PlanetPapers.com RSS Feedhttps://www.planetpapers.com/ Lord of the Flies - How does Golding show mankind’s inner evil? ‘How does Golding show mankind’s inner evil? Do you agree with his assumption that man is basically evil? The creation of a world where nothing seems a utopia, where everything will go wrong isn’t a creation too hard to believe. This intended creation was the creation of our world. The human race in which we live in, is the world where delusions of grandeur are placed on those who conjure up ideas, which they truly believe in, that civilisation, is beyond doubt our true nature. But there are those who oppose these optimists and are degraded as pessimists. Pessimists have been assumed as cynical, unenthusiastic people with a depressive outlook upon life. But what hasn’t occurred to the optimists and idealists is that maybe, pessimists just accept the truth about humanity. The author of Lord of the Flies, Golding, believes that civilisation is merely a veneer, and if we were to let go of the self-control that which we harbour, gradually our innermost temperaments will start to show. The existence of civilisation allows man to remain innocent or ignorant about his true nature. Although man needs civilisation, it is important that he also be aware of his more primitive instincts. Only in this way we can reach true maturity. Golding implies that the loss of innocence has little to do with age but is related to a person's understanding of human nature. Painful though it may be, this loss of innocence by coming to terms with reality is necessary if humanity is to survive. William Golding’s claims that even the most suitable environmental conditions will not suffice to overcome man’s innate cruelty. He placed a group of highly educated British schoolboys, the oldest being 12 and the youngest 6, on an island. Almost immediately battles for supremacy takes place. Violence and death follow. Although the boys begin by electing a leader, Ralph, and call frequent meetings, using a conch shell as a symbol of authority, their attempts at recreating civilisation quickly disintegrate. Their story begins with the innocent sound of the shell and ends with the evil cry of the hunters. The boys try to organise their lives on the island, but they fail. Their circle of rituals and traditions is broken, and therefore they are unable to control the development of their society. They do not have anything to limit their evil natures, such as laws and rules. They try to 2006-03-05T01:37:52-05:00 http://75.150.148.189/free-essay/Lord-of-the-Flies-How-does-Golding-show-mankind’s-inner-evil-6446.aspx Beast Within 2005-05-01T19:38:59-04:00 http://75.150.148.189/free-essay/Beast-Within-6126.aspx Lord of the Flies Lord of the Flies April 16, 2005 What would happen if the world had no laws, no punishment, and no structure? William Golding answers this question by framing his views on the taunting subject of “civilization vs. savagery.” Lord of the Flies centers Golding’s thoughts by focusing on its serious minded characters, open-ended symbols, distinct settings, and masterful plot. This award-winning novel is an eccentric story of how human nature erupts into chaos and reveals the evil within. Lord of the Flies takes place on an uninhabited island in the middle of nowhere during a war in the early 1950’s. The war plays an important role in the novel because it is a time where societies fight for a title, as do the boys on the island. The island’s mountain is a crucial place in the novel because it borders the boundaries between good and bad and “civilization vs. savagery.” One side of the mountain maintains a cast of light, representing good, and the other side remains dark, representing evil. Golding makes the mountain the most sacred place in the story because it is where good contrasts evil, as it does in life within a respected community. The forest is a place of darkness and fear where all the hunting and killing occurs. It is here where both Simon and Piggy die, as well as all the hunted boar. Golding uses the forest to establish symbolic meaning connecting its evil surroundings to the lack of civilization, resulting in savagery. Golding also makes the forest the place where “the beast” lives to create a distinct image of fear and terror representing the evil in savagery. Ralph is the forward and charming protagonist in Lord of the Flies. He displays civilization and stability while being the chosen leader of the boys. However, as time on the island progresses Ralph’s devotion to morality starts to weaken. With the instinct of evil in the air, the boys are split into two groups. One group represents civilization (which is lead by Ralph and Piggy as a friendly side kick) and the other represents savagery (which is lead by Jack). Jack is the blood thirsty, barbaric leader of the hunters. His need to hunt and kill embraces his followers to express the power within. Jack soon realizes that he can use the boys’ fear of the beast to control them, making him the most dominant 2005-04-17T00:06:44-04:00 http://75.150.148.189/free-essay/Lord-of-the-Flies-6103.aspx Lord of the Flies 2005-04-17T00:03:00-04:00 http://75.150.148.189/free-essay/Lord-of-the-Flies-6102.aspx symbolism in lord of the flies 2005-03-14T03:13:48-04:00 http://75.150.148.189/free-essay/symbolism-in-lord-of-the-flies-6065.aspx Lord of the Flies shocks and disturbs the reader into an understanding of human nature. William Golding’s novel “Lord of the Flies” not only provides a profound insight into human nature but also does so in a way that is remarkable for its use of shock and horror. Golding presents aspects of human nature as themes in the book. It alerts us to our potential to descend from order to chaos, good to evil, civilization to savagery. They are explored through how innate evil can be brought out in certain situations, the dangers in not addressing our own fears and the battle between civilization and anarchy. Most importantly, Golding achieved the above using metaphorical and didactic writing techniques that unquestionably shocked his readers – and still shocks them today. “Lord of the Flies” is essentially an allegory. It reveals how people can descend into barbarism in an atmosphere of chaos. The main issues in the novel are that of the divide between civilization and savagery, the innate human evil, power and its consequences, and grouping. The theme of the breakdown of civilization toward savagery emphasizes the struggle between the ruling elements of society which include law, morality, culture and the chaotic elements of humanity’s savage instincts which include anarchy, bloodlust, amorality, selfishness and a desire for power. The book implies that civilization is a veneer, which can be easily pierced to reveal the brutality of human nature. Golding’s main representation of the conflict between civilization and savagery is through the characters in the novel. Ralph, the protagonist and Piggy are both symbols for morality and leadership, whilst the antagonist, Jack and his right hand man Roger are symbols for the desire for power, selfishness and amorality. Jack cannot at first bring himself to kill a pig because of “the enormity of the knife descending and cutting into living flesh; because of the unbearable blood”. This shows the boys’ innocence at the beginning of their experience. Another example of this is where Roger feels the urge to torment a “Littlun” but is held back by the social values which he used to follow “Roger gathered a handful of stones and began to throw them. Yet there was a space round Henry, perhaps six yards in diameter, into which he dare not throw. Here, invisible yet strong, was the taboo of the old life. Round the squatting child was the protection of parents and school and policemen and the law.” This happens earlier in the novel when the boys 2005-03-07T10:01:40-05:00 http://75.150.148.189/free-essay/Lord-of-the-Flies-shocks-and-disturbs-the-reader-into-an-understanding-of-human-nature_-6049.aspx Analysis, Themes and Issues - Lord of the Flies Themes and Issues Themes are the fundamental and often universal ideas explored in a literary work. Lord of the Flies is a thought provoking novel, the main theme being the fact that men are inherently bound to law/moral society and without the influence of morality and the basic consensus of right and wrong we would slowly regress to our primitive and savage instincts. This essay will analyse the novel giving evidence to support the theme as well as discuss issues that may arise from it. Mr. Golding writes to show us that within every human there is a primitive evil that will break loose if it is not curbed by the strong order of civilisation. This theme is promoted strongly throughout the book using both the actions and the personalities of Ralph and Jack and the other boys. Mr. Golding slowly unfolds a sequence of events that will gradually lead us to understand the meaning of his writing. In the novel, the main characters are Ralph and Jack. Ralph represents civilisation and order while Jack stands for savagery. However, the decline of Jack into the darker side of human nature is a gradual one and not instantaneous. In the beginning of the book we see that Jack is still bound by the rules and laws of his old world. He concedes to the election and even though unwilling he accepts Ralph as the leader. Jack was even enthusiastic when Ralph decided to introduce rules into the assemblies (page 44). Everything at this part of the book is so far contained within the law: the sense of the wrong and the forbidden is strong inside everyone including Jack. At first, Jack could not bring himself to kill the piglet entangled by the creepers because of “the enormity of the knife descending and cutting into living flesh; because of the unbearable blood”. Roger threw stones at Henry, but he threw to miss because of “the protection of parents and school and policemen and the law”. (Page 78) The restrictions of the cultivated world are still heavy upon them. With the lack of enforcement, the world of cultured rules soon fades into the distance. The ‘beastie’ takes its place and disaster strikes (Page 46-p60. The first death occurs. The littleun with the mark on his face disappears.) The ‘beastie’ can be interpreted as evil, but it is more accurately the sinister side that is 2004-06-22T13:25:50-04:00 http://75.150.148.189/free-essay/Analysis,-Themes-and-Issues-Lord-of-the-Flies-5710.aspx Themes in Lord of the Files When William Golding wrote The Lord of the Flies, we have no idea what he intended to write about. However, either through his ability to interweave many themes and concepts into one story, or because too many people have tried to analyze it, there are three that seem to be echoed throughout the book and supported at every turn. These are: a demonstration of Frederick Nietzsche’s ideas and philosophies, an allegory of the Christian stories and figures, and an allegory of the Cold War. The first one is a demonstration of Frederick Nietzsche’s philosophies and ideals. Nietzsche believed that humans did not have morals, that these “morals” are actually the instincts of the society that the human lives in. According to him, a person is what they are because of the society that they live in. Nietzsche believed that a person is born with instincts, and it is upon those instincts that society embeds its own morals. The second theme is an allegory of the Christian ideals and stories. There are several parts to this allegory. One is the symbol of Jesus Christ. In the book, Christ is represented by Simon. He is shown to have the littluns (the commoners) following him and having him do things for them. “Here the littluns who had run after him caught up with him… Simon found them the fruit they could not reach, pulling off the choicest from up in the foliage, passed them back down to the endless, stretching hands” (59). Just like here, the commoners flock to Christ because he cares more about them than does the rulers, or the ‘biguns’. The ‘biguns’, like the rulers, dislike Simon/Christ, for the simple reason that the littluns/commoners like him more than they. “They [Ralph, Piggy, Jack, Roger…] think you’re batty” (163). Another part of the allegory is relating the island to the Garden of Eden and the inhabitants going from innocent to full of knowledge. When the children arrive on the island, they are innocent, not having been influenced by society yet. As they progress, they form their own society, and thus are influenced by one. They gain knowledge about what is right and wrong, as do Adam and Eve. Yet another aspect of the allegory is the correlation between the Fallen Angels and 2004-04-18T20:20:07-04:00 http://75.150.148.189/free-essay/Themes-in-Lord-of-the-Files-5573.aspx Differences between Jack and Ralph represented through their actions as chief Differences between Jack and Ralph represented through their actions as chief Jack and Ralph are two exceedingly different characters. Jack is the id, the type of personality that acts on impulse in order to receive immediate gratification. Ralph is the ego, a decision maker. Jack is power hungry and harbors a deadly need to control all around him, but Ralph considers himself another one of the boys. Throughout The Lord of the Flies, the numerous ways Golding contrast Jack and Ralph are almost as numerous as the sum of dissimilarities. The differences between Jack and Ralph are represented through their actions and behavior as chief. First of all, positioning always creates a significant effect on situations and appearances. Ralph’s and Jack’s seats among the boys illustrate how each as an individual feels in an authoritative position among the boys. “Ralph sat on a fallen trunk... on his right were most of the choir; on his left the larger boys... before him small children” (32). Here Ralph is surrounded by the other boys on the island. His seat is the seat is among the other boys. Despite Ralph possessing power over the boys, Ralph places himself among the boys, symbolizing Ralph considers himself just another one of the boys, no better or no worse. However, Jack does not consider himself just another one of the boys. Quite the opposite, Jack considers himself better than the other boys. Both occurrences in which Jack’s seat is mentioned Jack is secluded, or, in other words, sitting where the other boys may be privileged to a full view of him. “... the tribe lay in a semicircle before him” (160) and “...the boys arranged themselves in rows on the grass before him” (150). Jack uses his seat and the places of the boys as reminders of his authority. Golding emphasizes Jack’s self claimed superiority by writing, “Jack rose from the log that was his throne..” (150). Ralph’s seat is never mentioned as a throne throughout the entire book but “a fallen trunk” (32). Yet another way the differences between