store-shed was lost, the whole farm was convinced that Snowball had thrown it down the well. Curiously enough, they went on believing this even after the mislaid key was found under a sack of meal.
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Get the entire Animal Farm LitChart as a printable PDF.
Snowball Quotes in Animal Farm
The Animal Farm quotes below are all either spoken by Snowball or refer to Snowball. 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 2
Quotes
THE SEVEN COMMANDMENTS
1. Whatever goes upon two legs is an enemy.
2. Whatever goes upon four legs, or has wings, is a friend.
3. No animal shall wear clothes.
4. No animal shall sleep in a bed.
5. No animal shall drink alcohol.
6. No animal shall kill any other animal.
7. All animals are equal.
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Chapter 3
Quotes
“Four legs good, two legs bad.”
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“Comrades!” he cried. “You do not imagine, I hope, that we pigs are doing this in a spirit of selfishness and privilege? Many of us actually dislike milk and apples. Milk and apples (this has been proved by Science, comrades) contain substances absolutely necessary to the well-being of a pig. We pigs are brainworkers. The whole management and organization of this farm depend on us. Day and night we are watching over your welfare. It is for your sake that we drink that milk and eat those apples.”
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Chapter 5
Quotes
At this there was a terrible baying sound outside, and nine enormous dogs wearing brass-studded collars came bounding into the barn. They dashed straight for Snowball, who only sprang from his place just in time to escape their snapping jaws.
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Chapter 6
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“Comrades, do you know who is responsible for this? Do you know the enemy who has come in the night and overthrown our windmill? SNOWBALL!”
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Chapter 7
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If a window was broken or a drain was blocked up, someone was certain to say that Snowball had come in the night and done it, and when the key of the store-shed was lost, the whole farm was convinced that Snowball had thrown it down the well. Curiously enough, they went on believing this even after the mislaid key was found under a sack of meal.
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