Cruelty In Lord Of The Flies

Cruelty can ruin people and destroy their morals and humanity. In the novel, Lord of the Flies, written by William Golding, British schoolboys begin to become savages after they have inhabited an island without adults, rules, or order. They regress from being proper boys into inhuman savages all because they don’t have any rules to keep them in order. The novel proves that everybody needs rules, order, and intelligence because it is easy to lose one’s humanity and become cruel and evil without those three things.

Rules and intelligence are necessities because without them, we become cruel, evil beings without morals because we know there won’t be consequences to our actions. Because the boys were living without adults for sometime, these

boys made their own rules. Kids aren’t allowed to make rules for a reason; they are usually selfish and care about their desires rather than what is logically and morally right. The lack of rules left them playing instead of getting things done. All the boys did was enjoy themselves instead of creating some rules and helping to keep the fire going, they had no one who could force them to do anything, so therefore that left them starved for meat.

It excited them when Jack brought them some meat that their savage desire came out and they began to chant. One tremendous act of cruelty was when the boys brutally killed Simon after mistaking him for the Beast after their pretend hunt and chanting about killing the Beast. They killed Simon, who ironically was trying to tell them that there is no Beast. It was an accident at first, but it seemed as if the boys kept going even when they found out it was Simon.. They resembled Beasts rather than humans in that moment: “There were no words, no movements, but the tearing of teeth and claws” (153). This quote truly showed us the dark nature of the boys as they clawed at one of their own, like an animal tearing its prey apart. The quote made it sound as if they were Beasts killing their prey rather than humans killing one of their own. They used their teeth, which is what a Beast would use to kill its victim. Ultimately, this brutal act of savagery resulted because of the lack of rules made by adults who have the understanding that there's a need for order to ensure everyone's safety. The lack of rules kept the boys free, in a way; they did whatever they wanted, but they were

out of control. The boys had no rules to keep them in order and because of that they killed Simon without thinking of the consequences they would’ve had to endure in the real world. Because children tend to only think of themselves rather than the larger world, it is not surprising that the boys' lives ended horrifically since they are not yet mature enough to control their inner beast.

There was very little intelligence among the boys as it is, and the two boys who held that glimmer of intelligence were both murdered. The death of intelligence is so important because without it, rules and order can’t be accomplished. Those three things have to balance each other out because if they don’t there is no peace. Peace comes from rules, order, and intelligence, without these all we have is chaos and savagery. Piggy was the only one of the boys, besides Simon, who expressed intelligence and logic. Piggy’s life was ended by sheer savagery, and along with that, so was his intelligence. An act of cruelty just as bad was when Roger, “Struck Piggy a glancing blow from knee to chin” (181). Roger had no real reason to kill Piggy, he did it because he simply felt like it. He knew he couldn’t get in trouble for it because there was no one there who can punish him for his actions. The rock destroyed Piggy from his head, which was full of intelligence, to his body, for which he was made fun of for. Piggy’s head which was full of wisdom and logic was literally crushed open, showing an end to the intelligence

he held. This terrible act showed that Roger had no remorse and is a sadist at heart. Piggy was a great friend and advisor to Ralph, and without him Ralph is lost. The boys on the island are lost because now they have no one guiding them in the logical direction. Without rules to keep the boys in order, there is chaos rather than peace, and with chaos comes trouble. The boys were still young and because of that, they didn’t have the intelligence or knowledge to bring order to the island and to keep themselves controlled.
All these events in the story showed us one clear picture: without rules and intelligence, we can lose our humanity and became cruel, no matter who we are. If there are no rules, then there is no peace, and if there is no peace, then there is chaos. People who have lost their morals and humanity become cruel, evil beings. The picture that this novel displayed clearly is this: when there are no rules, people will become chaotic and lose their humanity because we need something to keep us in order. We all have our inner Beasts, and it just takes a moment or event to bring it out. The sad truth is that the monsters we fear are sometimes within us.