Jack and Ralph are demonstrated is how they keep their power and authority. Ralph is good-hearted and gentle and uses words and the conch to get the boys attention. Often Ralph would remind the boys, “You voted me chief. Now do what I say” (81) in order to settle the boys down or convince the boys to 2004-04-08T01:16:35-04:00 http://75.150.148.189/free-essay/Differences-between-Jack-and-Ralph-represented-through-their-actions-as-chief-5564.aspx Lord of The Flies- Whats In A name? Today, many readers of literature adopt an impression that all fictional books are naught but a good fairytale in a land far, far away, once upon a time. The Lord of the Flies takes place during an unreal time period, and its plot develops on a fictional island secluded from civilization. However, some of its contents are far from being the exaggerated concoctions of William Golding. This book is not simply about the adventures that a group of boys go through, but it is full of wisdom and philosophy that may be imperceptible at first. I think with further analysis, many of the seemingly confusing, and purposeless areas of the book can be understood. One of these interesting, yet difficult-to-understand sections of the book is; why did William Golding title so specifically this little boy, Percival Wemys Madison? There was only two people who had a last name in this book. One was Jack Merridew, who was possibly one of the most influential and complex characters of the book, if giving him a full title recognized his importance, that I could understand. However, here was a boy who had little to do with most of the plot. He was only mentioned several times, and even when he was mentioned, he was portrayed as a whiny, annoying, and unwanted child. “As loud as percival”(87) had become quite a description for weeping little ones. Even the tiniest bit of problem could upset him greatly. However, when asked by Ralph for his name, he gave an answer that seemed as if it was repeated thousands of times before, “Percival Wemys Madison. The Vicarage, Harcourt St. Anthony, Hants, telelphone, telephone…“ (86). Not only did William Golding give him a last name but a middle name also, along with his former address. Many questions formed in my mind when I took the time to look into this passage. Mainly, why had the author choose to give Percival such a detailed profile? If it served no purpose, it could have easily been omitted, and like the rest of the children, Percival could have just as well served his role with only a first name. If William Golding had a greater plan for the name, what was it? How did it help develop the story, and what point did it help to bring across to the reader? William Golding’s reason 2004-03-27T18:59:41-04:00 http://75.150.148.189/free-essay/Lord-of-The-Flies-Whats-In-A-name-5541.aspx Lord of the Flies Book report Lord of the Flies Lord of the Flies is a book that everyone said is a classic and had really good writing. This book was written by William Golding, it is a work of fiction, and he used a group of boys stranded on a tropical island to illustrate the evil nature of mankind. William Golding tried to prove a point in that for society to be left alone, isolated, and without structure can grow on itself can cause major changes in human behavior. The setting of the book is that some boys are trapped on an island out in the middle of nowhere. They got stuck there by being shot down and everyone in the front part of the plane was killed. The actual time period is not known since it really doesn’t play that big of a part of the novel. Lord of the Flies dealt with changes that the boys underwent as they gradually changed to the freedom that the island offered. Three main characters depicted different effects on certain individuals under those circumstances. Jack Merridew began as the arrogant and self-righteous leader of a choir. Ralph started as a self-assured boy whose confidence in himself came from the acceptance of his peers. He had a fair nature as he was willing to listen to Piggy. Piggy was an educated boy who had grown up as an outcast. Due to his academic childhood, he was more mature than the others and retained his civilized behavior. The ordeals of the three boys on the island made them more aware of the evil inside themselves. However, the changes experienced by one boy differed from those endured by another. Lord of the flies used changes experienced by boys on an uninhabited island to show the evil nature of man. By using different characters the author was able to portray various types of people found in our society. Their true selves were revealed in the freedom from the laws and punishment of a world with adults. Under the power and regulations of their former society, Jack's inner evil was suppressed. But when the rules no longer existed, he was free to do what bad deeds he desired. Ralph had grown so used to the regularity of a civilized world that the changes they underwent were difficult for him to comprehend. He became confused and less capable of thinking clearly and independently. Although 2003-12-01T03:56:02-05:00 http://75.150.148.189/free-essay/Lord-of-the-Flies-Book-report-5299.aspx Society holds everyone together and without these conditions, our ideals, values and the basics of r Our Society today is defined as an interdependent organisation in a stable community. Civility in our society is factored into law and order. Law of persons are further factored into subjective law and the rights and duties of society. We distinguish between two classes of legal persons; human beings and juristic persons entitying beings upon the law. Society functions on value and morality systems. Value systems in a legal persons capacity of society is marriage, wealth, status, work. Our value systems indicate our worth in society. Our morality is our basic right and wrong. Our morals are practiced everyday whether at home or at work. You may not be aware of it at the time but around you evaluations of your character and personality are made. Ethics are furthered factored from morality into our conscience and discretion of doing what you think is right. One should always ask oneself whether what they are doing could be performed in public. If you can answer this than you are edificate in practicing right over wrong. In relation to Sir William Golding’s novel; Lord Of The Flies, his message relayed is without enforced control ie. Society, chaos is chosen over order. He saw brutality shown to each other when society doesn’t function together coherent as a unit. The conch found on the island was their (the boys) symbol of conformity. When deciding the rules, it was evident that the conch was respected and treasured for its valuable rarity. He who held the conch had the right to speak. Jack Meridew saw no meaning in the conch in other words was the defect in Society’s thinking. He had aggressive tendencies, which resulted in a sort of devil manifesto creation. “Ill get it next time…” when he stabbed the tree shows that he was determined to kill and adamant on killing the wild boar. He would have no regrets in his actions for the manifesto of savagery in primitive practices had made him complacent in his determination. When the conch was destroyed, total pandemonium had broken loose. Ralph solely had the foresight to try to keep conformity without the aid of Piggy and his sagacity of situations. But because of a defective society savagery turned on him and he was on the run trying to survive. “Roger stood standing with a spear sharpened at both ends…” sustains a point that society had reciprocated from good to evil where that spear 2002-09-08T14:00:00-04:00 http://75.150.148.189/free-essay/Society-holds-everyone-together-and-without-these-conditions,-our-ideals,-values-and-the-basics-of-r-4981.aspx How Jack develops between the chapters 1 and 4. Between the Chapters One and Four, Jack changes and developed quite extremely, and drastically. He goes from being a civilized choirboy, to a savage and bloodthirsty hunter. In this essay I will define the major points of change in Jack, and attempt to understand why this change occurred. In Chapter One, Jack is introduced as the leader of the choir, well more of a dictator than a leader, but in charge none the less “The group of cloaked choirboys began to scatter from close line. The tall boy shouted at them ‘Choir stand still!’” Right from the beginning, it is obvious that Jack considers himself a most important person. He makes a dramatic entrance to impress and overwhelm the boys “The boy himself came forward, vaulted onto the platform with his cloak flying”. He comes across as quite heartless to people he considers beneath him. He doesn’t even blink, when Simon faints “He’s always throwing a faint”. In Jack’s opinion, he is so incredibly grown up and mature, that his first name shouldn’t be used. First names are only for kids “ ‘Kids’ names’ said Merridew ‘Why should I be Jack? I’m Merridew’ ”. He is also proven to be extremely superficial. He doesn’t respect Piggy, because of his appearance “ ‘You’re talking too much’ said Jack Merridew ‘Shut up Fatty!’”. Jack starts out quite organized and rescue orientated “We’ve got to decide about being rescued”. He arrogantly decides that he should be chief “ ‘I ought to be chief’ said Jack with simple arrogance ‘because I’m a chapter chorister and head boy. I can sing C sharp’”. When Ralph is voted chief, the reader feels Jack’s vanity has been hit by the loss “The circle of boys broke into applause. Even the choir applauded; and the freckles on Jack’s face disappeared under a mortification”. However, he soon recovers when Ralph offers him control of the choir, as a peace offering. The first signs of Jack being aggressive, come through when Jack decides that out of everything the choir could do, he wants them to be hunters " ‘Jack’s in charge of the choir. They can be – what do you want them to be?’ ‘Hunters’ ”. Jack appreciates Ralph acknowledging him, and giving him power, and a friendship between the two, is born “Jack and Ralph smiled at each other with shy liking”. There is definitely however, no friendship developing 2002-08-29T14:00:00-04:00 http://75.150.148.189/free-essay/How-Jack-develops-between-the-chapters-1-and-4_-4969.aspx Mankind's Golden Boy Ralph, the athletic, charismatic protagonist of Lord of the Flies, represents the struggle for order and democracy in society. Golding describes Ralph as tall for his age and handsome, and he seems to preside over the other boys by a natural sense of authority. He is “old enough, twelve years and a few months, to have lost the prominent tummy of childhood”. He has fair hair and is thin. Golding writes: You could see now that he might make a boxer, as far as width and heaviness of shoulders went, but there was a mildness about his mouth and eyes that proclaimed no devil. p. 10-11 Described as being “big enough to be a link with the adult world of authority,” he is elected the leader of the boys at the beginning of the novel. While most of the other boys are concerned with playing, having fun, and avoiding work at the beginning of the story, Ralph sets about building huts and thinking of ways to maximize their chances of being rescued. Ralph's commitment to civilization and morality is very strong, and his primary wish is to be rescued and returned to the society of adults: “The fire is the most important thing on the island. How can we ever be rescued except by luck, if we don’t keep a fire going?” A simple statement by Ralph “brings light and happiness” to the assembly of boys: “We want to be rescued, and of course we shall be rescued.” For these reasons, Ralph's power and influence over the other boys are extremely secure at the beginning of the novel. Although Ralph lacks Piggy's clear intellect, Ralph is calm and rational, with sound judgment and a strong moral sensibility. Golding uses Ralph to represent the perfect human— someone who is good but not to such a degree that he is not vulnerable to normal human temptations. For much of the novel, Ralph is simply unable to understand why the other boys would give in to base instincts of lust for blood and barbarism. The sight of the hunters chanting and dancing is baffling and distasteful to him; but when Ralph hunts a boar for the first time, he experiences the exhilaration and thrill of violence: “The desire to squeeze and hurt was over-mastering.” Despite his susceptibility to the same instinctual influences that affect the other boys, Ralph remains the one character who remains most 2002-07-10T14:00:00-04:00 http://75.150.148.189/free-essay/Mankind-s-Golden-Boy-4881.aspx True human Nature - symbols The central theme in the novel Lord of The Flies, by William Golding, is that all mankind is inherently savage and the only aspect suppressing man’s primitive behavior is the moral influences of civilization. It is society that holds everyone together, and when rules, values, and consensus of right and wrong are absent, a moral surrounding no longer influences one’s actions. Thus, values, reason, and the basic understanding of morality are lost, and the true essence of human nature is revealed. The regression from a civilized society to savagery is portrayed through Golding’s characters and symbolized by the downfall of the conch, the extinguishing of the fire, and the concealing use of face paint. Through the symbol of the conch, the importance of stability, order, and civilization are established. When the boys first arrived on the island the conch was used to summon and unite the boys in order to form a civilization. The conch also serves as a regulator of democracy, “ We’ll have to have hands up, like at school… then I’ll give them the conch [to speak]” (Golding 31) said Ralph. This universal understanding that everyone would follow and respect the rules of the conch allowed every individual to speak his mind and to be a functioning member of society. However, as time progressed the mutual respect for authority and the power of the conch began to diminish. The assembly began to disrespect the conch’s possessor and the rules of their society began to falter. “As Piggy stood on the platform, the white conch gripped in his hands…” (141), the conch that was once vibrant in color and importance, was now faded and irrelevant. As the walls of civilized society crumbled, the boys gave into their animal desires and disregarded the only element of order apparent on the island. The symbol of order and civilization continued to lose its value as Jack mocked its importance. “The sound of the inexpertly blown conch interrupted them. As though he were serenading the rising sun, Jack went on blowing till the shelters were astir,” (125). This furthermore shows the lack of respect for rules and civilization. Finally, when “the conch exploded into a thousand white fragments and ceased to exist,” (193) it