The human brain, as we all know, is very complex. What we do not all realize, the one thing we all have in common, is the strong instinct of survival we all carry. In today’s society we really have no need to think about what we are going to have to do in order to survive, but that instinct is still there, it is just not as strong. Although, some still want to put the blame on the environment and intense situation the boys in Lord of the Flies went through for their savage acts. In a way, they are kind of right, but the situation the only really triggered their internal instinct for survival to kick in. Milgram, the man behind the Milgram experiments of obedience, explains, “Normal people doing their jobs, without hostility on their part, …show more content…
can become agents of death. Even when the effects of their work are clear, when asked to carry out actions extremely against their morals, few people will be able to resist.” Many people would like to think that they will not become a “agent of death” under any circumstance. In fact during the Milgram experiment they predicted that no more than 3 out of 100 of the participants would actually deliver the maximum shocks as they are told to do. This prediction turned out to be way off, as 65% of the participants did exactly as they were told, even if it went against their beliefs. Most of the human race tends to be a follower and we are taught at a young age to as told from those of a higher stance. We do these things unconsciously mainly out of fear of what will happen to us if we do not oblige. When told that the participants have no other choice, but to continue to the highest power only a few actually refused. In the beginning the very young boys from Golding's Lord of The Flies also tried to stay civilized at first. They choose a leader and even established a set of rules as a way to prevent turning savage. Naturally, the leader they first elected, Ralph, is eventually challenged, by another, Jack, who promises the rest of the boys fun, meat and they would have no more of Ralph’s silly rules. Most of the boys found Jack’s proposition more attractive and went to join him and find themselves doing as he says like in the end when Jack commands the boys to hunt down Ralph and kill him. Even so some still argue that it was not the boy's fault that they acted the way they did, but the situation they were in that made them do it.
They allege that when the boys first came together that they gave it their best shot to build a society and keep order. As a group they put together rules and assigned jobs to the ones old enough, and that in the end it was the island that was the problem. Even so you see signs in the directly in the beginning that it was not due to the island that the boys acted the way they did. In Lord of the Flies the island is what is what is keeping them isolated and also cleans the guilt away. When Ralph comments “this is a good island” after finding it to be free of adults, shows in itself that the problem is within the …show more content…
boys. Since the beginning of the book you can see that there is something wrong with most of the boys.
The two characters that represented the good in people, both end up getting killed. Simon ends up getting mistakened as the fictional beast which causes him to get attacked by the other boys. Even though he cries out for them to stop, the boys are so blinded by fear they only see him as they want to and continue to literally rip him apart until he dies. What makes Simon's death even worse is that nobody really acknowledges that it actually happened. Ralph even convinces himself that he had nothing to do with it. Roger is the one who kills Piggy, by his own accord. He was not told to kill Piggy, he did it because he wanted to and was expecting praise. Earlier in the novel there is a scene where Roger is watching the little ones play in the water and feels a great need to throw rocks at them. The only thing that stops him is the implanted fear of getting in trouble with the authority. By the end of the book Roger comes to a full realization that there are no more real laws with punishments and this is what leads to him killing Piggy. On the other hand some may say that the boys were just doing what had to be done in order to survive. Although, some of their actions were purely for survival, like hunting the pigs and keeping a fire going. It is when Jack became so obsessed with hunting and ultimately becoming the leader that he would torture other boys if they did something to defy
him, that it crossed the line of what is considered survival tactics to actions of savagery. When Jack did get his wish of getting his own tribe it became more about domination and power than survival. In conclusion, it was internal factors that indeed caused the boys to act the way they did. They would not have acted that way if they did not have some sort of instinct to act that way. The boys showed obvious signs in the beginning of the book that something was wrong in the way they think, this alone shows that the island only gave them the freedom to behave that way that they did. “What are we? Humans? Or animals? Or savages?” Piggy repeats this question in various of forms throughout the book. Maybe we could all ask ourselves the same thing.
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
A group of kids got stuck on an island after their plane got shot down and they all have many different personalities. Being stuck on an island usually brings out the worst of people.But, there were two characters in novel, “The Lord of The Flies” that had good morals. These two characters were Ralph and Simon. Ralph and Simon weren’t intimidated by not having any adults around, instead, they tried to bring out the best of themselves and not take part in any horseplay the rest of the boys did.
