Explain Napoleon's paranoia as it is depicted in Animal Farm.

Once Napoleon had seized power on the farm by getting rid of Snowball, he becomes obsessed with protecting himself from what he believed would be a challenge to his position. Immediately after Snowball had been expelled from the farm, he proceeds to exercise his dominance by firstly, changing whatever good memory the animals might have had about Snowball. He goes about demonizing him by spreading lies about Snowball's involvement in the Battle of the Cowshed and suggesting that he had been in cahoots with Mr Jones from the outset.

The reason for Napoleon doing this is that he wants to win the animals' trust so that they can believe that Snowball's expulsion had been in their best interest. It does not take long for the gullible animals to believe whatever they are told by the manipulative Squealer. It reaches a point where every mishap on the farm is blamed on Snowball. Snowball becomes the scapegoat for the pigs' inability to provide for the other animals since they look only after themselves and their kind, living lives of privilege. 

It becomes easy for Napoleon to create fear, born from his paranoia, and thoroughly dominate the animals. He claims that Snowball had been secretly visiting the farm to perform mischief. He had, it is claimed, been responsible for the destruction of the windmill, when, in fact, it had been destroyed in a violent storm. Napoleon has now fabricated a reason to claim that there is an ongoing threat to the farm and to himself, and he seeks to find those who have secretly been helping Snowball.

This results in a terrible purge in which Napoleon calls all the animals together and starts off by executing four pigs who confessed that they had been secretly assisting Snowball. Soon other animals come forward to confess and they are all executed on the spot by Napoleon's fierce dogs. The animals are terrified. So begins Napoleon's tyranny.

To further ensure his security, Napoleon starts walking around the farm always accompanied by the nine dogs he had raised. Furthermore, after the purge, he also uses the dogs to suppress and literally wipe out any criticism anyone might have of his control.

Napoleon assumes the role of supreme leader and is now referred to as 'Our Leader, Comrade Napoleon.' He is praised for every good thing that happens on the farm, no matter how simple or unimportant. To further confuse the animals and keep them guessing, stories are spread about the threat from the farmers, first its Frederick then Pilkington, then vice versa. Finally a death sentence is declared against Frederick for he had cheated the farm out of timber by paying for it with fake money.

In the end, though, Napoleon's so-called paranoia is a cleverly created scheme to manipulate the animals and keep them guessing. Whenever he identifies a threat and erases it, he ensures the animals' loyalty. This guarantees their belief in him. Also, since the animals are unintelligent and forget easily, they lack the ability to question anything about their history and, therefore, accept what they are told. To further ensure the retention of power and privilege for himself and the other pigs, Napoleon also threatens violence and extreme punishment, even execution, through his dogs.