symbolized the end of moral civilization and authority. All of the strict rules, values, and morals of their previous lives were lost along with the destruction of the conch; 2002-06-08T14:00:00-04:00 http://75.150.148.189/free-essay/True-human-Nature-symbols-4823.aspx Irony In Lord of The Flies The novel Lord of the Flies by William Golding is about a group of boys who are stranded on a remote island. The novel charts the decline of civilization on the island, and how the boys go from civilized boys to wild savages. Throughout the novel there are many instances of ironic behavior and situations. Much of the irony used in the novel ties into the symbolism used by Golding. The symbolism of some objects and characters is directly related to the irony that ties into the theme of the novel. “Golding relies heavily on the use of irony to underscore the symbolic action” (Dick 26). In the beginning of the story Ralph finds a conch and blows into it so that the noise made attracts survivors. The sound is loud and reverberates across the whole island. All of the boys hear the conch and start to come out of the jungle to find the source of the sound and to join the meeting. Many children arrive at the meeting, and Ralph concludes that none are older than 12. How could so many young children have survived and all the adults on the plane die in the horrible crash onto the island? It seems odd that not one physically matured adult not be able to survive, and hoards of fragile children be able to live through such an awful crash. It is also ironic that these immature and innocent young boys can turn into such violent and evil savages by the end of the novel. Golding believes that every man is born evil and it is part of man’s nature to act this way. Also, it does not matter whether it is a young boy or and old man, all are “inherently prone to evil”(Hynes 9). According to Samuel Hynes: “Golding sets about to show us that the devil rises not out of pirates and cannibals and such alien creature, but out of the darkness of man’s heart” (Hynes 8). Jack is a very controlling and power hungry individual. Throughout the novel he picks on Piggy, wants all things done his way, and does not respect authority. For example, Jack shows his disrespect when Ralph gives him the assignment of tending the rescue fire. Jack ignores his orders because his only concern is hunting and he feels that it is more important than tending the fire. This is ironic because the smoke 2002-04-20T14:00:00-04:00 http://75.150.148.189/free-essay/Irony-In-Lord-of-The-Flies-4661.aspx Lord of the flies <H2>Question: “The Lord of the Flies” by William Golding might be described as a novel that explores ‘The darkness of man’s heart’. Discuss.</H2> The question I have chosen to do this essay on is to discuss the way the novel is described; it is described as exploring ‘the darkness of man’s heart’. The novel is set in the not too distant future where war is waging between nuclear powers in the world. Because of these circumstances a large number children have been evacuated from their homes but before they reach their destination their plane is shot down and the survivors land on a tropical almost paradise like island, unspoiled by man. This island is a microcosm representing the world. On the island the survivors all meet together and create a chief Ralph. Things soon go wrong due to members of the original group creating trouble and they decide to form their own tribe with a new chief Jack. I am going to look at how the events on the island have created an idea that the novel is exploring ‘the darkness of mans heart’. There are many areas within the novel which give evidence to support the view that the main theme is about “the darkness of mans heart.”. The first part of the novel is a very important part as it sets the scene of how these boys have such beautiful surrounding’s and how they are keen to think of ways to be rescued and just the pleasures of day to day life they enjoy. During the opening stages you can sense that the boys still have a strong memory of law and order and how to conduct themselves. One thing that shows this is when Roger an almost non existent character with little dialogue throws stones at a small child, not to hit him as he is circled with ‘the taboo of old life’ Another time when we are shown the way the children have been restricted in their basic instincts due to the fact that they have been subjected to society’s rigid rules, is when they go on their first hunting expedition. Jack could not bring himself to kill the pig because of “the enormity of the knife descending and cutting into living flesh; because of the unbearable blood”. All these games are all right to begin with but “the darkness of mans heart” ie the evil which many are 2002-03-04T13:00:00-05:00 http://75.150.148.189/free-essay/Lord-of-the-flies-4514.aspx Symbols: progression of regression To fully understand an author’s central theme, one must appreciate the symbols he uses and what the symbols represent. The symbols used by Nobel Prize winning author William Golding, in his novel Lord of the Flies, illustrates this need for comprehension. The characters in this novel, a group of school aged British boys, are stranded on a tropical utopia. Ralph, who is the chosen chief, tries to keep a sense of civilization alive with rules and responsibility; Piggy aids Ralph by being the voice of reason and knowledge. A split between the boys leads to Jack taking control and creating his immoral and reckless tribe. The boys’ regression from a civilized society to savagery is symbolized by the use of Piggy’s glasses, the fire and the importance of the conch. Firstly, the glasses, worn by Piggy represent intelligence and technology. The boys use “his specs-…as burning glasses” (Golding 41). They use their intuitiveness and teamwork to make the fire that would later aid in their rescue and are very concerned with starting the fire and keeping it going. But, in no time the state of the glasses begin to deteriorate because of a clash between Jack and Piggy when “Jack smacked Piggy’s head…and Piggy’s glasses flew off and tinkled on the rocks” (Golding 75). One side of Piggy’s glasses are broken; this shows the boys lack of compassion because they do not care if Piggy can see. Furthermore, when Jack and his tribe take control one night “they came, stealing…at night, in darkness, and stole…” (Golding 188). The boys have finally crossed the line, like thieves they stole Piggy’s glasses not caring that they blinded him. The glasses, depreciate in value throughout the novel. They go from being intact and representing good judgment, to being half-intact to their total devastation when they are stolen by Jack and his out of control tribe. Subsequently, the fire, in particular, the rescue, fire was of great importance to the boys in the beginning but towards the end it lost all value and was no longer kept as a main priority. In the beginning, the fire was only meant to be used as a rescue signal; the reason for this fire was to “help them to find us (the boys). If a ship comes near the island they may not notice us. So we must make smoke on top of the mountain” (Golding 37). 2002-03-02T13:00:00-05:00 http://75.150.148.189/free-essay/Symbols-progression-of-regression-4475.aspx Lord of the Flies - Compare and Contrast In the novel, Lord of the Flies, and the short story, “The Most Dangerous Game,” dealt with the savagery of humans. In the short story, it dealt with killing for entertainment purposes. The hunter, General Zaroff, liked a challenging prey in the hunt, but animals weren’t good enough, so he decided to use humans as his prey. In the novel they, Jack’s and Ralph’s tribe, started killing each other because there was tension between the two tribes. In the end, Ralph’s tribe had betrayed him, or had been killed. In both stories, there are many similarities and differences. One similarity is that both stories show how after killing animals, they are able to start killing humans without pain. On their first kill, they were probably very nervous. Now that they are professional hunters, it became nearly second-hand nature. This is an implied theme because the characters didn’t just say that this was one of the themes, they implied it with their actions and words. They first started killing small prey, but General Zaroff got tired and bored of their stupidity. He later started hunting humans because it was probably the hardest prey on this planet. Another similarity is that Jack had his tribe to help him kill and General Zaroff had Ivan and his hounds to help. This helped them ease the pain of murder because it transferred paint from them to their minions. This made murder much more feasible and easier. This also eased their consciousness. A major difference between the two stories was that Rainsford knew that with his wits, he had a chance of surviving. Ralph, on the other hand, didn’t have the confidence and wits Rainsford had for surviving. Rainsford was a professional game hunter and well versed in the tactics used to hunt game. He had a lot of experience, but Ralph had little or none. Ralph was not a hunter and didn’t have the mind of one, he was lucky and lived to see the day that the sailor came. This is an external conflict because it shows problems between the characters. In the short story, Rainsford is having a conflict with General Zaroff. In the novel, Ralph is having a conflict with Jack. Another difference between the two stories is that Jack killed others because they opposed his tribe. This was more of a defensive act because it kept his tribe together. That was done by 2002-02-21T13:00:00-05:00 http://75.150.148.189/free-essay/Lord-of-the-Flies-Compare-and-Contrast-4415.aspx Lord Of The Flies - RPR I got a grade 1+ for this paper so u can be sure it will get you a good grade. A book which I have read recently is “ Lord Of The Flies” by William Golding. In this R.P.R I’m will be explore how the gradual break up of the community is due to the hostile relationship between Ralph and Jack. As well as the afore mentioned topic I will also look at how the author’s characterisation and language attribute to the novel. Lord Of The Flies was an extremely enjoyable and mind-enriching book as it covered topics of psychology that exist in every person but would never normally be seen, as a result of the lack of these elements of psychology in everyday life William Golding displays them extremely accurately in novel. With an excellent structure and storyline it is easy to see why this book won the Nobel Prize for Literature. Lord Of The Flies takes place on a small island in the Pacific during the Second World War were a small group of boys have been abandoned after their plane crashes. Initially the boys relish this new found freedom as there are no adults and decide they have to chose a leader on the island so as to keep things in order. The boys adapt to the island very well learning how to make fire, build shelters, hunt and maintain discipline. However the initial glamour and sparkle of the island disappears as tensions about their isolation develop which ultimately break up the group. A new leader is chosen and forms a new community which is more able to deal with the hardships of the island and able to obtain total authority of the island. When a rescue finally occurs the children have lost touch with their civilised instincts and are now savages. Initially in the book when a community is formed it is as civilised as any proper community. The boys take a vote for a leader ,two boys who make an attempt to be the chief are Ralph and Jack. Jack being the leader of the group of choir- boys encourages the choir members to vote for him which is consequently done. When Ralph is elected to be chief Jack is obviously frustrated as shown in this quote: “Jack’s face disappeared under a blush of mortification,” Ralph proves to be an excellent Chief as he makes excellent decisions such as to 2001-08-25T14:00:00-04:00 http://75.150.148.189/free-essay/Lord-Of-The-Flies-RPR-3663.aspx Lord of the Flies Select one chapter from Lord of the Flies and assess its importance to the novel as a whole. ‘Lord of the Flies’ is about what happens to a group of schoolboys when they are abandoned on an island following a plane crash. Chapter eight ‘Gift for the Darkness’ has much significance in the novel, as it is here that Simon converses with ‘The Lord of the Flies’. Jack separates himself from Ralph’s group, showing that Jack has now been consumed by evil. The signal fire is moved and now there are two marked rival groups on the island, one belonging to Jack and the other Ralph. Chapter eight, ‘Gift for the Darkness’, has many themes, one of the most prominent being the Beast, which is the boys’ greatest fear. In chapter seven they had come across a dead parachutist and had believed it to be a beast. The beast represents the evil residing within everyone. The Beast is used as a scapegoat by the boys to avoid self-knowledge. Golding uses the boys’ daydreams to show their fears and desires. The Beast gives the boys’ fear something to focus on. Golding expresses various types of fears in the book and many are apparent in chapter eight. There is fear that all is not known concerning the Beast. “The beast had teeth… and big black eyes.” The boys did not actually see the Beast and are making this up. This only causes their fear to escalate except for Piggy’s. He is by far the most intellectual and skeptical of the boys. He knows that the adult world and books would not abide by the legend of the ‘beastie’. Just after the only kill in chapter eight, the boys’ gradual degeneration into savages is obvious by their actions: “Then Jack found the throat and the hot blood spouted over his hands…then Jack grabbed Maurice and rubbed the stuff over his cheeks.” This is almost a tribal ritual making a mask. The boys use masks to cover their identity and this allows them to kill. “He was safe from the shame or self-consciousness behind the mask…” This illustrates that the mask somehow gives the boys a sense of security. “Demoniac figures with faces of white and red and green rushed out howling…” From this quote it can be seen that the boys have totally lost their individuality and become like animals, almost indistinguishable from the other. Jack is also 2001-07-16T14:00:00-04:00 http://75.150.148.189/free-essay/Lord-of-the-Flies-3578.aspx Lord of The Flies Book Review Lord of the Flies dealt with changes that a group of British boys underwent as they gradually adapted to the isolated freedom from society. Three main characters showed different effects on certain individuals under those circumstances. Jack Merridew began as the arrogant and self-righteous leader of a choir. The freedom of the island allowed him to further develop the darker side of his personlity as the Chief of a savage