The influence of power, or “power hungry”, has had a huge effect on many people who feel that they must be in charge. These people often have trouble being told no or being told that they can’t be in charge. People throughout history have done it in many ways. Our own government displays this when we elect a new president every four years. These candidates often tell the public what they want to hear and how they’ll make it a better place, when, in reality, they only mean half of it and they just want to be able to have the power of the president. In the novel Lord of the Flies, by William Golding, the antagonist, Jack, shows throughout the book that he craves power and feels that he deserves it more than anybody else.
Jack’s negative effects on others are shown when “Maurice pretended to be the pig and ran squealing into the center, and the hunters, circling still, pretended to beat him” (75). This quote displays Jack’s evil influence because he has made perfectly normal British boys act like mindless savages and participate in this sadistic ritual. The hunters seem to regress to more prehistoric times as they enjoy performing this act. Jack also changes the boys’ behavior when, “The beast struggled forward, broke the ring and fell over the steep edge of the rock to the sand by the water. At once the crowd surged after it, poured down the rock, leapt on to the beast, screamed, struck, bit, tore. There were no words, and no movements but the tearing of teeth and claws” (153). This quote is essential because it conveys that Jack has altered the boys’ minds to such a degree, that they are blinded by their bloodlust and can’t even tell that the “beast” that they are mutilating is really Simon. It also shows how delirious Jack has made these once civilized children. As you can see, Jack is not a necessarily evil person, but he creates evil
During the novel, the reader becomes increasingly aware of Jack’s dominating and violent tendencies. Specific actions taken are when Jack suggests using one of the younger children as a substitute pig, ties up Wilfred, and hunts Ralph. Things begin to get out of hand when the group’s game turns into a cruel beating. Not long afterwards, Jack suggests that the group
When the boys first arrived on the island, their behaviour was civilized and they attempted to convince themselves that they would soon be rescued by their parents. As the days passed, the boys began to open their eyes and realized that sitting around was not going to benefit them in any way, and most importantly it would not help them survive. Because of their new unrestricted life on the island, the boys become ruthless and replaced their previous identity.
In “ Review of Stanley Milgram’s Experiments On Obedience” by Diana Baumrind, and in “Obedience” by Ian Parker, the writers claim that Milgram’s Obedience is ethically wrong and work of evil because of the potential harm that the subjects of the experiment had. While Baumrind’s article focused only on the Subjects of the experiment, Parker’s article talked about both immediate and long term response to experiment along with the reaction of both the general public and Milgram’s colleagues, he also talks about the effect of the experiment on Milgram himself. Both articles discuss has similar points, they also uses Milgram’s words against him and while Baumrind attacks Milgram, Parker shows the reader that experiment
Summary Dr. Stanley Milgram conducted a study at Yale University in 1962, in an attempt to understand how individuals will obey directions or commands. This study became known as the Milgram Obedience Study. Stanley Milgram wanted to understand how normal people could become inhumane, cruel, and severely hurt other people when told to carry out an order, in blind obedience to authority. This curiosity stemmed from the Nazi soldiers in Germany, and how their soldiers could do horrible acts to the Jews. To carry out his study, Dr. Milgram created a machine with an ascending row of switches that were marked with an increasing level of voltage that could be inflicted on another person.
“Review of Stanley Milgram’s Experiments of Obedience” was written by Diane Baumrind. Baumrind is a psychologist at the Institute of Human Development at the University of California, Berkley. Throughout her article, Baumrind attacks multiple aspects of Milgram’s experiment. She immediately states that the location of the experiment played a factor in the produced results (Baumrind 225). She continues in saying the lack of emotion and concern from the teacher caused heavy stress on the subjects. Baumrind also calls into question the supposed attempts of Milgram to allow the subjects to leave in a clear, whole state of mind (Baumrind 227). The affects the experiment would have on the subjects afterwards is also a point of concern for Baumrind. Lastly, Baumrind pleads for the subjects to be fully informed of the experiment they would be partaking in (Baumrind 229). However, Baumrind is not the only author who reviews the experiment. Ian Parker, “Obedience”, writes about the consequences Milgram himself experienced after the results of hi...
