Lord Of The Flies Quote Analysis

William Golding once stated, “ I have always understood the Nazis because I am of that sort by nature.” This statement reveals that Golding was heavily influenced by the political systems involved in WW2, such as the totalitarian leadership of Adolf Hitler, and the democratic system of the U.S. These influences are portrayed through the different systems Jack and Ralph setup to control the group of boys. Golding’s use of political symbolism in Lord Of The Flies demonstrates men are naturally savage. This is portrayed by Jack being a totalitarian leader, and Ralph as a democratic leader and the failure of both systems to contain violence.

Golding uses the character Jack in the novel Lord of the Flies to represent a totalitarian regime. This

political system allowed the boys to commit countless savage actions such as the ruthless killing of Simon. Jacks initial thoughts of Ralph's leadership were portrayed when Jack ironically says, “We got to have rules and obey them. After all we're not savages"(Golding pg42). The struggle for leadership impacted Ralphs and Jacks views on eachother. When Ralph is elected leader Jack disagrees with the other boys choices and Jack begins to portray actions that would be considered abnormal for the typical English boy.

These abnormalities ended up revealing that Jack would rather lead the group of boys by using a totalitarian system, in which was appealing to the boys since Ralph's leadership required all the boys to work in order to maintain the shelter and signal fire, as for Jacks leadership which allowed the boys to do what they liked but the boys would have to obey Jack when needed. Even though Jacks leadership contained the boys in a group, this system ended up not being able to contain the boys savagery. In Bechallems encyclopedia the author wrote about the topic of political systems in Lord of the Flies, mentioning how Jack was the first of the boys to move towards anarchy. The author stated, “Early on, the boys assume they can manage their affairs quite easily, simply because they are English, Ironically, Jack, the first to move toward anarchy, asserts, “We’ve got to have rules and obey them. After all, we’re not savages. We’re English, and the English are best at everything.”(Beacham’s encyclopedia of popular fiction). This

movement towards anarchy caused Jack to react differently towards rules and responsibilities making him develop a new group that would portray that men are instinctively savage. Golding included the political system of totalitarianism due to his influences in World War 2 like Nazi Germany and the Empire of Japan. Golding also included the war between the boys because in his experience in WW2 he was able to understand how the rise of totalitarianism was a leading cause of WW2. This understanding was incorporated in his writing through Jack being a totalitarian leader who would constantly cause problems with the other group which was ruled by Ralph.
In Lord of the Flies , Ralph is a symbol of a democratic system.

This is revealed through Ralphs choices in allowing the boys to have say. Golding revealed Ralphs step towards democracy when “Ralph says, 'We ought to have more rules... This is our island’" After noticing none of the boys cared about rules or responsibilities, Ralph becomes disappointed with the democratic procedure. Allowing Jack to convince the boys to join his group. This reveals that men are instinctively savage since they joined a group that wanted to survive and would use terror to enforce conformity. A scholar named Oldsey wrote, “Ralph is no monster of goodness. He himself becomes disillusioned with democratic procedure…” ( “Lord of the Flies: Beezlebub Revisited.”). This statement by Oldsey reveals that the reader is able to understand that Ralph is not perfect and political systems always contain flaws. Which is why the reader can conclude that mankind's human nature is masked by an ever changing political

systems.
When Golding implements his influences into his writing it allows the reader to compare what is occurring in Golding’s writing to what Goulding witnessed happen during the time of WW2. Whether it was the failure of both political sides in the war to contain violence or the experiences Golding endured. Golding ultimately revealed that men are instinctively savage and in order to contain savagery men create laws and powers that enforce conformity. Golding reveals in his writing that the civilized world the boys once lived in was fading away when he stated, “The world, that understandable and lawful world, was slipping away.” (Chapter 11). Golding portrays to the reader that as men seperate themselves from law and reasoning the more likely they are to move towards anarchy and savagery. An scolar who wrote in Bechallem’s encyclopedia stated, “ As Golding acknowledged, political systems may seem “logical and respectable” but mask an underlying problem. The danger is that rationalist looks for logical cause and effect and unwilling to recognize the inherent evil in human nature. The rationalist assumes that civilization is all powerful because it seems more reasonable for people to co-exist with rules and mutual respect.” (Beacham’s encyclopedia of popular fiction). This author agree that no matter which political system is put into place, that system is doomed to fail due to men being imperfect. These imperfection cause men to act on instinct instead of reasoning. Allowing the readers to conclude that certain political systems cannot contain mans human nature.
Overall, the tetrous experiences Golding went through during the war influenced many scenes in his novel Lord of the Flies. Golding represents these experiences through symbols such as his characters, like Ralph who represents a democracy and Jack who represents a Dictatorship. Golding’s use of political symbolism reveals men are naturally savage through Jack moving towards anarchy, Ralph introducing democracy and the failure of both political systems to contain the violence. Finally the reader is able to understand through these symbols that no political system is perfect due to men being imperfect. Which is why men being naturally savage heavily influence the political systems men try to use to mask their savagery.