Lord of the Flies Essay

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Some people are aware of their own evil, and know how to control themselves, while others have no idea. Whether or not one knows about their own evil, they can always see it in others. The book Lord of the Flies by William Golding shows how humans all have their own evil. Golding uses the symbols of the final fire, Castle Rock and the painted faces to illustrate that underneath the thin layer of veneer of civilization, man is a beast.
Firstly, the final fire on the island represents how the ego drives the evil that is actually inside every human. The fire represents hope and destruction, hope for completing the task of killing Ralph, and to get rescued, destruction by damaging and burning down the island. The fire was made by Jack to burn down the island, and to lead Ralph out of the jungle, onto the beach. Jack used the final fire to drive Ralph out of the jungle, and to kill him because his ego drives his inner evil. This was selfish of him. Jack wanted to kill Ralph, and he did not care about the consequences. When the savages made their goal to kill Ralph, they were set on doing so. He did not think about the other kids, or their future on the island, he only thought about himself. Ralph knew how fast the fire was moving towards him, “The fire was a big one and the drum-roll that he had thought was left so far behind was nearer” (Golding 197). The fire was quickly growing across the island, getting closer to Ralph. Jack, Roger and the rest of the savages, set the island on fire so they could get Ralph out into the open, and kill him. The boys did not think about the little one’s safety or their future on the island, they were being controlled by their ego and they were selfish. Jack’s desires were focused on killing Ralph, ...

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...il to take over. He does not feel shame for his evil actions, like killing the pig or hurting other children. With his mask on, Jack is not self-conscious so he has power and feels like he can do anything. This is Jack’s evil taking over further. Painting their faces gives the boys a new identity for their evil, they use these mask and expose the beast inside themselves.
The symbols of the final fire, Castle Rock and the painted faces are all symbols of how underneath the thin veneer, all humans are beasts. The book Lord of the Flies by William Golding explains how much evil one has inside of their own innocent and civilized nature. If one looks at their day to day actions they would see the little moments that show their inner evil shining through. Sometimes people make comments or do actions for selfish reasons, which are all part of the evil inside all humans.

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