Chapter 9

Despite a split hoof, Boxer refuses rest and works to see the windmill underway before his planned retirement. Talk of pensions circulates, but winter deepens shortages. Squealer reframes ration cuts as “readjustments,” citing inflated figures. Meanwhile, pigs and dogs keep full rations as the others labor cold and hungry.

The pigs entrench privilege: Napoleon’s piebald piglets are schooled apart; animals must yield the path to pigs; green tail ribbons become a Sunday distinction. Barley is reserved for pigs and brewed into daily beer, with extra for Napoleon. To mask hardship, Napoleon orders weekly Spontaneous Demonstrations with songs, speeches, and statistics that reassure the animals of their supposed freedom.

In April, Animal Farm is declared a Republic, and Napoleon is unanimously elected President. Newly “discovered” documents further smear Snowball as Jones’s ally at the Battle of the Cowshed. Moses the raven returns, preaching Sugarcandy Mountain; the pigs deride him yet tolerate him with a beer allowance.

After healing, Boxer works harder but visibly weakens. One evening he collapses, admitting a lung injury and hoping for retirement. Squealer announces plans to send Boxer to a Willingdon hospital. Days later, a van arrives; Benjamin reads its side—“Horse Slaughterer”—and the animals chase it in horror. Boxer struggles inside but lacks the strength to break free and is taken away.

Squealer later reports Boxer died in hospital after exemplary care, dismissing the knacker’s van as a reused vehicle with unpainted signage. The animals, relieved by the official story, mourn. Napoleon praises Boxer’s maxims, urges all to adopt them, and soon the pigs hold a memorial banquet. A delivery precedes a night of carousing, revealing the pigs have obtained another case of whisky.