Savagery In Lord Of The Flies

Imagine living in a world with no parents. Sounds pretty awesome right? While it may be fun for a little bit, you will eventually wish things were back to the way they used to be. William Golding has revealed this through his story to show how mankind's “essential illness” affects those of all ages through different situations such as being stranded on an island. In his novel Lord of the Flies, author William Golding shows, through the children, that in the absence of civilization, humans tend to descend into savagery and become very power-hungry.

When people are stripped of their civilization, they can become very confused and lost. This idea can be seen in a real life scenario, The Stanford Experiment. In the beginning of the novel, the

After the descend into savagery begins, the boys’ lives are very unpleasant. They become power-hungry and lose touch with their inner selves and who they really are. This idea has been seen in real life during The Stanford Experiment. The Stanford Experiment involves students being placed in a simulated prison, 12 of them guards and 12 of them prisoners, and left alone to do whatever they please. The guards get a out of line, very similar to the boys on the island. The boys are tired of eating just the fruit; they want meat. There are pigs on the island, but Jack can’t bring himself to kill one. At the first prime opportunity, a pig was stuck, Jack couldn’t and wouldn’t let himself kill it. After more attempt of killing the pig, that changes. Jack heard something moving and “he swung back his right arm and hurled the spear with all his strength”(Golding 49). At this point, all of Jack’s thoughts of home are gone. He does not care about the person he used to be at all. All Jack cares about is having some meat to eat. While being on the island, the boys have had no sense of family, or something to bring them together. These boys are very young and most likely have no experience living by themselves, but are now forced to be. They do not really know what to do, and it causes them to fall into savagery. At the meeting with all the boys that Ralph holds every so often, Jack commanded somebody to “‘give [him] a drink.’ Henry brought him a shell and he drank, watching Piggy and Ralph over the jagged rim. Power lay in the brown swell of his forearms: authority sat on his shoulder and chattered in his ear like an ape” (Golding 150). After the two groups form on the island, Jack names himself the leader of their group. As the whole island falls apart, Jack sees an opportunity and takes advantage of the situation. The boys, especially the littluns, are very lost and do not know what to do, so they follow