Baba,
I think Orwell had only us in mind when he wrote this.
Malanding
Baba Galleh Jallow wrote:
> Animal Farm Reloaded (Part one)
>
> By Baba Galleh Jallow
>
> As the overthrow of Farmer Jones and his human companions drifted
> further into the past, the ‘lower animals’ on Animal Farm grew more
> and more restive. Some grew very angry at what they saw as Napoleon’s
> treasonable and vicious treachery and backsliding on his lofty
> promises. In spite of all the assurances that the long-snouted
> Squealer, Napoleon’s faithful crony, that the great leader had their
> best interests at heart, the lower animals just could not be convinced
> any longer and grew increasingly suspicious of the pigs’ motives. And
> for good reasons too.
>
> While Clover the horse, Muriel the goat and Minimus the poet were
> often carried away by Squealer’s honey-coated oratory, Benjamin the
> donkey, Moses the raven, and a great number of animals maintained a
> good deal of doubt in Napoleon the pig’s sincerity. Though he could
> not boast of such intelligence as the pigs possessed, Benjamin the
> donkey was sure that something had been going seriously wrong since
> Napoleon’s fierce dogs chased Snowball the pig, a former leading
> figure of his regime, out of Animal Farm accusing him of complicity
> with the ousted Farmer Jones at the battle of the Cowshed. Even Toady
> the frog agreed with Benjamin that Snowball was the architect and hero
> of that memorable battle against Farmer Jones and his bunch of human
> invaders. In spite of Napoleon’s claims to the contrary, Benjamin was
> sure that he heard Snowball cry attack! and saw the brave pig butt and
> bite Jones himself, sending him on his heels. That Napoleon should
> therefore insist that Snowball was a traitor just could not make sense
> to Benjamin, though for many years, he kept mute about what he
> thought. When he felt really pissed off at Napoleon’s treachery,
> Benjamin the donkey would turn his backside in the direction of
> Napoleon’s mansion, hold his breath, and let out a long and loud fart
> as an expression of his displeasure at the ungrateful and treacherous
> pig.
>
> It was not only Benjamin who grew increasingly restive and angry under
> the rule of the clever pigs of Animal Farm. Many other animals were
> getting increasingly worried and angry. Over the years, they had seen
> Napoleon become more and more like Farmer Jones in more and more
> respects. They had seen him grow more and more arrogant by the hour,
> more and more wealthy, and more and more fat and confident that he
> could do just anything and get away with it because he had fierce dogs
> guarding him and ready to execute anyone like they executed those
> innumerable cows, sheep, and hens who were accused of collaborating
> with Snowball. The lower animals were particularly pissed off that
> Napoleon had cultivated the nauseating habit of loudly proclaiming
> that he possessed supernatural powers and that he was actually some
> kind of divine being in pigskin. Napoleon not only made such dubious
> proclamations: he also insisted, upon pain of death and destruction
> that all the lower animals accept his words without doubt or question.
> In spite of their dullness of wit, Benjamin the donkey, Muriel the
> goat, Minimus the poet, and indeed all the lower animals had begun
> realizing that Napoleon the pig had fast become worse than Farmer
> Jones. Even the sheep who piped “four legs good, two legs better” when
> Napoleon decided to walk on two legs, were growing less enthusiastic
> about their song. Now when they sang it, they only slightly parted
> their lips and half-heartedly bleated . . . ur le goo--- wo leg mbe .
> . . with their eyes closed, and often dropped a few piles of dung as
> they sang as a show of defiance and resistance.
>
> Of course, Napoleon was not to be openly challenged by anyone on
> Animal Farm - sheep, goat, monkey, donkey or pig. He ensured that his
> gang of faithful dogs was well fed and kept as stupid as possible by
> criminalizing all thinking among their ranks. Those dogs that showed
> the slightest signs of displeasure at Napoleon’s rule or exhibiting
> any suspicious behavior were effectively terminated. So that the
> recent history of Animal Farm was sprinkled with a series of sudden
> and unexplained arrests, summary executions, disappearances, and
> remote-controlled treason trials of dogs formally considered loyal to
> Napoleon. Of course, these trials, where Napoleon took the liberty to
> order their procedure, were merely put up for show. No one was ever
> declared innocent at these trials. Every single dog or other animal
> brought before these tribunals were declared guilty as charged.
>
> To ensure that his plan to subdue and control all the animals worked
> perfectly, Napoleon appointed his most faithful crony Squealer the
> Dealer, Director of Animal Affairs. He also ordered his storekeepers
> to supply the best honey and grain to Kokoliko, his faithful black
> cockerel, so that his voice would become louder and clearer when he
> announced the numerous exploits of the gallant Napoleon and proclaimed
> the verity of his divinity on top of Napoleon’s miracle tree, the
> tallest on Animal Farm, every dawn, every noon, and every sunset. This
> tree was designated a miracle tree and sign of Napoleon’s divinity
> when it had three fruits stuck together. The Great God Yallah, it was
> proclaimed throughout the land, was demonstrating Napoleon’s
> near-divinity to the lower animals by causing a triplet fruit to
> sprout from the belly of that tree, even though it was not pregnant.
> All the other pigs at the farm were kept well fed and well clothed and
> some sows he honored by taking them on as his mistresses and
> concubines. He ensured that his clever dealings with Mr. Squinteyes of
> dubious fame filled the lower animals with awe at his mental prowess
> and made them see that he was indeed a superior kind of pig whose name
> was even mentioned in the holy books. To drive the message of his
> invincibility and mental prowess home, Napoleon ordered that the seven
> principles of Animalism be abolished and replaced with the bold
> caption: ALL ANIMALS ARE EQUAL, PIGS ARE MORE EQUAL THAN OTHER
> ANIMALS, NAPOLEON IS MORE EQUAL THAN EVERYONE ELSE IN THE WORLD!
>
> When Napoleon sold Boxer the great horse to the horse slaughterer, he
> totally lost the loyalty of more animals. Benjamin the donkey, Clover
> the horse, and Minimus the poet were particularly aggrieved.
> Squealer’s explanation that Boxer had been taken to a hospital in
> Willingdon Farm failed to convince the animals. And when news of
> Boxer’s death reached their tortured ears, their worst fears and
> suspicions were confirmed in no uncertain terms. Surely, Boxer did not
> deserve such cruel treatment from Napoleon whom he always insisted was
> always right. But because Napoleon’s fierce dogs menacingly growled
> and bared their sharp, bloodthirsty teeth when anyone asked stupid
> questions, the animals took Squealer’s explanation quietly but
> angrily. Boxer was never mentioned in public again, but the animals
> angrily whispered about him and cursed Napoleon whenever they were in
> their private spaces.
>
> Throughout that day, Benjamin the donkey ate more hay than ever before
> and deliberately picked up and swallowed every piece of rubbish he
> could find. As soon as darkness fell on Animal Farm, Benjamin crept
> quietly to a few feet away from an open window of Napoleon’s mansion,
> turned his backside to it, and let out a long, drawn, silent fart. As
> he walked away, he heard Napoleon loudly coughing, spluttering,
> cursing, and asking what the hell was wrong with everybody in that
> darned house! Benjamin the donkey, like a few other animals on the
> Farm, had discovered the power of the secret weapons of the weak, and
> they were going to use them generously against the tyrant Napoleon. No
> help from goats!
>
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