Orwell uses each of the characters, places, and events in Animal Farm to represent either a specific person, group, place, or event in the Soviet Union during the Communist revolution and rule. Although these are the generally accepted symbols, the character's may be interpreted in many different ways. Using them as symbols, Orwell creates a novella that is not simply a story, it is a criticism of the Communist system. The depth of the symbolism Orwell puts into Animal Farm, and the historical references he places, helps him achieve this.
Mankind
Jones - the last Czar of Russia, Nicholas Alexandrovich Romanov
Pilkington - a composite of the leaders of England
Frederick - a composite of the leaders of Germany
Whymper - the capitalists who did business with the Soviet Union
Pigs
Old Major - the father of Communism, Karl Marx; the original Communist leader, Vladimir Lennin
Napoleon - Joseph Stalin, the second leader of the Soviet Union
Snowball - Leon Trotsky, one of the original revolutionaries
Squealer - the Russian media, who spread Stalin's 'truth'
Birds
Birds - the part of the mass that felt left out of the Communist rhetoric; wanted to be a part of it
Moses - the Russian Orthodox Church
Hens - the peasant farmers
Pigeons - the Communist Word Revolution, who spread communism
Other Animals
Boxer - the working class
Dogs - the military/police
Mollie - the members of the working class still faithful to the Czar
Benjamin - the older population
Rats - the beggars, thieves, and gypsies
Sheep - the masses
Places
England - the world
Manor Farm - Russia
Animal Farm - the Soviet Union
Willingdon - Europe
Foxwood - England
Pinchfield - Germany
The farmhouse - the Kremlin
Sugar Candy Mountain - Heaven
Things and Ideas
Animalism - Communism
Hoof and Horn - the hammer and sickle
Beasts of England - Communist ideology
Windmill - Stalin's Five-Year Plan
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