tribe. Ralph started as a selfassured boy whose confidence in himself came from the acceptance of his friends. He had a fair nature as he was willing to listen to Piggy. He became increasingly dependent on Piggy's wisdom and became lost in the confusion around him. Towards the end of the story his rejection from their society of savage boys forced him to fend for himself. Piggy was an educated boy who had grown up as an outcast. Because of his academic childhood, he was more mature than the others and retained his civilized behaviour. But his experiences on the island gave him a more realistic understanding of the cruelty possessed by some people. The adventures of the three boys on the island made them more aware of the evil inside themselves and, in some cases, made the politeness disappear. However, the changes experienced by one boy differed from those endured by another. This is because of the physical and mental differences between them. Jack was first described with having an air of cruelty that made him naturally unlikeable. As leader of the choir and one of the bigger boys on the island, Jack's physical height and authority matched his arrogant personality. His desire to be Chief was clearly visible in his first appearance. When the idea of having a Chief was mentioned Jack spoke out immediately. He led his choir by administering much discipline resulting in forced obedience from the choir boys. . However, despite his unpleasant personality, his lack of courage and his conscience prevented him from killing the first pig they saw. Even at the meetings, Jack was able to contain himself under the leadership of Ralph. He had even suggested the implementation of rules to regulate themselves. This was a Jack who was proud to be British, and who was shaped and still bound by the laws of a civilized society(Britain) . The freedom offered to him by the island allowed Jack to express the darker sides 2001-06-08T14:00:00-04:00 http://75.150.148.189/free-essay/Lord-of-The-Flies-Book-Review-3468.aspx Civilisation and Savagery When the boys first arrived on the island they automatically seeked for some kind of law and order since there are not any grown-ups. They want to belong to a group, with someone in charge to lead them, and make them feel safe. After being chosen in a democratic election, Ralph becomes this leader. Ralph's society becomes a symbol of the democratic society, where everyone has their rights and an equal say. He assigned the choir as hunters and Jack the position of being the leader of them. The conch becomes an important symbol for authority and civilisation, anyone who holds it has the right to be heard. In Ralph's society everyone works for the benefit of the whole group. Building shelters, looking for food and keeping the fire alive are the three most important issues. After a period of time this society starts to brake up. With the fear of the 'beastie', the boys have become terrified of this 'creature' which lead up to the death of Simon and then Piggy. But there is a difference between these two deaths, as Simon's death was accidental and Piggy's death was deliberate. This shows the darkness inside man's heart, which is released when mankind becomes savages. Fear is what provokes savagery, as Roger lost control of his actions because of fear. With the destruction of the conch along with the death of Piggy, it also shows the destruction of authority and civilisation. Jack and the hunters show that mankind are inheritantly evil, if left alone to take care of themselves, fear will turn tem into the savage roots of the ancestors. This is shown near the end of the novel with the killing of piggy and the hunting of Ralph. Though at first Jack felt guilty for killing Simon, because he was still civilised, however as time goes on it turns into a thirst for blood, to kill anything that stands in his way to become the leader of the island. Ralph represents fairness and morality while Jack represents evil and the decay of civilisation. Piggy symbolizes the law and order of the world they left behind. He attempts to act accordingly to an absolute set of standards. Roger symbolizes man's natural tendency to cause harm to others, as he evolves into a terrorist, a savage, eager to throw rocks, roll boulder and throw spears at his fellow tribe members and act as 2001-04-29T14:00:00-04:00 http://75.150.148.189/free-essay/Civilisation-and-Savagery-3275.aspx Lord Of The Flies: Piggy, Ralph, Jack Lord Of The Flies is possibly one of the most complex novels of the twentieth century. This complexity and depth is evident when the characters are compared to the psychological teachings of Freud. The book shows examples of this psyche in the characters Jack, Piggy and Ralph and how they change during their time on the island. Towards the end of the eighth chapter it became very apparent that Piggy and Jack both had two very different ideas on how they would survive. Jack thinks that hunting and having fun is key, Jack is more worried with instant gratification and doesn’t worry about what will happen off the island he worries about having fun and living on the island. Piggy is only concerned with keeping the fire lit and getting off the island. Unlike Jack, Piggy believes more in thinking about the future, how they will be saved and how they can endure the time they are on the island. When the fire goes out Piggy cries out at Jack, who was in charge of the fire, “ You and your blood, Jack Merridew! You and your hunting! We might have gone home.” This shows the extent of Piggy’s will to be rescued. As a result of these major differences Jack decides to head down the beach and build a new tribe. He tells the others on the island that with his new clan “we hunt and feast and have fun…” (Chap. 8 p140) by announcing this he appeals to the childish more uncivilized collection of the kids. The boys recognized that Jack was a stronger and more self-sufficient chief so many change tribes to become savage and immoral. Several of the boys on the island were more worried with immediate satisfaction then in what was going to happen later. Piggy believes that without Jack that he can thrive. Piggy decides to build a new fire when Jack leaves this represents the return to civilization as well as signifying optimism for a rescue. In this novel the Freudians concepts of the psyche can be applied to the characters of Piggy Ralph and Jack. The Id, Ego, and Super-Ego are the components of Freudian Psychology. Jack fits into the concept of the Id as it overpowers the Ego and Super Ego. The Id in Jack is seen in his aggressive behaviors, his main goal on the island is to “Kill the pig! Cut her 2001-04-23T14:00:00-04:00 http://75.150.148.189/free-essay/Lord-Of-The-Flies-Piggy,-Ralph,-Jack-3249.aspx The Beast Within Lord of the Flies, awarded the Nobel Prize for literature is considered a modern classic. What makes this novel so interesting and realistic is the fact that it parallels with the real world. The point that Golding was trying to make was that evil is inside all of us. He used this novel to express to the readers his thoughts on the matter, which was that to defeat the evil inside yourself, you have to admit that it is there. Simon managed to face the beast inside him. But unfortunately, since the other boys still believed that the beast was a living, breathing creature, it resulted in the death of Simon. When comparing the characters in the book to real people, it is not hard to see the similarities. Simon was the first and only one to realise the real beast on the Island. He could be compared to someone like a priest or a good samaraton – someone who tries his best to convince everyone of what’s right. The beast was harmless and horrible; and the news must reach the others as soon as possible. Page 162 Jack is more like someone from a cult of some description. He quite easily convinces everyone on the Island that there is a big horrible beast roaming around the place, which is ready to attack and kill at anytime. Jack got all the boys on his side by using scare tactics. Ralph, in some ways, parallels a school teacher. He always tries to do what is in the best interest of the community, but sometimes is over powered by the majority and gives in. In over words, he does his best to keep order and peace, but of course can’t all the time because of disagreements, stubbornness and rebellion. It is hard to find a perfect match for Piggy. He is full of sensible, bright ideas, but because he is fat, a nerd and wears glasses, no one will listen to him except for Ralph. He was also kind of irritating. For example, he followed the rules too much. If something wasn’t done the way he knew was right, he would get all irate. Then, of course, when it went wrong, Piggy had no hesitation in telling people that he could’ve done it better. When the twins first discovered the dead airman on the top of the mountain, they assumed it was a beast and ran to tell the 2001-04-06T14:00:00-04:00 http://75.150.148.189/free-essay/The-Beast-Within-3151.aspx Lord of the Flies - A character study of Ralph This essay is a character study of Ralph, who is one of the main characters in William Golding’s ‘Lord of the Flies’. I have chosen to analyse Ralph’s character, as it is the character with which I feel that I can relate most closely. Ralph is probably the novel’s main character. This essay will include my identification of the major aspects of Ralph’s character and how he symbolises different themes, which are portrayed in the novel. I will cover in this what Ralph contributes to the plot of the novel, a description of Ralph’s appearance, his dreams, his attitude to being stranded on the island, how he relates to the other boys and how he organises the boys into becoming a self-dependent society. Ralph’s character plays a major part in the plot of ‘Lord of the Flies’. Ralph is the first character we meet in the novel and at first he seems to be very relaxed about the situation of being in unknown territory. The plot begins opens when Ralph and another boy, Piggy, discover each other and eventually decide through Piggy’s constant persistence to blow through a conch shell to see if there are any other people around. It turns out that there are many other boys stranded on the island and they begin to form a small community, which is controlled by Ralph who becomes the leader. Throughout the novel Ralph tries to keep the boys in order and to preserve a civilised society by showing constant faith that if they work together they will be rescued. He does this by encouraging them to keep a fire burning, which represents that faith, and to organise themselves into a unit equipped to handle the unpredictable situation. However, Ralph finds this increasingly difficult as the story progresses. Ralph begins to long and daydream of his civilised and normal past. Gradually, he becomes confused and began to lose clarity in his thoughts and speeches. "Ralph was puzzled by the shutter that flickered in his brain. There was something he wanted to say; then the shutter had come down." (p. 156) Suspicion arises that there may be a beast on the island and Jack the main choir boy, who is Ralph’s chief rival for leadership, forms a tribe and begins to encourage the other boys to ignore Ralph’s rule. Gradually many of the boys turn into savages and treat the island like their 2001-03-17T13:00:00-04:00 http://75.150.148.189/free-essay/Lord-of-the-Flies-A-character-study-of-Ralph-3058.aspx Lord of the Flies - Irony William Golding, the author of Lord of the Flies, used irony to tell his story of a group of young British boys stranded on a deserted island. The readers can clearly spot the irony in the dialogue and Ralph, one of the main character, is also aware of the irony in his situation. The irony in the novel forces the readers to step aside and think about the hidden meanings the author is trying to express. The first example of irony occurred in chapter two. Jack says to the group of young, impressionable boys that "We’ve got to have rules and obey them. After all, we’re not savages."(Golding 32)However, in the following chapters Jack is the leader of the tribe and encourages the boys to forget civilization and act upon their primitive instincts. They ignore the laws that they all have agreed to follow while on the island and commit heinous crimes against humanity, such as torture against both humans and animals, and murder. They no longer act like English schoolboys who are the best at everything, but like savages. Relatively early on in the novel Ralph comes to terms with his situation. He realizes that much of one’s life is spent just keeping out of danger and staying alive. After understanding the complex, yet realistic, view of life he remembers his first impression of the island and how he thought they would have fun on the island, like living in one of his books. Now he realized what life on the island would really be like. There is irony in Piggy’ s name. The boys hunt, kill and eat pigs on the island. Not only do they kill the pigs, they enjoy it tremendously. Piggy’ s name suggests that he will be a victim of the beast. Not the beast the boys on the island fear, but the beast within each of them. The author is saying through Piggy that because they kill and eat the pigs they become the beast. Ralph prays to the adult world to send them something grownup, a sign or something. His prayer is answered by a dead parachuter, a casualty of war from the fighting going on in civilized society. The dead man is powerless to help the boys. He actually causes more problems. He is mistaken for the beast and causes more fear in the boys and drives them closer to becoming savages. Piggy often says that 2001-03-12T13:00:00-04:00 http://75.150.148.189/free-essay/Lord-of-the-Flies-Irony-3024.aspx Lord of the Flies - Changes of Freedom William Golding the author of the book Lord of the Flies used a group of boys on an isolated tropical island to illustrate problems in the nature of mankind. The group of British school boys that become stranded on the island had to deal with changes that all the boys underwent as they gradually adapted to the isolated freedom from society as they knew it. Three of the boys that had to adapt to the island were Ralph, Piggy, and Jack and each of the boys had different effects on themselves under those circumstances. Piggy was a very educated boy who was mature than the other boys because of his academic childhood. He grew up as an outcast and all the things that happened to him, as a child made him more aware of the cruelty people possessed in the world. As chief of the savage tribe Jack was very arrogant and self-righteous. The freedom of the island made him develop the darker side of his personality even more than it already was. The last boy was Ralph who was very dependent on Piggy’s wisdom. Towards the end of the book