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Mollie is a vain and idle mare who cherishes the attention of humans. While the Rebellion is being planned, Mollie is more concerned with her ribbons, which Snowball calls symbols of their slavery. She also wonders if she will still be able to eat sugar after the Rebellion. Her frivolous concerns reflect a lack of class consciousness. After the Rebellion, Mollie is slow to carry her share of the work as she constantly comes up with excuses for why she is late to work, and why she is unable to work as much as the other animals. Her sense of self-importance is further highlighted when she only learns enough of the alphabet to spell her own name.

Mollie’s idleness shows how people are willing to sacrifice freedom for comfort. When Mollie is confronted by Clover, who has seen Mollie interacting with humans, Mollie lies, but Clover quickly discovers that Mollie has been hiding sugar and ribbons. Mollie’s actions reveal cracks in Animal Farm’s system, as well as her attachment to life before the Rebellion. Therefore, it is no surprise that, like the faction of Russians who left the Soviet Union several years after the revolution, Mollie also leaves Animal Farm to pursue her own selfish and opportunistic desires.

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