How does Napoleon gain power over Animal Farm, and how does he maintain it?

gains power overfirst and foremost by
careful planning. As early as , when the other animals are busying themselves with the harvest
andis organizing committees, Napoleon quietly appropriates Jessie and Bluebell's nine puppies
and takes them to a loft where he keeps them in seclusion until they are grown. It may be that
if Napoleon's campaign "Vote for Napoleon and the full manger" had been successful, he
would not have used the dogs against Snowball in . Probably he would have found occasion to call
on them sooner or later in any case. The point is that he had a back-up plan in case Snowball
won the popular vote and that this plan was conceived a long time in advance.

Once Napoleon has gained power through planning and the use of force, he uses more
force and propaganda to maintain it. The dogs are always there, ready to treat any dissidents in
the same way as Snowball. The pattern is set immediately after Snowball's expulsion. When four
of the pigs spring to their feet to protest against Napoleon's new regime, the dogs growl and
the pigs promptly sit down. Then the sheep begin aof "Four legs good, two legs bad,"
which silences any further discussion. And, soon afterwards,is sent round to feed the party line
to all the animals on the farm. This combination of latent force and propaganda is repeated
throughout the remainder of the book.