Ralph is rejected from the society of the boys on the island and had to fend for himself. The events on the island made the boys more aware of the evils inside themselves and others even though the experience differed from boy to boy. Piggy was the educated boy who was rejected by the other boys because he was overweight. His academic background and his isolation from the savage boys made him able to remain mostly unchanged from his primitive experiences on the island. His unattractive attributes separated him from the other boys on the island. Piggy was not welcomed by the other boys on the island, on their first exploratory trip of the island. “We don’t want you,”(Golding 24) Jack said to Piggy before the boys left on the trip to explore the island. Learning from the actions of others Piggy was like the observer on the island. His status in their society allowed him to look at the boys from an outsider’s perspective. He learned of the hatred being brought out of the boys without having to experience the thirst for blood that Ralph was directly exposed to. The other boys did not easily intimidate Piggy, especially not Jack. He also did not lack the self-confidence to 2001-01-08T13:00:00-05:00 http://75.150.148.189/free-essay/Lord-of-the-Flies-Changes-of-Freedom-2740.aspx Freudian Division of Mind Applied to Characters of Lord of the Flies “Freud described the Ego as being like a rider on a horse (the Id), trying to hold the horse in check. It mediates between the Id and the outside world, in the sense of being aware both of the Id's energies and of what the outside world will allow. The Super Ego is a sort of conscience, the place where injunctions to behave properly, learned or inherited from people like parents, teachers and priests, reside. Freud says the person is the focal point of a struggle between our desires (Id), what is realistic (Ego), and the views of others (Super Ego).” David B. Stevenson of Brown University is responsible for this quote that gives a simplistic idea of the Freudian Division of the Human Mind. The description is fairly self-explanatory, but a better understanding of the three concepts can be made by thinking of Satan as the Id, Jesus as the Super Ego, and humans as the ego, caught between the two forces. In William Golding’s novel, Lord of the Flies, these Freudian concepts can be applied to the characters of Jack, Piggy, Simon, and Ralph. Jack fits into the concept of the Id overpowering the Ego and Super Ego, as is seen in his violent urges and carrying out of killing things and the negative steps he takes in getting there. Piggy and Simon fit into the concept of the Super Ego, in the sense that Piggy is logical and proper in his actions, and Simon cares about other people and is empathetic and good-willed in his ways. Ralph fits into the concept of the Ego, as he is caught between the Super Ego (Piggy and Simon) and the Id (Jack). Ralph knows what is right and what is wrong, but at times he can be mean or not feel sorry for people. An in-depth analysis of how each character exemplifies each Freudian division is well deserved. To begin with, the Id is what provides the most primal urges and instinctual drives that want to fulfill desires, even if those desires are not allowed or are looked down upon by society. Jack well embodies the Id, as his main goal on the island is to “Kill the pig! Cut her throat! Bash her in” (page 75)! This is obviously very violent and primal, not too useful, and is meant as a source of joy or pleasure. It is bad enough 2001-01-05T13:00:00-05:00 http://75.150.148.189/free-essay/Freudian-Division-of-Mind-Applied-to-Characters-of-Lord-of-the-Flies-2735.aspx Lord Of The Flies The classic novel Lord of the Flies by William Golding is an exciting adventure deep into the nether regions of the mind. The part of the brain that is suppressed by the mundane tasks of modern society. It is a struggle between Ralph and Jack, the boys and the Beast, good and evil. The story takes a look at what would happen if a group of British school boys were to become stranded on an island. At first the boys have good intentions, keep a fire going so that a passing ship can see the smoke and rescue them, however because of the inherent evil of the many the good intentions of the few are quickly passed over for more exciting things. The killing of a pig slowly begins to take over the boys life, and they begin to go about this in a ritualistic way, dancing around the dead animal and chanting. As this thirst for blood begins to spread the group is split into the "rational (the fire-watchers) pitted against the irrational (the hunters) (Dick 121)." The fear of a mythological "beast" is perpetuated by the younger members of the groups and they are forced to do something about it. During one of the hunters' celebrations around the kill of an animal a fire-watcher stumbles in to try and disband the idea of the monster. Caught of in the rabid frenzy of the dance, this fire-watcher suddenly becomes the monster and is brutally slaughtered by the other members of the group. The climax of the novel is when the hunters are confronted by the fire-watchers. The hunters had stole Piggy's (one of the fire-watchers) glasses so that they may have a means of making a cooking fire. One of the more vicious hunters roles a boulder off of a cliff, crushing Piggy, and causing the death of yet another rational being. The story concludes with the hunters hunting Ralph (the head and last of the fire-watchers). After lighting half of the island on fire in an attempt to smoke Ralph from his hiding place, they chase him on to the beach only to find a ships captain and crew waiting there to rescue them, because he saw the smoke. The novel is packed full of symbolism and irony. Golding also communicates his message quite well. "The title refers to Beelzebub, most stinking and depraved of all the devils: it is 2000-12-18T13:00:00-05:00 http://75.150.148.189/free-essay/Lord-Of-The-Flies-2703.aspx Shattered Psyche: Freudian Characters in Lord of the Flies Sigmund Freud divided the human psyche into three parts: the ego, the superego and the id; balance between the three was deemed essential for mental health. Over the course of Lord of the Flies, Ralph, Piggy and Jack increasingly personify the attitudes, ideals and drives of the ego, superego and id, respectively. The interactions between the boys at the beginning of the novel are different from those of the middle and end; the loss of balance between the boys is an important theme in the novel, as it explains the descent of the boys into savagery and reflects on modern society in general. The beginning of the book identifies the characters in their respective roles. Piggy, who finds little good with the conduct of the boys, is the superego or “the internalization of standards of morality and propriety” (Abrams 249-250). He helps to establish order by introducing the conch; he also scorns the boys for “acting like a crowd of kids” (Golding 42). Piggy’s nemesis comes in Jack, the large, rude leader of the choir. Jack is the id of the boys, incorporating “libidinal and other primal desires” (Abrams 249). He volunteers himself and his choir mates as hunters—a decidedly primal job. The balance of the two boys is Ralph, who both laughs “delightedly” (Golding 11) at the prospects of the wild island, and thinks quickly to establish a signal fire. Ralph is the ego, which “tries as best it can to negotiate the conflicts between the insatiable demands of the id [and] the impossibly stringent requirements of the superego” (Abrams 250). He is well suited to the job, as he is chief: this allows him to both control and listen to the wills of the id and superego. All goes well with the tribe of boys—their “psyche” of Ralph, Piggy and Jack is reasonably balanced—until Jack makes a fateful decision: he lets the fire go out when he abandons it to hunt; a ship passes by the island but, without a signal fire to alert it, does not rescue them. As the id, he has made a key move: he has bypassed the balancing effects of the ego and made a decision on his own, putting him closer to the primal, wild world he wishes to create. Jack’s actions distance him from Ralph; this creates an imbalance in the psyche of the boys: Ralph is forced to become increasingly 2000-12-02T13:00:00-05:00 http://75.150.148.189/free-essay/Shattered-Psyche-Freudian-Characters-in-Lord-of-the-Flies-2612.aspx Golding Puts Forth the Idea That Man is Inherently Evil The novel Lord of the Flies by William Golding used a group of British boys beached on a deserted island to illustrate the malicious nature in mankind. Lord of the Flies dealt with the changes the boys underwent as they gradually adapted to the secluded freedom from their society. William Golding’s basic philosophy that society was inherently evil could be espied in such instances as the death of Simon, the beast within the boys, and the way Ralph was fervently hunted. Through the story Simon acted as the Christ Figure. The death of Simon symbolized the loss of religious reasoning. As the boys killed Simon they had let out their savage urges and acted in a cannibalistic manor. Even after the death of Simon Jack and his tribe did not feel any penitence to what they had done, killing to them had become second nature.The circle became a horseshoe. A thing was crawling out of the forest. It came darkly, uncertainly. The shrill screaming that rose before the beast was like a pain. The beast stumbled into the horseshoe.“Kill the beast! Cut his throat! Spill his blood!” (Golding 141).In this quote a figure had crawled out of the forest and the ring had opened to let it inside. Mistaken as the beast by the Jack’s tribe, Simon was beaten to death. After the group disbanded for shelter from the storm. The storm subsided and the tides moved in and out, Simon’s body was washed to sea. Here because of the storm, the darkness and fear the boys became hysterical. They acted savagely not knowing what they were doing. The boys did not take a second look to what their actions were. They had let their malicious urges control them. He cam-disguised. He may come again even though we gave him the head of our kill to eat. So watch; and be careful (Golding 148). Here Jack is warning his tribe about the beast. Not caring or taking any notice to what had taken place with Simon. Jack or his tribe does not feel any remorse for the murder they had committed, whether they realized that or not. To Jack and his tribe what they had done was a pretentious accomplishment. A death could go by their eyes blindly. One example in the book referring to William Goldong’s view to society was the beast. The beast which lied within the boys, represented 2000-06-16T14:00:00-04:00 http://75.150.148.189/free-essay/Golding-Puts-Forth-the-Idea-That-Man-is-Inherently-Evil-2111.aspx Lord of the Flies: Flames of Determination Being a part of a group of children having to adapt after being trapped on a island with no surrounding civilization is an unimaginable situation. However, William Golding shows just how terrifying it can be in his novel, Lord Of The Flies, by his use of symbols to represent hardships. The main symbols, which best portrays characteristics are the fire and the conch; symbols leadership and confidence. Ralph feels the need to create a better place as he attempts to get everyone home. Although he is demanding, Ralph shows that he has good ideas and can enforce what he thinks should happen: "Shut up," said Ralph absently. He lifted the conch. "Seem to me we ought to have a chief to decide things," (Golding, 22)." His forcefulness gains respect and a confident response from the others. "Ralph smiled and held up the conch for silence," (Golding, 23)." The conch is mentioned and revered as one of the symbols of such power. As Ralph blows the conch, the others draw nearer, compelled to follow: "By the time Ralph had finished blowing the conch the platform was crowded," (Golding32). Piggy, however, was aware of the conch first, but Ralph was credited with its discovery and use. When it was first found, Ralph thought it was a stone in the water but Piggy saw it as the shell and explained what he knew about it: "A stone." "No. A shell." Suddenly Piggy was a-bubble with decorous excitement. "S'right. It's a shell! I seen one like that before. On someone's back wall. A conch he called it. The shell emits a deep harsh note boomed. Ralph was amazed at the sound. "Gosh!" (Golding, 17) The sheer importance of the discovery of the conch, in addition to its appealing sound, it symbolizes the unity of everyone. Ralph, again, shows his leadership abilities as he recognizes the use of the conch, "Conch?" "That's what this shell's called. I'll give the conch to the next person to speak. He can hold it when he's speaking," (Golding, 33). This designation shows the beginnings of organization and sharpening skills of the children. Another symbol of strength and command is the fire. Enforcing the rules proves to be a difficult task, but the children would rather play than keep the fire going. Ralph gives the idea for the fire, but it seems to be a formidable task: There's another thing. We can help 2000-06-08T14:00:00-04:00 http://75.150.148.189/free-essay/Lord-of-the-Flies-Flames-of-Determination-2082.aspx Lord Of The Flies Opinion Lord Of The Flies was a very pessimistic book because many people died and also that all of the kids humanity is now lost. An example showing why Lord Of The Flies is pessimistic is the fact that World War 3 is happening and all of the kids are stranded from their parents instead of being optimistic and being dropped off at another safer country far away from the war. Instead of letting the kids reach their destinations he has them shot down in what seems to be a wonderful place slowly turning into hell. The three deaths also show the evilness. One child burning to death in a wild fire , Simon being beaten to death by his fellow friends and Piggy who was crushed by a rock. 2000-05-24T14:00:00-04:00 http://75.150.148.189/free-essay/Lord-Of-The-Flies-Opinion-2011.aspx Lord of the Flies In his first novel, William Golding used a group of boys stranded on a tropical island to illustrate the malicious nature of mankind. Lord of the Flies dealt with changes that the boys underwent as they gradually adapted to the isolated freedom from society. Three main characters depicted different effects on certain individuals under those circumstances. Jack Merridew began as the arrogant and self-righteous leader of a choir. The freedom of the island allowed him to further develop the darker side of his personality as the Chief of a savage tribe. Ralph started as a self-assured boy whose confidence in himself came from the acceptance of his peers. He had a fair nature as he was willing to listen to Piggy. He became increasingly dependent on Piggy's wisdom and