How does Animal Farm illustrate the idea of slow change and ignorance to oppression?

The dynamic between freedom and oppression is observed throughout Animal Farm. The idea of freedom is glorified by Major and the other pigs, and is described as being able to make one’s own decisions and enjoy the fruits of one’s own labors. Under Jones, the animals are assured, they are living under oppression, being forced to work and not enjoy the fruits of their own labor.

Over the course of the novel, the animals lose their freedom by degrees. They are never again as free as they were between the departure of Jones and the penning of the Seven Commandments. As events unfold, the commandments are changed, Napoleon issues new laws, and the freedoms of the animals are taken away by degrees. Take for example the law that says working on Sunday afternoons is voluntary. But if animals choose not to work, their rations will be cut in half.

While the animals have been forbidden to do certain things, such as living in the farmhouse and sleeping on beds, the pigs nevertheless engage in those activities themselves. They need the quiet to learn, to study, and to plan for the future of Animal Farm, says Squealer to the other animals. Thus, in soft ways are the freedoms and powers of the animals done away with.