In this excerpt there is a situational irony that leaves every animal confused and speechless. It seems ironic that squealer so happened to be at the side of the barn with the seven commandments, a ladder (now broken), and a bucket of paint and a paint brush. Due to the situation unfolding in front of the animals they where almost all in shock and only Benjamin could process what had just happened yet didn't say anything. Orwell's use of irony also helps foreshadows the fact that the commandments are starting to change over the course of Napoleons rule over the farm.