The killing of Simon was the first major death that impacted the novel. They believed that what came running out of the woods was the beast and began to attack it relentlessly (not realizing that the beast was actually Simon). All of the boys, including Ralph and Piggy beat Simon because they think Simon is the beast and they fulfill the Lord of the Flies’ “Prophecy ” (Spitzer). All of the boys are overcome by their evil side. The killing of Simon represents the progression of savagery in the boys’ souls. It also reflects the darkness of mankind. “I wasn’t scared,” said Ralph slowly, ” I was – I don’t know what I was. ” When Ralph realizes that the beast that they killed the night before was actually Simon, he is filled with guilt and insists to Piggy that they have taken part in that murder. Piggy denies Ralph and pretends that he had nothing to do with the killing. Simon’s death clearly presents that evil does exist in man, but in a higher state. Golding again manages to convey his message clearly to the reader that evil does exist in man, but to a higher extent. The death of Piggy also reflects the evil side and darkness that resides in mankind.“The rock struck Piggy a glancing blow from chin to knee….The rock bounced twice and was lost in the forest. Piggy fell forty feet and landed on his back across that square, red rockin the sea. His head opened and stuff came out and turned red. Piggy’s arms and legs twitched a bit, like a pig’s after it has been killed” (Golding,222). Roger at this point has been fully taken over by the darkness in his soul, and doesn’t even think properly, which resulted in a murder of an innocent being. The evil side in their souls has controlled them and lead them to do something that is completely savage and cruel. Golding has succeeded in proving that evil is truly inherent in
This is a story about a group of British schoolboys who survive a plane crash only to find themselves the only survivors and are forced to hunt for food, create shelter, and develop their own kind of civilization in order to survive. They conform to the ways of the British government that they know and apply those standards to establish their own type of government. This starts a rivalry against Ralph and Jack, both fighting for the position of chief. When Ralph is voted chief by the boys this of course sets of Jack. Throughout the story he becomes more violent and aggressive and soon rules over the boys. They conform to Jack's demands, mostly having to do with his power of intimidation, however it all comes down to fear. Jack was able to use their fear to keep them on his side and made them feel a sense of belonging and importance. It also may have helped that the food was on Jack's side as well. This shows however, that because they have conformed to societal pressures, the boys have lost their sense of individuality and
The idea that ignorance is bliss is a common theme in many books, movies, and other types of media. These books and movies all have supportive examples, but they rarely describe how those people end up. It all starts out happy and carefree, but eventually, they could get hurt. In these novels, Of Mice and Men, Lord of the Flies, and Brave New World, one of the characters either hurts themselves or someone else, which spirals the story into chaos or into self-conflict. This can happen both intentionally or unintentionally, but it still gives a negative impact on the story. The idea that ignorance leads to destruction and chaos is found in Of Mice and Men, Lord of the Flies, and Brave New World.
The title Lord of the flies is very meaningful in respect to the novel. First, the word Devil is a Hebrew translation of the novel’s titled Lord of the Flies in which the Devil represents the dark and evil of the underworld. This idea of darkness and evil is seen throughout the novel as we see the boys use their survival skills. An example of this is when we first meet the boys they seem well behaved British boys, but as their need for survival strengths we realize these boys may not be as good as we thought. As the story develops and the kids begin to sense that there is a beast on the island they are able to expose their inner Devil. This inner Devil that the boys’ possess caused them to perform tasks that they would never do if they were
In the book, Lord of The Flies by William Golding, human nature is very heavily observed and scrutinized. The way it is interpreted becomes evil and very literally symbolized by the name of the novel, a nickname for the Satan. Satan is an absolute evil in the religion of Christianity. However, this would be implying that the events in the book, which we perceive as evil and immorality, were unnatural. In reality, the behaviour noted in the book is not evil or unjust, because absolute morality is a construct of humanity and nothing more. The rules and morality we bind ourselves to are social constructs used to stabilize modern civilization. Without them we collapse to primitive times and become nothing more than apes and monkeys; “savages”.
A moral reading on the novel Lord of the Flies would mean to focus on what is right from wrong throughout the novel, when reading one may notice that the chaos caused throughout the novel caused by knowing which moral values shine through the characters, and whether those are positive or negative feelings. Firstly, “He tried to convey the compulsion to track down and kill what was swallowing him up. “I went on. I thought, by myself--” The madness came into his eyes again. “I thought I might kill.”” (Golding 51). Describing how one of the boys, Jack, is being swallowed by the intention of killing someone shows to readers that he is trying to suppress the desire to kill something. This was something that was suppressed by rules and from people,