became lost in the confusion around him. Towards the end of the story his rejection from their society of savage boys forced him to fend for himself. Piggy was an educated boy who had grown up as an outcast. Due to his academic childhood, he was more mature than the others and retained his civilized behaviour. But his experiences on the island gave him a more realistic understanding of the cruelty possessed by some people. The ordeals of the three boys on the island made them more aware of the evil inside themselves and, in some cases, made the false politeness that had clothed them disappear. However, the changes experienced by one boy differed from those endured by another. This is attributable to the physical and mental differences between them. Jack was first described with having an air of cruelty that made him naturally unlikeable. As leader of the choir and one of the tallest boys on the island, Jack's physical height and authority matched his arrogant personality. His desire to be Chief was clearly evident in his first appearance. When the idea of having a Chief was mentioned Jack spoke out immediately. "I ought to be chief," said Jack with simple arrogance, "because I'm chapter chorister and head boy." He led his choir by administering much discipline resulting in forced obedience from the cloaked boys. His ill-nature was well expressed through his impoliteness in saying, "Shut up, Fatty." at Piggy (p. 23). However, despite his unpleasant personality, his lack of courage and his conscience prevented him from killing the first pig they encountered: "They knew very well why he hadn't: because 2000-05-07T14:00:00-04:00 http://75.150.148.189/free-essay/Lord-of-the-Flies-1934.aspx Lord of the Flies - Jack and Ralph "Compare and contrast the characters of Jack and Ralph and discuss the way that the rivalry between them develops in the course of the novel." By comparing and contrasting the characters of Jack and Ralph it allows the reader to fully understand their characters and how each develops throughout the novel. Once this has been achieved the reason the rivalry occurs becomes evident and the novel’s most important qualities and themes emerge from these two characters. It is then that we are able to see why Ralph and Jack’s friendship can never develop into anything but rivalry. Throughout the novel we see that Ralph and Jack share similar qualities, but there is a great difference in the way they use these attributes to benefit both themselves and others. Ralph uses his power to create a democracy, where each person has the right to voice their opinions and ideas. “I’ll give the conch to the next person to speak. He can hold it when he’s speaking...and he won’t be interrupted.” The conch becomes a symbol of the right of a speaker to a fair hearing. While Jack uses his authority to produce a fascist, hostile environment where he controls the doings of his tribe. “Tomorrow we shall hunt” and “He said we weren’t to let you in.” Whilst both characters have the chance to exercise their power, both do so in a disparate way, with Ralph aiming to benefit the group as a whole, and Jack himself profiting from his actions. Ralph and Jack begin the novel with similar beliefs, both wanting to implement rules. “I agree with Ralph. We’ve got to have rules and obey them.” Ralph concentrates on being rescued and Jack goes along with this taking on the responsibility that he and his choir will mind the fire. “We’ll be responsible for keeping the fire going-”, but while Ralph remains focused on being rescued, Jack’s new-found interest in hunting leads him to forget about rescue. “Jack had to think for a moment before he could remember what rescue was. ‘Rescue? Yes, of course! All the same, I’d like to catch a pig first-.” As the story evolves, so to do Ralph and Jack’s different opinions. The pressure on Ralph and Jack’s different ideas peak when Jack forgets about his responsibilities in order to hunt. When Ralph tells Jack a ship had passed, and Jack had let the fire go out, 2000-05-01T14:00:00-04:00 http://75.150.148.189/free-essay/Lord-of-the-Flies-Jack-and-Ralph-1896.aspx Lord of the Flies: Chapter 9-12 Notes 1. After Simon is killed, the next paragraph begins, "The clouds open and let the rain down like a waterfall…" When the boys kill Simon they not only kill him and spirituality, but what they perceive to be the beast. Because the beast was created by them and embodied all of their evils, one of its interpretations can be as mankind's sin. Simon is very similar to Jesus in this book. The Roman's ruled the world during Jesus' life, and now a similar bloodthirsty society rules the island during Simon's life. Both are killed by such a society, and both sacrifice themselves so that mankind's sin can be forgiven. When Simon dies, the rain washes away not only spirituality, but also the beast and all of the sins that accompany it. Golding writes that the water bounded from the mountaintop. Because the mountain top represented the peak of society, this could be interpreted to state that all of society carries sin, even the glorious moments of it, and that Simon's sacrifice was extended to the boys' entire stay on the island and the sin that was committed during that period of time. This is also similar to Jesus' sacrifice that was for all of mankind's sins, not just the sins of the Roman society that killed him. After Simon has been killed, the figures stagger away. By referring to the boys as figures, they are no longer individuals, but the nameless men who are the vehicle that society uses to carry out its evil deeds. It is no longer of relevance who did what because it was the entire society that killed Simon. This can be related to other societies, such as Nazi Germany. Today Hitler is credited with most of the responsibility for World War II. We do not like to blame German society for it because that would mean that we are also capable of this if we had to endure the circumstances of 1940's Germany. We cannot blame the German race for these problems, as they are a characteristic of humanity. We fought World War II against the forces of racism, but we ourselves treated the Japanese very poorly while all of this was going on. Although we too went through the depression, we did not have the conditions of the Treaty of Versailles against us. When any society has such horrible circumstances, they tend to look 2000-04-14T14:00:00-04:00 http://75.150.148.189/free-essay/Lord-of-the-Flies-Chapter-9-12-Notes-1845.aspx Simon and Ralph Comparison at Chapter 3 Golding portrays the different characters and those ideologies that accompany them with a strong contrast in writing style. To further understand this we must compare characters from his Nobel Prize winning novel, The Lord of the Flies. A good example of this is Jack who represents evil, described at the beginning of chapter three, and Simon who represents good and spirituality, described at the end of chapter three. Golding writes the story with the knowledge that characters who strongly dominate the plot at any given time of the book will become associated with the mood and imagery of their surroundings. When he writes about Jack he creates dark images, to represent evil. One of the ways that he does this is by placing Jack in a dark and unpleasant jungle. The jungle that Golding describes is also humid, and makes the reader feel uncomfortable. He also describes Jack as being similar to animals; "…Then dog-like on all fours…", "…flared nostrils", as to create an image of a character who is governed by instinct and savagery. The mention of dark sunburn and freckles splashes the image of red colour on Jack's character signifying rage and lack of control. Every move that Jack makes is described as quick and deceiving, and this prevents the reader from trusting or admiring Jack. When Golding writes about Simon's sunburn, he describes it as a deep tan, which does not have the same connotation as Jack's red sunburn. Every move that Simon makes is slow and delicate; "…He picked his way up the scar…", "…He walked with an accustomed tread…". Simon is found in a beautiful scene with fruit trees, flowers, and honey bees. Butterflies dance, expressing the good spirit always accompanying Simon. Golding has the little ones who are the helpless and weak members of society seek Simon for aide in reaching fruit that they themselves cannot reach. This is done intentionally to show Simon's compassion, and Golding would not place Jack in a similar scenario. Chapter three concludes with white flowers opening to symbolize peace and love, the aura surrounding Simon. It is nocoincidence that Simon and Jack are placed in such different circumstances and imagery. It is also no mistake that any similar movements and characteristics (sunburn) the two have, are described in such a way as to create differing connotations. Golding writes every sentence, places every image, and inserts every symbol with precision. He 2000-04-14T14:00:00-04:00 http://75.150.148.189/free-essay/Simon-and-Ralph-Comparison-at-Chapter-3-1846.aspx Lord of the Flies: Chapter 8 Notes 1. The conch being inexpertly blown and the fact that Piggy has only one lens shows that society has begun to function poorly. The reason for this decline in society is Jack. Jack broke Piggy's lens, and now Jack who has power, represented by the conch, does not know how to blow it properly. This tells us that Jack is an inept leader who misuses power and destroys knowledge. To become an expert at something, such as blowing a conch or leading a society takes time, so this is also significant because it shows that Jack has just recently come to power. Because the conch and Piggy's glasses are crippled, knowledge and power are crippled, but not yet fully eliminated. 2. When Simon says, " I think we ought to climb the mountain.", he means that society should conquer its fears and reclaim the island. When the boys first founded society, one of the first things that they did was to climb the mountain and attain knowledge of the island. It is important to note that knowledge was a priority for this early society. Climbing the mountain was also a task undertaken with great enthusiasm and the offering of hope for what their society could be. This was the peak of their civilization. Ever since then their society has been "declining" or going "downhill", so the mountain represents the "peak" or "height" of their civilization. As the boys' civilization fell apart, it became primitive and controlled increasingly by evil elements (Jack). Because of this the boys began to fear a beast. The beast was a symbol of this demise and an obstacle to the return of glory. I say that the beast is an obstacle because they now fear climbing the mountain, a mountain that symbolizes the peak of society. When Simon says that they should climb the mountain, he is also saying that the boys should abandon their primitive fears and return to previous glory. 3. The new fire is symbolic because it is Piggy's attempt to rebuild society. Piggy believes that without Jack (evil), he himself (knowledge and civility) can prosper. The first step that Piggy decides to take is the construction of a new fire. The fire represents the domination and manipulation of nature and therefore the return to civility. It is important to note that the fire is in a new location. The new fire represents a new 2000-04-14T14:00:00-04:00 http://75.150.148.189/free-essay/Lord-of-the-Flies-Chapter-8-Notes-1852.aspx Lord of the Flies: Chapter 4-7 Notes 1. When the fire goes out it symbolizes the loss of all remaining civility and the beginning of absolute savagery. The fire was the boys' only link to the past, as it was the one true technology they had. Fire symbolizes man's domination and manipulation of nature. As the fire goes out the boys are no longer people, but animals. It is also important to note that the fire was voluntarily allowed to die. This tells us that the boys voluntarily became savages, so this represents not only the loss of a civilized society, but also the betrayal of it. When the fire goes out, it also signifies the loss of hope. If the boys believed that they would be rescued, then they would not allow the fire to go out. Again, because of the fire being let out voluntarily it also represents the betrayal of hope. When the fire goes out, the boys no longer want to be a part of civilization or be rescued by it. 2. The beast from the air is a dead man, who is attached to a parachute, falling from the sky. The beast from water is a figment of their imagination. Once again the loss of civilization and the old ways are represented. The dead man in the parachute, falling slowly, from the old world and civilization, represents the steady decline of the old ways which have been implemented in the new society and therefore the distinction of being civilized itself and the death of it. The beast represents mankind's fear of an outside threat as well as the evil and wrong doing that mankind brings upon itself. Fear of an outside threat has been a characteristic that mankind has had ever since we walked on two legs. Ancient peoples saw demons, and now many people claim to see UFO's and aliens; it is quite plausible that a very primitive society would see a beast. As evil and fear are created from man, so is the beast. The beast, being a fictitious creation of man and one that appears in every society, becomes no longer a physical entity, but a fear rooted deep in the human psyche; perhaps a fear of ourselves. 