In Lord of the Flies by William Golding, the main theme of the novel is fear. Throughout the book, the boys are face different types of fear; such as the Beast, darkness, and the evil in all humans. Golding uses the different reactions of the boys to show that humans respond to fear with either savagery, violence, madness or understanding. Golding’s message to his audience is everyone will face fear, and that it is up to them to choose how to respond to that fear, and whether to give in to it. Firstly, the Beast is one of the main sources of fear for the boys. The boys’ fear of the Beast causes them to act savagely. Secondly, the boys fear death. The boys fear what dangers could possibly befall them on the island. Lastly, the boys, especially Ralph, fear each other. There are several ways in which Golding illustrates the boys’ fear of the Beast, painful death, and themselves; however, the most important is their fear of the Beast which represents their fear of themselves. Firstly, the boys’ fear of the Beast represents their fear of the unknown. However, the boy's’ fear of the beast is more dangerous than any actual …show more content…
beast, because the Beast is inside the boys. For example, Simon suggests that “Maybe […] maybe there is a beast […] What I mean is… maybe it's only us.” (5.89). This quotation shows us that Simon is the only boy who understands that the Beast is inside everyone. The fear of the Beast causes the boys to kill Simon, so his knowledge of the true nature of the Beast dies with him. The fear of the Beast is tied in with the boys’ fear of death. Furthermore, the fear of death is caused by instincts that urge humans to survive at all costs. The will to live and survive is the most powerful human instinct there is. Ralph illustrates this when he is the prey being hunted: “Ralph screamed, a scream of fright and anger and desperation. His legs straightened, the screams became continuous and foaming. He shot forward, burst the thicket, and was in the open, screaming, snarling, bloody.” (12.199). In this statement, Ralph completely relies on his survival instincts and is so terrified that he is barely rational. The fear of the Beast and fear of death are both connected to the fear of the evil in human nature. Finally, the boys’ fear of the savagery in themselves and each other is the greatest and most dangerous fear in the Lord of the Flies.
Ralph gives voice to this fear when he says: “I'm frightened. Of us. I want to go home, Oh God, I want to go home.” (10.157). Ralph is the only boy after Simon who has the good sense to be scared of the savage Beast living inside every boy on the island at that time. He had witnessed and took part in the murder of Simon. This quotation shows that only the people, in this case, Simon and Ralph, who have not given in to their savage nature are able to fear that savagery in other people like Jack and Roger. Another example of the fear of savagery is when Samneric are terrified because Roger tortured them before they could join Jack’s tribe. However, unlike Simon and Ralph, Samneric did not resist the Beast inside
them. Fear is a major theme in William Golding’s Lord of the Flies. In the novel, the characters are faced with different types of fears. First of all, the fear of the Beast and the fear of the unknown drives the boys to murder. Secondly, the fear of pain and death awakens the human survival instinct. Finally, the fear of the evil in human nature is the greatest fear there is. Golding’s main lesson is that fear can either make people stronger and more resilient or turn them into mindless wrecks. It is up to each person individually how to live their lives, with violence and cowardice, or with honor and integrity.
In William Golding’s novel, Lord of the Flies, and Kendra Cherry’s article, “The Milgram Obedience Experiment”, the comparable fear factor, and naive mindset of individuals put under dire circumstances leads to the corruption of society and rise of evil in humans. Fear factors are an influential resource, and useful tactic leaders use to instil dominant power in their citizens, if this power is abused, evil and chaos occurs. For example, in Lord of the Flies, when Samneric get captured by Jack, Jack terrorizes them, snapping, “What d’you mean coming here with spears? What d’you mean by not joining my tribe?” the twins try to escape but fear takes over their morals and they, “...lay looking up in quiet terror” (Golding 182). As Jack threatens
In conclusion, by reading the Novel by William Golding titled The Lord of The Flies we encountered many different forms of fear being from the beast, the loss of humanity, and the fear of realization. These forms of fear relate only to this novel but, many feelings these boys on the island felt we feel time and time again in our everyday society. Everyone on this earth comes to grasp with a time of fear in their lives and it is up to oneself if they are too choose to be strong and persevere or to be a cowards and let fear over power them. Ralph was a boy, a scared and broken young little boy but, as he stood on that beach and watched the rover appear he broke down and let the fear of never having peace take control of him. So I will leave you with one last thought, will you let fear overpower you? or will you persevere?
In the Lord of the Flies fear takes over the boys and cause things to go downfall. The boys in Lord of the Flies might be afraid of the beast, but that fear turns out to be more dangerous than any beast could possibly be. The Lord of the Flies even says to Simon that “Fancy thinking the Beast was something you could hunt and kill! You knew, didn’t you? I’m part of you?
“The thing is – fear can’t hurt you any more than a dream” (“William Golding quotes.”). Fear lives to haunt and torment the person to a point of destruction and can be within everyone. Although a person is able to overcome fear, it is still very dangerous because it affects the person as well as everyone and everything around. In the book Lord of the Flies by William Golding, the boys are all so overwhelmed by fear that the island starts to recede into a state damaged beyond repair. In this case, Jack’s fear of not being leader originally starts to affect him, but it gradually starts to affect Ralph, and the rest of the boys. Ralph’s fear of survival brings out his inner savageness and an innocent life is taken away. Lastly, the boys’ fear of the beast causes them to feel so unsafe and uncertain that they are willing to do anything. As a result of the boys being consumed by these fears, it becomes the most destructive force on the island.
