Death and Social Collapse
Oscar Hammling has said, "We die ourselves every time we kill in others something that deserved to live." Man's relationship with death from the hour of his birth and his inherent concern for himself above others are themes often used in literary works to depict mankind's mental, spiritual, and social weaknesses. Death is a prominent motif in William Golding's Lord of the Flies and specific events throughout the novel are important in the development of the story and in expressing the tragedy that ultimately results from manifestations of evil in mankind. The demises of the mulberry-marked boy, the sow, Simon, Piggy, and the attempted murder of Ralph are among the most important events used by Golding as catalysts in the expansion of the plot.
The death of the mulberry-marked boy is the first of several events that ultimately leads to the destruction of society in the novel. He is the first of the boys to introduce the beast and is also the first to die. His death results from irresponsible actions on the part of the other boys and foreshadows evil to come. The boy's untimely end serves as a reminder of guilt for Ralph, who does not even notice that the child is missing until Piggy notifies everyone. Ralph also feels remorse because of his earlier ridicule and humiliation of the boy. The mulberry-marked boy's demise signifies a weakening of the newly formed societal structure on the island and predicts further instability.
The sow's death is instrumental in several ways. First of all, it demonstrates Roger's true self; he is an evil, uncompassionate individual who simply enjoys inflicting pain in others. The pig's death also indicates a further weakening of the structure of civilization on the ...
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...irect result of the complete collapse in societal structure on the island, exemplifies the loss of reasoning and rational thinking. The fact that the boys hunt him with the intention to kill him and place his head on a stake is the final illustration of the evil that has overcome the island like a cloud of volcanic ash, eating away at humanity like acid.
William Golding further enhances his theme by his portrayal of death and the crumbling structure of civilization on the island. The correlation between malevolence and complete social collapse is evident in the paired symbolic and literal uses of death and evil in the boys' isolated community; indeed, each of the deaths in the novel is instrumental in the author's depiction of inborn evil and effectively acts as a catalyst in the chain of events culminating in the complete destruction of society on the island.
The officer led the boys to the ship, one by one in a line, they
‘Kill the pig! Cut his throat! Kill the pig! Bash him in!’” (Golding, ). This quote demonstrates how Ralph’s ruthlessness takes control and how he begins to turn senseless. The transformation the boys undergo is substantial to the theme of loss of identity because it reveals how the island is truly affecting the boys mindsets. Ralph, who was chosen as leader because he showed confidence and fortitude soon became paranoid about hunting the beast. This caused Ralph to lose himself, and it allowed the ruthlessness to consume
The basic premise of Lord of the Flies is that humans naturally live in savagery and ignorance, without any idea of how to live together. The most terrifying death in the novel is that of Simon, who symbolizes the eyes of a blind and stumbling group of children digressing into savagery. As Christ lived, so lived Simon, as Christ died, so died Simon. Each died because human nature hates prophets, because humans naturally live in savagery and ignorance.
As Simon was trying to tell the boys that the beast did not exist, his death symbolises that mankind can’t face the truth about their inner desires. Part of Golding’s intent was to demonstrate that the evil is not recognised in specific populations or situations. On the island, the beast is manifest in the deadly tribal dances, war paint and manhunt; in the outside world, the same lust for power and control plays out as a nuclear war. Throughout ‘The Lord of the Flies’ Golding has managed to show that evil is present in everyone.
His voice rose under the black smoke before the burning wreckage of the island; and infected by that emotion, the other little boys began to shake and sob too. And in the middle of them, with filthy body, matted hair, and unwiped nose, Ralph wept for the end of innocence, the darkness of man’s heart, and the fall through the air of the true, wise friend called Piggy (Golding, 290).
The impact of Jack’s savagery on the island leads to the boys forgetting the real truth about about themselves. The boys on the island are able to explain that human are evil from the beginning and that they aren’t impacted by society. The boys see the island as a place where they are free from the adult world and without any rules. The boys don’t realize that a world without rules causes the chaos on the island and the savagery within the boys. Jack’s authoritative power forces him to push the rest of the boys out of their comfort zone by making them evil being that was not there true identity before. Upon realizing that the savagery they had obtained was only destroying themselves they “wept for the end of innocence, the darkness of man's heart”(202). The power that was developed by Jack impacts everyone and destroys all of the lives that rejected him. Piggy who was the most knowledgeable character and also the weakest character was often disrespected by Jack because he opposed Jack’s power and recognizes that his power not voted for. As as result, Piggy is killed by Jack’s own boys because they too have been impacted by brute force. They killed piggy just like how they hunted pigs. Next, Simon's death reflects the rejections of religion and the idea that the
Over millions of years, man has transformed from a savage, simple creature to a highly developed, complex, and civil being. In Lord of the Flies, the author William Golding shows how under certain circumstances, man can become savage. During nuclear war, a group of British schoolboys crash land on an uninhabited island to escape. Ralph the elected leader, along with Piggy and Simon, tries to maintain civilization, while Jack and his group of choir boys turned hunters slowly become savages obsessed with killing. Through characters’ action and dialogue, Golding illustrates the transformation of civil schoolboys into bloodthirsty savages.
It is in these games were the boys get carried away and Ralph feels a
Golding has a rather pessimistic view of humanity having selfishness, impulsiveness and violence within, shown in his dark yet allegorical novel Lord of the Flies. Throughout the novel, the boys show great self-concern, act rashly, and pummel beasts, boys and bacon. The delicate facade of society is easily toppled by man's true beastly nature.
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 freedom from their society. William Golding's basic philosophy that man was inherently evil was expressed in such instances as the death of Simon, the beast within the boys, and the way Ralph was fervently hunted.
The Lord of the Flies by William Golding is tale of a group of young boys who become stranded on a deserted island after their plane crashes. Intertwined in this classic novel are many themes, most that relate to the inherent evil that exists in all human beings and the malicious nature of mankind. In The Lord of the Flies, Golding shows the boys' gradual transformation from being civilized, well-mannered people to savage, ritualistic beasts.
The book Lord of the Flies Jack the leader of the savages wasn't always bad. William Goldberg the author says that everyone is capable of becoming evil, where philosophers like Jean- Jacques Rousseau who implied that it was our environment that shapes us. While Golding has some good points on his theory I have to agree With Rousseau because of many of his beliefs.
This leads to the fact that a beast really does exist within all human beings, but is only expressed when human instinct for survival becomes the main objective. At first the boys aren?t able to kill, but as survival instinct starts taking over, the reader?s are able to se the true character?s play out, and lives are compromised. ?You feel as if you?re not hunting, but- being hunted, as if something?s behind you all the time in the jungle,? (pg.53) proves that it?s every man for himself and people will do anything to survive. An example of this in the novel was when Robert became the ?pig,? and was wounded even though it wasn?t intentional, but the situation became worse when Piggy?s death happened as a result of all civilization lost and evil taken over.
is left with the decision of whether or not to drop the rock. Roger is
Another thing that was symbolized in the book is the conch shell. The conch is what Ralph blew into to get the boys to come together. At first they established rules, one of them being the person holding the conch is the only person who can speak. The conch symbolizes order among the boys. As time past the boys acted more and more uncivil, and they didn't pay much attention to the conch. At this point, order stated to disintegrate. Towards the end of the novel, when the conch was shattered, all civilization of the boys shattered along with it. There was complete chaos on the island.