Failure
For centuries, nations and philosophers have attempted to devise a government beneficial to all. Famous enlightenment thinkers Thomas Hobbes and Voltaire aimed to conceive such government. Unfortunately, the characters in William Golding’s Lord of the Flies do not implement the ideas of these enlightenment philosophers. In the aforementioned novel a group of English schoolboys ranging from the age of six to twelve crash land of on a desert island and attempt to govern themselves until their rescue. Ultimately, The boys on the island fall into chaos because they do not have strong government or establish a government that respects the freedom of speech of each person. The consequences of their failure to set up these governing components
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includes anarchy, death, and destruction. The boys on the island cannot establish an adequate government, they lack the will to punish or even single out boys for their sadistic behavior, which, according to Thomas Hobbes, is the natural state of man. Thomas Hobbes believed that people are born with the intent of harming others if it benefits them. The malicious intent of people can only be curbed by a powerful government. A state people fear is a state they are less likely to disobey and thus the people will act morally. An overbearing government may sound cruel, but it is the only thing that keeps people from falling into anarchy and doing each other irreparable harm. On the island, Roger’s behavior in throwing stones at a small boy when he should be building huts or participating in other labor supports Thomas Hobbes's belief that people need strict leadership to keep them from immoral behavior. Even as Roger throws stones “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. Roger was conditioned by a civilization that knew nothing of him and was in ruins,” (Golding 67). For sadistic people like Roger, who take pleasure in hurting or frightening others, rules, boundaries and most of all Strong government is needed in the form of “parents and schools and policemen and the law” or in this case the the other boys just as Thomas Hobbes theorized. The boy’s inability to set up a government that can control the natural immortality of man or grants freedom of speech to all doom them from the beginning. The boys on the island are unsuccessful in their attempt at self government because they refuse to acknowledge or allow freedom of speech on the island for certain people.
Famous late enlightenment thinker Voltaire was an adamant advocate of free speech because without freedom of speech effecting change in the government is not possible. Voltaire is so well known for his belief in freedom of speech that his most famous quote is actually a misquote about freedom of speech. "I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it”. When Voltaire speaks of one party denying freedom of speech to another, the government is usually denying the freedom of speech. In The Lord of the Flies, the boys, who are the government severely limit one boy’s freedom of speech, Piggy. Piggy is reasonable throughout the novel, so naturally he criticizes Jack after he abandons the signal fire to go hunting. He took a step, and able at last to hit someone, stuck his fist into Piggy's stomach. Piggy sat down with a grunt. Jack stood over him. His voice was vicious with humiliation. 'You would, would you? Fatty!' Ralph made a step forward and smacked Piggy's head. Piggy's glasses flew off and tinkled on the rocks. Piggy cried out in horror(Golding 100)”. Piggy is perfectly within his right to announce that Jack was mistaken in his decision to go hunting, He is(maybe without knowing it) trying to effect change in the government by trying to make sure a similar incident does not occur. Jack is so “vicious with humiliation” that he swiftly silences Piggy so that Piggy is effectively no longer able to influence the decisions the government will make. By muting Piggy the boys have wasted their greatest asset on the island, Piggy is the least impulsive and therefore most capable boy on the island, He often quotes his aunt showing a maturity beyond what the other boys display. Because the boys restrict freedom of speech, they cannot pull from a wide range of ideas
and thus do not listen to the voice of reason, thus can not make logical decisions which ultimately leads to their separation and chaos. Because the boys on the island are unable to control the innate evil in man and restrict free speech , the government's collapse if hastened because of these very boys. Lacking freedom of speech, Piggy’s ideas are very rarely head, results in a government that doesn’t act on reason and ultimately can’t enact change in the governing system. Governments on much larger scales have failed because the mistakes made by the boys.
According to Peter Drucker, he claims, “Effective leadership is not about making speeches or being liked; leadership is defined by results not attributes.” Leadership is a commitment that is meant to be kept and done accurately. Leading a group or a society can lead to dreadful obstacles, but it’s your responsibility to have a solution to end. Ralph and Jack as a leader cause a majority of downhill for the boys. Affecting themselves and their surroundings to abruptly fall into pieces. Which lead to a mass destruction of the island, Lord of the Flies. The devastating events on this island lead to the massive chaos of Lord of the Flies, blaming Ralph and Jack for denial, lack of cooperation and inefficient leadership.
Society is based off of hierarchy which is the basis for the change people have in society. Sometimes it’s good and other times…. Well it’s not so good. In most respects, leadership defines the outcome of a certain society. A good leader with good intentions, leading society in good directions is bound to be beneficial and maintain an ethos that will carry with them for the rest of their lives. But then there are others that are too ignorant and become less and less what they had hoped to be. Lord of the flies by William Golding is a great example of this. Golding argues that where there is a gain in power with bad leadership, that there is a loss of identity. In Lord of the Flies, A few boys arrive on a plane after it had crashed because of a war that was taken place at the time of the plane crashing. The basic synopsis is that they are trying to be rescued. The boys recollect after being separated. There are no adults on the island either. During the period they were on the island, Lots of the boys had changed. Particularly Jack… He is a choir boy who wanted to be leader. His drastic change from choir boy to savage sets the stage for loss of identity. Rogers’s morals to his change in identity are drastic when he throws rocks at the littleuns. Finally we have Percival who’s Innocence and lack of understanding in the cruel world is destroying him mentally.
