Orwell's Meaning Behind the Characters in "Animal Farm"

In the book, Animal Farm by George Orwell, the main characters seem to group themselves together into four groups; the elite, intellectual pigs, the mildly intelligent animals, the stupid willing followers, and the outsiders. These groups interact in a way such that it is possible for one of them to control the rest with unquestioning authority.

The Pigs are the most intelligent creatures on the farm, they have the ability to read, write and handle complex business transactions. The pigs are also able to maintain a relatively cohesive and ordered society. The pigs did two main things to assert their authority over the other groups, first, they established, through a series of events; that they were much more intelligent then the other animals. For example, one of the first actions of the pigs was to set aside a room where they could work and study advanced crafts, thus separating themselves from the others in the minds of the animals. This assertion of power was echoed when Napoleon and Snowball announced to all the other animals that they were going to be taking the milk and apples, it was explained to the other animals by Squealer that “We pigs are brainworkers, the whole management and organization of this farm depends on us”(52). In addition to separation in the minds of the animals, the pigs also preformed other tasks from the animals, claiming that they were far too difficult for the animals to accomplish. This gave the pigs a supreme role, because if any animal needed help with repairing anything, they would need to ask a pig.