Throughout the novel, Lord of the Flies the major theme shown throughout is innocence. For the duration of the novel the young boys progress from innocent, well behaved children longing fir rescue to bloodthirsty savages who eventually lose desire to return to civilisation. The painted bloodthirsty savages towards the end of the novel, who have tortured and killed animals and even their friends are a far cry from the sincere children portrayed at the beginning of the novel. Golding portrays this loss of innocence as a result of their naturally increasing opened to the innate evil that exists within all human beings. “There isn’t anyone to help you. Only me. And I’m the Beast. . . . Fancy thinking the Beast was something you could hunt and kill! . . . You knew, didn’t you? I’m par...
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 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.
Fear in Lord of the Flies In the novel The Lord of the Flies, written by William Golding, fear. is the cause of all of the problems that take place on the island. At First, the island is thought to be splendid and a paradise, but as the boys' stay on the island increases, so, too, do their fears. The boys soon become afraid of each other and soon after that the boys break up.
A distressing emotion aroused by impending evil and pain, whether the threat is real or imagined is described as fear. Fear is what William Golding’s novel Lord of the Flies encompasses. By taking three major examples from the novel, fear will be considered on different levels: Simon’s having no instance of fear, Ralph’s fear of isolation on the island, and Jack’s fear of being powerless. Fear can make people behave in ways that are foreign to them, whether their fear is real or imagined. In response to fear, people may act defensively by attacking, fear can either stop one from doing something, or it can make one behave in an irrational erratic manner.
One of many prominent themes in William Golding's novel, the Lord of the Flies, is Fear. From the very first chapter, until the last, fear plays an important role in this text. It is the only thing, which stops the boys from acting rationally at times, from questioning curious circumstances and it physically hindered so many of the boys, so many times. The active role of fear in Lord of the Flies, was intentionally used by Golding, because he knew what images it would create. Fear is described by Mirriam- Webster's English dictionary, as To be uneasy or apprehensive'. This feeling is mutually experienced by all of the boys on the island in many different ways. Initially the boys have an obvious fear of being alone, which then brings upon the fear of what we know as the beast, or as the littluns refer to is, as the beastie'. While this fear continues for the whole of the novel, we are also exposed to three other incidents of fear. The first of these is the civilised fear of consequences, displayed only when the children are seen as young civilised boys, in the earliest chapters. The final two are of a different nature, with those fears being the loss of power, the fear of rejection and the fear of being in the minority. All of these different fears, then relate back to the character, and as was expertly planned out by William Golding, influences the characters attitudes and behaviours.
Every now and then, one finds themselves taking a deeper look inside of their soul, often times resulting in the discovery of an inner being. This inner being is perfectly depicted through the lord of the flies. Contrary to the boys’ beliefs, the lord of the flies, or in the novel the symbol of the "beast", is not "something you could hunt and kill" (164), but rather a spirit that dwells inside of a soul, and slowly seduces one into complete and utter savagery. In the novel, Lord of the Flies, William Golding gives the reader a glimpse into a society composed of a group of young British boys, all raised in a civilized and orderly manner, that find themselves stranded on a deserted island. Fighting for survival, many of the boys surrender to the Beast that engulfs them. Others, like Ralph, find themselves in a much more complex and compromising battle- one that takes place inside the mind. In his novel, Lord of the Flies, William Golding uses the motifs of the pig dance, the conch, and the masks to convey the theme that man becomes a corrupt and savage being without a strict system of order and civilization.
Ralph’s power at the beginning is secure but as the group succumbs to their savage instincts, Ralph’s influence declines as Jack’s rises. This is due mainly to the cruelty and violence that goes on in the story. This cruelty reveals that Ralph’s commitment to civilization and being rescued is so strong that he will not allow himself to change his morals and become cruel like the others. The cruelty in this novel also shows that Ralph is a very intelligent character. His intelligence can be proven because there was a point in the novel when he hunts a boar for the first time and he experiences the thrill of bloodlust. He also attends one of Jack’s feast where he is swept away by the frenzy and participates in the killing of Simon. This is a very tragic moment for Ralph because this is when he realizes the evil that lives within himself and every human being. It is the cruel acts that happen in this novel that reveals Ralph’s character of being intelligent and being able to think deeply about human experiences. He even weeps when getting saved because of his knowledge about the human capacity for
In Lord of the Flies, Golding proves that fear draws out man’s inner evil and barbarism. Within the novel, Golding uses characterization of the boys and symbolism of the beast to show the gradual change from their initial civility to savagery and inhumanity. Learned civility, order and humanity become ultimately futile in the face of fear. The author teaches that without logic, fear consumes endlessly. He shows that fear clouds the mind, thus making it absolutely imperative to maintain reason and logic throughout life. Fear will always end in a fate worse than death for those who survive it.
In most cases, fear can greatly alter how people act and therefore can shape lives for the better and for the worst. In the novel Lord of the Flies by William Golding, a plane crashes on an island leaving the remaining boys all alone without any adults. This leaves them overwhelmed and afraid as they have never been in this situation previously, but also puts other fears that the boys may have suffered through prior to this experiences into action. This fearfulness that the whole group has, whether it be for their survival or because of personal issues, alters their views and thoughts so greatly as it therefore led to the inhumane killing of Simon. Simon death was overall a result of the fear of the unknown, Jack fearfulness of not being the
In William Golding’s Lord of the Flies, the beast gives the children a sense of fear throughout the story. It also shows that it is one of the children's top priorities, as they hunt for it and try to protect themselves from it. The children use the beast to work together, but as the novel progresses the group goes through a separation. The beast is an important role in the novel, having many forms of concepts about it. In the novel Lord of the Flies by William Golding, the concept of the beast as a whole is used as fear, reality, and evil.