3. The parachute symbolizes the forces of human behavior that attempt to hold the fabric of society intact. The parachute, however, fails to hold society afloat indefinitely. The parachute slowly loses to nature 2000-04-14T14:00:00-04:00 http://75.150.148.189/free-essay/Lord-of-the-Flies-Chapter-4-7-Notes-1853.aspx Lord of the Flies and The Withered Arm Comparison I have chosen “The Lord of the Flies” and “The Withered Arm” because they are similar even though they were written in different time periods. Lord of the Flies was written in the 20th century and the Withered arm was written in the 19th century. Lord of the flies by William Golding The title signifies Death, devil (Beelzebub). The Withered arm by Thomas Hardy The title signifies decay or decline. <b>Settings:</b> The withered arm is set in the 19th century on a farm. This is in Anglebury .The story starts of on Mr Lodges farm and finishes on the farm. Gertrude lodge lives in a mud built cottage. The lord of the flies is set on a fictitious remote island in the 20th century. The story starts of in the jungle. They later move onto the beaches. They then move to other locations on the island such as the fort and the mountain. <b>Differences and similarities between settings</b> Both of the settings are isolated. Lord of the Flies, is on an island so they cant get off but in the Withered Arm there is not much transport so wherever you went you would have to walk or get a horse. The settings are different because they are set in different periods. <b>Themes:</b> <b>Lord of the flies:</b> Good and evil, good and evil is a fairly large theme in the story. Early in the novel good is represented by the conch this is a symbol of decency and order. The two tribes Represent good and evil in the best way. However, there are other things such as the beast and the ship. The beast frightens them because they think it is an evil sign. The ship is a good sign but they do not manage to flag it down, because Jack had not looked after the fire. This springs an almost air of hatred between Ralph and Jack. Law and order, plays a big role in the story. It comes into play at the very beginning with the conch. Ralph and Piggy find the shell and Ralph blows it, this draws all the children onto the beech. The conch later becomes an element of law and order, because the boys are only aloud to talk during meetings if they have the conch. Fear, fear is probably the biggest theme in the story there is a big list of elements of fear such as the fear of the beast, the isolation 2000-03-21T13:00:00-04:00 http://75.150.148.189/free-essay/Lord-of-the-Flies-and-The-Withered-Arm-Comparison-1778.aspx Jack in the first five chapters At the start of the novel, there has been an atomic explosion, and the children have been evacuated in an aircraft with a detachable passenger tube. The aircraft has been attacked and released the tube while flying over tropical seas. The tube has crash landed in the jungle of a tropical island, and the plane has flown off in flames. This is the point when the novel starts. There are four main characters in the book – Ralph, Piggy, Jack and Simon. Simon is part of the choir, which is led by Jack, but Ralph and Piggy are not members of the choir, and are in no way related. There are no adults – "There aren’t any grown ups" (P.43) Ralph has found a "conch" (P.21), and has used it to call all the boys on the island together. This is where Jack is introduced into "Lord of the Flies" "Something dark was fumbling along" (P.26). This refers to the choir walking along the beach in the distance. This use of language shows us that the choir is dark, evil, and sinister, and immediately Golding tells us that this group will not be a "good" force on the island. The choir are a militaristic group – "marching approximately…with a hambone frill" (P.26). This shows us that their leader is in total control of the group. This leader is Jack – "The boy who controlled them…his cap badge was golden" (P.26) This shows the authority and status that Jack has over the choir. When the choir reach the platform, Jack shows off – "swaying in the fierce light…his cloak flying" (P.27). This is an attempt to impress the group, create a good impression, enough so he commands their respect as well as the choirs’, enough so that he can eventually control them as well as the choir. Jack does not introduce himself to everyone; he first words to the group are "Where’s the man with the trumpet?" (P.27). He just gives out demands, and expects the group to answer him. This is what he is used to. Jack is a direct contrast with Ralph – "peered down at Ralph…(the conch) did not seem to satisfy him" (P.27) This shows us that he believes no-one is as good a leader as him, and that the conch, which called the group together, is below him. This is "simple arrogance" (P.29) on the part of Jack. 2000-03-21T13:00:00-04:00 http://75.150.148.189/free-essay/Jack-in-the-first-five-chapters-1783.aspx Lord of the Flies from a Psychology Viewpoint In the book, “Lord of the Flies” by William Golding, there were many things that happened that relate well to what we have been doing in Psychology 181. There were several times when I found myself relating what we learned in class to the situation that the group of boys in the book found themselves in. The knowledge that I have learned has helped me understand and try to figure out why some of the characters acted the way they did. I found the whole thing very interesting. In this report I will demonstrate what I have found to be some of the most interesting points of psychology that were incorporated in “Lord of the Flies”. This will prove to be a difficult, but inspiring task. The first thing I noticed was we stereotype people as soon as we meet them. Another, interesting psychological finding that was in the book was that the boys had to fill the basic need. This relates to Maslow’s hierarchy of human needs. Finally, in doing this report I get to incorporate another interesting point of psychology. That is that I am doing a report from secondary source in perspective of the boys on the island. That is with the assumption that the book is a true story that happened to this group of kids. Stereotyping played a big part in the book. From the first setting, well the first page, there was stereotyping going on. This played a big part in the book as it does in our everyday lives. The story line of the book is that there is a plane full of young boys flying over an ocean. When the plane goes down hitting an island and some of the boys make it, none of the adults do. This leaves the boy on an island to survive while they wait to be rescued. In the opening act of the book the stereotyping begins. There is a kid (Ralph) who is walking on the island when he meets up with another kid (Johnny better known as Piggy). Piggy makes an assumption about Ralph before they hardly meet. Piggy puts trust in Ralph by telling him a nickname that he had in school and hated. Piggy did all these things before he knew Ralph based on a stereotype than he could trust Ralph. Piggy also told Ralph what to do in order to be the 2000-02-19T13:00:00-05:00 http://75.150.148.189/free-essay/Lord-of-the-Flies-from-a-Psychology-Viewpoint-1661.aspx Lord of the Flies - Symbolism In the book, Lord of the Flies, the author frequently uses symbolism. Symbolism-n 1: the art or practice of using symbols esp. by investing things with a symbolic meaning or by expressing the invisible or intangible by means of visible or sensuous representations. In other words, discussing or explaining a broader, more general topic by linking it symbolically with a specific event in a literary work. The superb use of symbolism in the book is one of the contributing factors to the profoundness of Lord of the Flies. This book is peppered with examples of symbolism, but the ones that stand out the most are: The breaking of Piggy’s spectacles, the representation of the littluns and Jack as the "people" and the government, and Simon’s conversation with the Lord of the Flies. The breaking of Piggy’s spectacles meant much more than the mere marring of a pair of glasses. ‘Ralph made a step forward and Jack smacked Piggy’s head. Piggy’s glasses flew off and tinkled on the rocks.’ "One side’s broken." This is somewhat of a turning point in the book. The breaking of Piggy’s spectacles symbolizes a mark at which rational influence decays as the story progresses. To better understand this, you must first know that Piggy himself is symbolized a grown-up figure, with intelligence and common sense. Looking back on the story, one can begin to realize how true this is. After Piggy’s glasses are broken, the fabric that holds the island society together begins to dissolve and everything goes awry. This discussion is perhaps the single most important part of the story, and may also be the most difficult part to understand. Another subtle, but important symbolization is the representation of the littluns as the "people", and Jack as the government. By using this symbolization, the author tries to express what he feels is wrong with modern government. This symbolization is shown in the book by a statement made by Jack. "What about the littluns?" "Sucks to the littluns!" "Somebody has to look after them" "Nobody has so far." By this, the author makes reference to the government (Jack), and how government officials disregard it’s "people" (littluns). The most deeply symbolic event in the book, is Simon’s discussion with the pig’s head, or the Lord of the Flies. "-and his gaze was held by that ancient, inescapable recognition. This statement is crucial to understanding the theme of Lord of the 1999-12-22T13:00:00-05:00 http://75.150.148.189/free-essay/Lord-of-the-Flies-Symbolism-1533.aspx Lord of the Flies <b>Character Analysis:</b> <b>Ralph:</b> main character- Ralph is the narrator of the story. <b>Jack:</b> Jack is Ralph main enemy in the story. He leads the hunters. <b>Piggy:</b> Piggy is the smart one of the group. <b>Simon:</b> He is my favorite character in the story. He is viewed as the Christ-figure and interprets the mysteries of the island. <b>Roger:</b> Roger is Jack’s “sidekick” and is a vicious murderer at heart. <b>Sam and Eric:</b> The twins stick close to Ralph until they are forced to join the hunters. Their main job is to watch the signal fire. <b>The littluns:</b> The littluns are basically the younger boys and ride the bandwagon. The two boys Ralph and Piggy meet each other in a thick jungle and discover that they crashed in an airplane and are stranded. They also learn that there are no adults present on the island and that none of the adults survived the crash. As they approach a beach, they find an enormous conch shell. Piggy gives the conch a little toot and summons the rest of the boys on the island to the beach. The boys assemble and elect Ralph as the leader. Ralph then assigns the Choir, led by Jack, to be the hunters. Then Jack, Ralph, and Simon set out to explore the island. Near the end of their journey, they encounter a wild pig. Jack tries to kill it, but is unsuccessful. When the explorers get back, a meeting is held. The explorers explain that the island is deserted but there is enough food to keep them alive. Jack and the hunters promise to supply meat. Ralph makes a rule that whoever is in possession of the conch shell is allowed to speak. Ralph proposes the idea of a signal fire to alert passing ships of their presence. All the boys agree and everybody rushes to the hilltop to start a fire. The fire sparks the gathered wood into a blaze. One of the boys is reported missing but none of the boys will admit to the likelihood of an accident. Everyone is hard at work the next day, either building huts or hunting. Soon the younger boys loose interest and go off to play. A meeting is called and the boys come up with some new ideas and talk about problems. Meanwhile jack wanders off and enjoys the peace and quiet. Soon the boys get into a rhythm of everyday life. In the morning is the best time 1999-11-25T13:00:00-05:00 http://75.150.148.189/free-essay/Lord-of-the-Flies-1308.aspx Lord of the Flies <b>Setting</b> The story takes place on an island somewhere in the ocean. The island is described by the author as tropical and boat shaped. Along the coast there are sandy beaches followed by a variety of vegetation and "creepers". There are also the orchards, which rise up to the treeless and rocky and rugged mountain ridge which extends out of the ocean. Judging from the predicament and dialogue in this story the date in which it takes place is probably the mid 1900's during World War II. The mood created in this story is very complex and rapidly changing. It changes from that of a scary, recessive mood to a light, and cheery one. The way in which the story is written the mood can change literally from chapter to chapter. In the beginning it starts out light and happy and as the novel progresses and the boys start to battle, it starts to become dark and savage. <b>Characters</b> Jack is red-headed and thin he is also introduced as the leader of the boys' choir. To his dismay he loses the election for leader and he becomes the head hunter and is also in charge of maintaining the signal fire. As the story progresses he and his hunters begin to "slack-off" and abandon their duties in caring for the fire. In the end Jack and his hunters leave Ralph and start their own tribe on the rocky side of the island. Ralph is a tall, blond and is one of the oldest boys on the island. In the beginning of the story he is pictured as the leader of the boys when he blows the conch shell to call the first assembly. During the course of the story he tries to maintain the structure of their civilization and is continually forced to compete with Jack for approval from the boys. Piggy is a fat, asthmatic boy with bad vision. Throughout the story his weaknesses are preyed upon by the other boys much like that of the "pigs" on the island, thus the name. But despite his appearance, Ralph begins to depend upon Piggy for intellectual and spiritual guidance. Do to his vision, Piggy had unusually thick glasses, which was a benefit to the others on the island, and aided in the lighting of the signal fire and in the roasting of the pigs. Simon was a skinny, silent boy with black hair. He was neither liked 1999-11-16T13:00:00-05:00 http://75.150.148.189/free-essay/Lord-of-the-Flies-1174.aspx Lord Of The Flies, Comparison of Ralph and Jack There are always people who, in a group, come out with better qualities as a leader than others. The strongest people however, become the greater influences, which the others decide to follow. However, sometimes the strongest person is not the best choice. Authors often show how humans select this stronger person, in order to give an understanding of the different powers that some people can posses over others. In William Golding's novel, Lord of the Flies Ralph though not the stronger person, demonstrates a better understanding of people which gives Ralph better leadership qualities than Jack. Ralph displays useful human qualities as a leader by working towards the betterment of the boys' society. He knows that in order to stay civilized the boys need stability and order. He creates rules and a simple form of government to achieve this order. Ralph understands that the boys, particularly Piggy, have to be given respect and must be treated as equals. This makes Ralph a better leader, as he is able to acknowledge that he was not superior to any of the other boys. Ralph's wisdom and ability to look to the future also make him a superior leader. Ralph has the sense to keep his focus on getting off the island. He insists on keeping the fire burning as a distress signal. Ralph's leadership provides peace and order to the island while Jack's leadership creates chaos. Under Jack's rule, the boys become uncivilized savages. They have no discipline. Ralph, however, keeps the boys under order through the meetings, which he himself calls. At these meetings a sense of order is instilled because the boys have to wait until they hold the conch to speak. When Ralph says, "I'll give the conch to the next person to speak. He can hold it when he's speaking." (Golding 