Roger Lord Of The Flies Character Analysis

Early in the novel, Roger is perceived as a boy who makes erroneous and malicious decisions, but still remains the “shy and furtive boy.” After a day of hunting, Roger “Led the way straight through the sandcastles, kicking them over, burying the flowers scattering the chosen stones”(pg 60). This hostile action reflects Roger’s mean streak. Despite his outwardly rude actions, Roger is initially considered the solemn and shy choir member. When Ralph, Jack, and Roger climb the mountain to scout out the beast, Roger remains silent throughout the journey. While Jack and Ralph strategize, Roger gives no input on the topic. The narrator describes this scene as, “Roger, uncommunicative by nature, said nothing. He offered no opinion on the beast nor

told Ralph why he had chosen to come on this mad expedition”(pg 121). Roger is an introvert who keeps his problems and thoughts to himself until he irrationally takes them out on others. He is unapproachable by nature and is not one to be messed with. Another example of Roger’s capability is expressed soon after he knocks down the sandcastles. The narrator observes, “[Roger] gathered a handful of rocks and began to throw them. Yet there was a space around Henry which he dared not throw”(pg 64). This shows that Roger feels the “taboo” of his old life and the guilt that would be associated with actually hitting someone with stones. Despite his enigmatic sense of nature, Roger is still ruled by the morals of normal society. In conclusion, Roger is the single most mysterious and dark person on the island . People take caution when around him, and the other boys know Roger is not one to be messed with.
As the boys spend more time on the island, Roger’s true colors begin to shine. He breaks out of his shell and befriends Jack, the leader of the hunters. Together, the duo begins their reign of torture. One example of this transformative behavior occurs in the middle of the novel. This is presented as an analogy, “Roger ceased to be a pig and became a hunter, so that the center of the ring yawned emptily”(pg. 152). This quote symbolizes Roger’s change from the meek choir boy to the second in command of the hunters. He is now at the top of the heat, no longer being the hunted, but the hunter. Later in the novel when the hunters are strategizing their heist of the fire, Jack says, “‘Roger can snap the branch while I say what I want.’ He leaned down and whispered in Roger’s ear”(pg 136). This demonstrates Roger’s climb to the top of the social ladder and his new role as Jack’s sidekick. This supremacy could potentially go to his head and could result in actions Roger may regret later on. A final instance of Roger’s rise from shy to superior is revealed when the hunters find and attack a pig. The narrator vividly describes this incident as, “Roger ran round the heap, prodding with his spear whenever pig flesh appeared. Roger found a lodgment for his point and began to push till he was leaning with his whole weight”(pg. 135). The detailed account of this scene clearly proves Roger’s enmity towards others, especially towards innocent creatures. Roger feels no mercy for the pig, similarly to his torture tactics toward his fellow peers. In summary, Roger can be identified as a dynamic character who pity or tolerance to those in his way.
As the novel comes to a close, the reader cannot help but notice the dynamicity between the meek Roger at the beginning of the story, and the barbaric, vicious savage represented at the end of Golding’s novel.
By analyzing Roger’s actions throughout the novel, it becomes clear that Roger gains power as he spends more time on the island. A direct reference to this observation occurs at the end of the novel when Piggy and Ralph visit Jack and the hunters to retrieve Piggy’s specs. Roger stands on top of the cliff, leaning over the edge for a better view while keeping his hand on the lever that prevents the colossal boulder from toppling down the rocks. The omniscient narrator reveals, “Some source of power began to pulse in Roger’s body”(pg 175). Unlike his timid behavior at the beginning of the boys’ adventure, Roger has become a power revolving, tyrannical leader. A second example of Roger’s extreme egotistically and callous behavior appears at the most shocking point of the story when Piggy is innocently murdered. The narrator describes, “Roger releases the stone from the mountain and it comes toppling down on Piggy, killing him immediately and gruesomely”(pg 180). This incident, similar to many others, demonstrates Roger’s immense ruthlessness and barbaric cruelness. He killed Piggy with the flick of his wrist without any second thoughts, and he would have no problem doing the same thing to someone else who got in his way. This pleasure to kill that Roger possesses is inhumane and cold-blooded. After the boys experience the murder of Piggy, everyone seems to be slightly shaken except for Roger. He is the ultimate henchman who follows Jack’s orders no matter the cost. Roger replaced leadership with fear after he killed Piggy, and his reign of terror never seems to cease: “Roger edged past the chief, only avoiding, pushing him with his shoulder. The yelling ceased and Samneric lay looking up in terror. Roger advanced upon them as one wielding a nameless authority”(pg 182). Roger’s authority does not reveal itself until the end of the book when he turns into a savage with no moral compass whatsoever. In the beginning of the novel, Roger is still influenced and his behavior regulated by the strict British society from his previous life. However, as the story progresses, Roger’s desire to hunt becomes stronger and the influence of society fades, a darker, more menacing Roger emerges. Roger becomes second lieutenant of Jack and gains power from his new position. In all, it is safe to say that the island has changed Roger. He no longer carries the dignity of a young British boy, but feels the savagery of an uncontrollable wild animal.
In Golding’s novel, Roger begins his journey on the island as a timid, secretive British boy who slowly turns vicious before becoming a completely uncivilized, cold blooded murderer.

At the beginning of The Lord of the Flies, Roger is the mysterious boy who has a rough side to him. He kicks down sandcastles and shows no pity, but he also remains quiet and evasive when he should give input on various topics. Despite his minor mean streak and elusive behavior, Roger knows where to draw the line when the boys start their adventure. When he is throwing stones at the littluns, he acknowledges, “Yet there was a space around Henry that he dare not throw”(pg 64). Although Roger does not make the smartest decisions socially, he is still influenced British and societal morals. As the boys spend more time on the island, Roger gradually turns savage. He has broken away from Ralph’s clan and is now second -in-command of the hunters. Roger is Jack’s henchmen, and he does whatever he is told. Even the narrator acknowledges his social growth, from being the hunted to the hunter. Roger steadily climbs the social ladder so that he no longer is the submissive boy he was at the beginning of the novel, but a crude bully with wrongful intentions. He follows all of Jack’s commands with pride. Roger also takes part in a brutal killing of a pig, having no problem spilling the guts with vicious stabs. The difference between every single boy, from the beginning of their time on the island to the end, is substantial. Roger, to say the least, has also experienced change throughout the adventure. He went from an insignificant, shy boy to a cold blooded killer. Roger killed Piggy without any hesitation and terrorizes other islanders with no guilt whatsoever. In the novel, Golding uses Roger to represent the darkness that lurks in all people. No matter who we are or where we come from, every man has an evil side that is yet to be discovered. Under certain circumstances, that sinister side begins

to slip out from under us, and could potentially create an entirely different person. Similarly, Roger began as a somewhat civilized British boy with certain boundaries, but as he spends more time on the island, this moral compass begins to slip away into a darker, more evil side. Golding creates Roger as a boy whose level-headedness disappears after the boys had been on the island for only a short time. His rapid decline in behavior demonstrates how quickly a person can go from rational to insane under certain circumstances. Golding creates Roger to represent the human race and the variability in behavior based on particular situations. This slip from reality happened to Roger, but deep inside us all, this potential darkness lurks within us all.