Piggy's Desire For Power Lord Of The Flies Quote Analysis

1527 Words4 Pages

Human Nature's Desire for Power The Lord of the Flies, by William Golding, is a psychological fiction about a group of English boys whose plane crashes on a deserted island during a time of war. These boys were left stranded, alone, and fending for themselves. When the boys arrived on the island they were full of innocence and curiosity, but as the story progresses, Golding tells the tale of how they descended into savagery. Initially, the boys held a sense of connection to one another, and respect for the environment surrounding them. However, as time passed on the island, there were still zero signs that they would return home, not any time soon. This put quite a strain on the group, and naturally, tension grew. These circumstances caused …show more content…

Golding says that staying connected to reality and civility is the most important thing for these children, as their brains are going through major changes. Following up on this analogy, Golding uses Piggy's glasses to symbolize negative turning points in the story. Throughout the story there are moments where Piggy's glasses are damaged or destroyed, representing moments of reality descension. For example, Ralph and Piggy blamed Jack for letting their fire go out, which was supposed to signal help. The frustration that came over Jack caused him to pick on the helpless body, who happened to be Piggy. Jack ends up smacking Piggy across the head, which in turn leads to his glasses coming off and breaking. This interaction conveys how the boys have detached from their moral beings, and are slowly descending into savagery. As the story progresses, the dispute between leaders worsens, and Ralph tries his hardest to stay in touch with reality. Deep inside, Ralph is afraid of what he knows will happen if the boys lose their sense of self, and as a result, tries his hardest to preserve life on the …show more content…

In the duration of the novel, there are insightful moments that exemplify the contrast between civility and savagery. For example, when the boys first attempt at pig slaughter fails, it is clear that it failed out of fear. In this moment of decision making, the boys still had a hold on their innocence, and simply couldn’t bring themselves to kill an animal. Also, the boys did not attempt to kill the pig out of malicious intent, they were in desperate need of food. Ironically, the next time the boys attempt animal slaughter, it is a success. The group's courage to kill the pig shows the negative descent of their morality, and the toll this experience is having on their inner strength. Golding's choice of having them slit the throat of the pig expresses how they are losing their innocence through rash decision making. Another point which is crucial to the plot, is the boys neglecting what the conch means to them as a whole. As the boys begin to make irrational decisions, their friendships fall apart. The purpose of the conch becomes meaningless, and innocence is broken. Consequently, the feud between boys became too complex for the boys to understand and

Open Document