36) by making such rules as these, and by giving the boys the stability of an authority figure, mainly himself, he enforces his role of leader. He wins the boys respect and confidence in his leadership abilities. Ralph uses his authority to try to improve the boys' society. By building shelters he demonstrates his knowledge of the boys' needs. When he says to Jack, "They talk and scream. The littluns. Even some of the others." (Golding 56) he is referring to why the boys need shelters; they are afraid. Jack fails to realize the boys need security, stability 1999-10-02T14:00:00-04:00 http://75.150.148.189/free-essay/Lord-Of-The-Flies,-Comparison-of-Ralph-and-Jack-1035.aspx Symbols in Lord of the Flies Imagine a bunch of young children's lives changed by being trapped on a island with no civilization around. William Golding shows how terrifying it can be in Lord Of The Flies, the novel that brings symbolism above all to the emotions of all that read it. The symbols that bring out the meaning the best are the leadership skills, the fire and the conch. First, are the leadership skills, as are shown in the book, Ralph has. Ralph in the novel has many ideas, leadership skills, and has the force he needs to create a better place and try to get them all home. There are three major quotes that prove that Ralph has what it takes. This first one shows he has good ideas and can enforce what he thinks should happen. "Shut up," said Ralph absently. He lifted the conch. "Seem to me we ought to have a chief to decide things(#22)." He also shows he can be a good chief and make them listen with a wave of a hand. "Ralph smiled and held up the conch for silence(#23)." Lastly, when Ralph blows the conch, as though a force is pulling them nearer, the children go to him. "By the time Ralph had finished blowing the conch the platform was crowded(#32)." Next, one of the bigger symbols is the fire. Enforcing the rules is one thing, but the children would rather play than keep the fire going. Ralph gives the idea for the fire, but can they keep it going? " There's another thing. We can help them to find us. If a ship comes near the island they might not notice us. We must make a fire(#38)." Jack has a great idea to use Piggy's glasses to light the fire." Jack pointed suddenly. "His specs-use them as burning glasses (#40)!" Jack has a obsession of hunting and it turns to the choir as well. They have the responsibility to keep the fire going, but they get side tracked, go hunting and the fire goes out. "There was a ship. Out there. You said you'd keep the fire going and you let it out!" He took a step towards Jack who turned and faced him. "They might have seen us. We might have gone home(#70)." As you can see a bunch of children are not ready for that kind of responsibility. Finally is the conch, it shows the 1999-09-15T14:00:00-04:00 http://75.150.148.189/free-essay/Symbols-in-Lord-of-the-Flies-990.aspx Chapter Summary <b>Chapter One: The Sound of a Shell.</b> The first chapter concentrates on describing character personalities. Ralph, Piggy, Jack and the rest of the choir are introduced after Ralph blows the conch. The group elects Ralph, 'the chief' and they begin to establish rules and boundaries. Ralph, Jack and Simon explore the island and begin plans for shelters from the weather. The trio find that the island is a fertile place. It has natural fruit, fresh water and wild pigs which could be hunted as a form of meat. Piggy is immediately ostracized from the group and Ralph also decides that a bonfire on the mountain should be lit permanently on the mountain as a constant smoke signal. <b>Chapter Two: Fire on the Mountain.</b> Ralph calls another meeting to discuss the fire on the mountain. Jack decides forming a hunting party to hunt pigs. A small boy claims to have seen a serpent-like beast, but the idea is quickly discarded after Ralph and Jack convince the group otherwise. The group hurriedly rushes to the mountain and collects wood for a fire, which breaks up the meeting. At first the boys have nothing to light the fire, until Jack robs Piggy of his glasses and uses them to magnify the sun's rays to heat the tinder-dry wood. The fire, although majestic, unfortunately only generates a tiny amount of smoke, so the boys stack green branches on to get more smoke. At the next meeting, Ralph decides that more rules should be introduced, including groups to be set out for specific tasks (e.g. Shelters, Fire, Hunting). Also, Piggy brings up a subject of concern. He reveals that one child is missing, and the group fear for his life. <b>Chapter Three: Huts on the Beach.</b> Ralph and Simon start to build shelters on their own and become angry because of the amount of kids who won't help. Ralph and Jack chat about each others views of their predicaments, and find that they are very different. Jack starts to become obsessed with hunting and killing pigs and loses sight of their goal- to be rescued. The younger children spend more and more time playing and less and less time helping. <b>Chapter Four: Painted Faces and Long Hair.</b> The hunters start painting themselves to stay camouflaged from their targets. Piggy suggests making a sundial to tell the time, but has no support. A ship sails past the island but doesn't notice the 1999-07-07T14:00:00-04:00 http://75.150.148.189/free-essay/Chapter-Summary-757.aspx Lord of the Flies The classic novel Lord of the Flies by William Golding is an exciting adventure deep into the nether regions of the mind. The part of the brain that is suppressed by the mundane tasks of modern society. It is a struggle between Ralph and Jack, the boys and the Beast, good and evil. The story takes a look at what would happen if a group of British school boys were to become stranded on an island. At first the boys have good intentions, keep a fire going so that a passing ship can see the smoke and rescue them, however because of the inherent evil of the many the good intentions of the few are quickly passed over for more exciting things. The killing of a pig slowly begins to take over the boys life, and they begin to go about this in a ritualistic way, dancing around the dead animal and chanting. As this thirst for blood begins to spread the group is split into the "rational (the fire-watchers) pitted against the irrational (the hunters) (Dick 121)." The fear of a mythological "beast" is perpetuated by the younger members of the groups and they are forced to do something about it. During one of the hunters' celebrations around the kill of an animal a fire-watcher stumbles in to try and disband the idea of the monster. Caught of in the rabid frenzy of the dance, this fire-watcher suddenly becomes the monster and is brutally slaughtered by the other members of the group. The climax of the novel is when the hunters are confronted by the fire-watchers. The hunters had stole Piggy's (one of the fire-watchers) glasses so that they may have a means of making a cooking fire. One of the more vicious hunters roles a boulder off of a cliff, crushing Piggy, and causing the death of yet another rational being. The story concludes with the hunters hunting Ralph (the head and last of the fire-watchers). After lighting half of the island on fire in an attempt to smoke Ralph from his hiding place, they chase him on to the beach only to find a ships captain and crew waiting there to rescue them, because he saw the smoke. The novel is packed full of symbolism and irony. Golding also communicates his message quite well. "The title refers to Beelzebub, most stinking and depraved of all the devils: it is 1999-07-02T14:00:00-04:00 http://75.150.148.189/free-essay/Lord-of-the-Flies-730.aspx Lord of The Flies Essay Questions <b>Essay Question Two</b> Lord of the Flies opens with the introduction of a small group of English boys that are marooned on an island. The plane was evacuating them from atomic war-ridden England. This is a suiting time for this novel to be written- it shows how savage even little boys can be, and that adults are no different, with their wars and cruelties. A small society is set up, but Jack starts his own rule, contrary to Ralph's leadership. The boys turn on each other, eventually killing Simon in the middle of a hunting dance, and smashing a boulder on Piggy. The choice of "young English lads" is perfect- if, perhaps, "foreign ruffians" were chosen, a stereotypical person might expect cruel and savage behavior. On the contrary, these boys were the "cream of the crop", and all it took was a little trouble on an island to turn them into killing machines. The time is one that the world is turning on each other, and the boys follow suit and turn on each other. Their society is an ironic model of the real world around them. Many countries today are turning on each other, with violent wars and cruelties. Lord of the Flies shows one that mankind must choose to stop cruelty or face destruction. Many people do not believe in violence or cruelty, unless they are in power. When humans strive for power, they get so power hungry that the power backfires. When one is in total control power, one often turns into a more savage person than that same person that is under a rule or with the absence of a ruler does. Humans were not meant to be ruled or to rule. To coexist is mankind's purpose, yet with no rule, there is often an absence of order, but with a human rule, there is always conflict in society. Society today has order, but violence is also prevalent. Near the end of the novel, many of the boys start a fire to smoke out Ralph, and that same fire gets bigger and bigger and eventually is what a ship sees and saves Ralph's life and rescues the boys. What at first was made to bring the death of Ralph later saved him. In human society, and even in the animal kingdom, violent acts may turn into a salvation. Many animals must kill one another to eat. During 1999-03-01T13:00:00-05:00 http://75.150.148.189/free-essay/Lord-of-The-Flies-Essay-Questions-595.aspx Artificial Restraints in Lord of the Flies <i>"GOLDING PUTS SO MANY ARTIFICIAL RESTRAINTS ON HIS STORY IN ORDER TO EMPHASISE HIS POINT, THAT THE WHOLE THING COMES OUT TOO NEATLY AND, IN FACT, REDUCES THE POWER OF HIS MESSAGE."</i> I think that, while the boys experience immense bad luck due to the author, the story still proves its point. It is still possible though, that the bad luck of the boys could have been experienced in real life. I think that without this bad luck, the point of the story wouldn't be as great, because without the restraint's Golding placed on the boys, life on the island would have been too easy for the boys. The major constraint that Golding puts on the boys is the personality clash between Jack and Ralph. From the beginning, when Ralph is elected leader, Jack hates Ralph, and towards the end of the book, the feeling becomes mutual. Without Jack and Ralph's problems, life would have been easy, and the 'darkness of man's heart' would not have been conveyed to the reader. Jack shows 'the darkness' and if he and Ralph had just been friends, there would never have been an opportunity for Jack to show this darkness which lurked beneath the surface. Golding also uses the dead pilot conveniently against the boys - the way in which he is caught in the trees just in the right position to be caught by the wind and look like the beast and the way the wind picks up after Simon has let him down from the trees and carries him out to sea, so that the other boys cannot see that it wasn't a beast. The author uses the boy's fear against them, and although this could possibly happen in the situation, Golding uses it as a weapon against them, their morale and their companionship. I think that the boys split up and go to Jack because of the fear - he can kill the beast, he can get them meat, and if they ever get upset, he can start a dance and all will be fine. The whole message of the story is about the 'darkness of man's heart', which exists in everyone. To emphasise this side of human nature, the author had to make a situation where it was possible to display these characteristics. It would have been impossible for Golding to get his point across without these constraints, and even if it 1999-01-22T13:00:00-05:00 http://75.150.148.189/free-essay/Artificial-Restraints-in-Lord-of-the-Flies-145.aspx Different Changes In Different Characters Of Lord Of The Flies In his first novel, William Golding used a group of boys stranded on a tropical island to illustrate the malicious nature of mankind. Lord of the Flies dealt with changes that the boys underwent as they gradually adapted to the isolated freedom from society. Three main characters depicted different effects on certain individuals under those circumstances. Jack Merridew began as the arrogant and self-righteous leader of a choir. The freedom of the island allowed him to further develop the darker side of his personality as the Chief of a savage tribe. Ralph started as a self-assured boy whose confidence in himself came from the acceptance of his peers. He had a fair nature as he was willing to listen to Piggy. He became increasingly dependent on Piggy's wisdom and became lost in the confusion around him. Towards the end of the story his rejection from their society of savage boys forced him to fend for himself. Piggy was an educated boy who had grown up as an outcast. Due to his academic childhood, he was more mature than the others and retained his civilized behaviour. But his experiences on the island gave him a more realistic understanding of the cruelty possessed by some people. The ordeals of the three boys on the island made them more aware of the evil inside themselves and in some cases, made the false politeness that had clothed them dissipate. However, the changes experienced by one boy differed from those endured by another. This is attributable to the physical and mental dissimilarities between them. Jack was first described with an ugly sense of cruelty that made him naturally unlikeable. As leader of the choir and one of the tallest boys on the island, Jack's physical height and authority matched his arrogant personality. His desire to be Chief was clearly evident in his first appearance. When the idea of having a Chief was mentioned Jack spoke out immediately. "I ought to be chief," said Jack with simple arrogance, "because I'm chapter chorister and head boy."  He led his choir by administering much discipline resulting in forced obedience from the cloaked boys. His ill-nature was well expressed through his impoliteness of saying, "Shut up, Fatty." at Piggy. (p. 23) However, despite his unpleasant personality, his lack of courage and his conscience prevented him from killing the first pig they encountered. "They knew very well why he hadn't: 1999-01-22T13:00:00-05:00 http://75.150.148.189/free-essay/Different-Changes-In-Different-Characters-Of-Lord-Of-The-Flies-146.aspx