Comparing Governments in Novels William Golding’s Lord of the Flies is a story much like the true events of the totalitarian Soviet Union. The original leader in Lord of the Flies introduces himself simply as “Ralph”(Golding 8). Although his priorities are good, his way of governing is certainly harsh: “ ‘You voted me chief. Now you do what I say’”(115).
Society The novel Lord of the Flies by William Golding is about a group of boys that were in a plane crash in the 1940’s during a nuclear War. The plane is shot down and lands on a tropical island. Some boys try to function as a whole group, but see obstacles as time goes on. The novel is about civilization and social order.
In the book, Lord of the Flies, William Golding connects a disaster to a bunch of little English kids with the government and civics. There are at least five different ways William Golding connects the civics and the boys that were stranded on the island. Some of the events are reflected directly from our government. The Constitutional principles tie into the book a lot by the popular sovereignty, limiting powers, sharing powers, separation of powers, and protecting against tyranny. There are many different elements of the government which includes voting, symbol of government authority, and committees which are of the most important.
William Golding’s novel ‘The Lord of The flies’ presents us with a group of English boys who are isolated on a desert island, left to try and retain a civilised society. In this novel Golding manages to display the boys slow descent into savagery as democracy on the island diminishes.
Humans, by nature, are genuinely good people who show compassion and concern for others, right? Well true, if we all lived in a utopian land. Unfortunately, humans are, in fact, evil and easily corrupted by others. In William Golding’s 1954 published Lord of the Flies, the boy’s on the island learn that a peaceful civilization is easily destroyed without cooperation or agreement. The frustration manifested itself, making a transformation of the boys into meat hungry, hunters, who even try to hunt the other boys who don’t follow the pack. Golding analyzes the flaws of human society, directly related to human nature.
In Lord of the Flies, Golding’s portrayal of Jack’s growing power on the island aligns with Thomas Hobbes’s assertion that humans naturally tend to act violently and contentiously, but Golding’s depiction of Jack as a leader also ridicules Hobbes’s idea of an absolute monarchy.
Absence of Rule in William Golding's Lord of the Flies Works Cited Missing In today's society, rules control peoples' everyday lives. In the novel Lord of the Flies by William Golding, the result of a society without rules and regulations is demonstrated throughout the novel. The boys of the novel are abandoned on an island without adults and only their own teamwork and knowledge to keep them alive.
Without government, society degenerates and people lose their capacity for moral behaviour. Survivors in Haiti say that if other countries had not provided aid and restored order, there would be much more violence and everyone would only serve themselves. In the novel Lord of the Flies by William Golding, the author uses the events on the island to demonstrate that people require government to restrain their impulses. The creation of a democratic government with Ralph as chief allows the inhabitants of the island to make decisions together and take everyone’s viewpoint into consideration. Soon, however, the democracy begins to be disregarded. When Jack creates a dictatorship, he fails to restrain the impulsive behaviour of the boys, which demonstrates the superiority of Ralph’s government.
The government falls apart in “Lord of the Flies” due to the lack of the boys’ effort to use founding ideals, create citizens’ rights, and establish a formal government. The first aspect to a working government is the founding ideals. Tranquility is the most important ideal because without a peaceful country,
Katherine Paterson once said, “To fear is one thing. To let fear grab you by the tail and swing you around is another.” William Golding, who is a Nobel Prize winner for literature, writes Lord of the Flies, originally published in 1954. Golding’s novel is about a group of boys who crash land on an island. All of the adults are dead and they are abandoned on an island. The boys try to set rules and create a fire in efforts of being rescued. The group of boys chooses Ralph to be their leader. This choosing makes a literary character named Jack, who doesn’t show his anger until half way through the plot. The novel shows the nature of humans and how fear can control them. The novel also shows the difference between good and evil. Golding experienced this when he was in World War II. There were many times fear controlled the boys in the island in Lord of the Flies.
Throughout the novel Lord of the Flies by William Golding, many different conflicting societies develop. These groups of young English schoolboys have conflicts between them for many different reasons. Some of them are so spread apart in age that their beliefs and actions are very different. Other groups are conflicting because they have different opinions about who the leader of the entire group should be. The groups also argue about what their priorities should be while trapped on the island. These conflicts continue to grow until the very end, when one group finally gains supremacy.
One of the main themes in William Golding's 1954 novel Lord of the Flies is that without civilization, there is no law and order. The expression of Golding's unorthodox and complex views are embodied in the many varied characters in the novel. One of Golding's unorthodox views is that only one aspect of the modern world keeps people from reverting back to savagery and that is society. Golding shows the extreme situations of what could possibly happen in a society composed of people taken from a structured society then put into a structureless society in the blink of an eye. First there is a need for order until the people on the island realize that there are no rules to dictate their lives and take Daveers into their own hands. Golding is also a master of contrasting characterization. This can be seen in the conflicts between the characters of Jack, the savage; Simon, the savior; and Piggy, the one with all the ideas.
After thousands of years of evolution and change, humans are one of the most complex creatures to ever roam this world. They are one of the most advanced creatures, who made advanced technology, found cures for diseases, and created intricate pieces of art. However, humans started off as any other creature: no rules, no technology, and no guarantee of their safety. The lack of these things can cause some humans to resort back to their old, primitive ways. In William Golding’s Lord of the Flies, the lack of society influenced Jack to be power hungry, develop dark and disturbing thoughts, and enjoy hurting others who are innocent.