Golding’s Lord of the Flies initiates the thesis of the Hobbesian belief that without a system —such as society and religion— life will be brutish and barbaric. It develops on this proposition through the trials and tribulations of island life with a group of teenage boys that grow to be savage over the course of the novel. All the allegorical momentums shown in the novel predicate toward one conclusionary critique: who is at fault on the island? Who is to blame for the seemingly inherent violence of humanity? For those who believe that it is the innate nature of humanity to blame, but in my belief it is not a question to answer, moreso as to analyze. Through the breakdown of concepts, it is evident that all fingers point toward a single conjecture; …show more content…
Hobbes’ belief in sovereignty comes from the dialectical perspective of human nature. We are said to be social creatures, and in being so we thrive in political and societal interactions. This is shown in Lord of the Flies, as Ralph “lifts up the conch.” (22) and explicitly states “Seems to me we ought to have a chief to decide things” (22). One of the first things the boys decide to do is to federalize. In Ralph’s action to lift up the conch, he confirms that the conch is a signifier of power and authority at that moment. Hobbes’ also believed that a state without authority is in a condition of war, which can be said to be true for Lord of the Flies, as Jack “Crushes the conch into a million fragments” (something). The eradication of Ralph’s power as a state without authority contorts the situation into a conflict between Ralph and Jack. Yet how accurate are any of the events on the island? This entire situation is based on presupposition. Everyone was raised within the system. We were institutionalized with social will; the most important part of society is the sociological aspect. This being a key piece of information about the boys, they were raised in Britain, so suggesting that the first thing they do is to federalize is not the result of human nature, but the institutionalization of interaction as a whole. If applied to the bigger picture, it begs the question: is …show more content…
Stating that essence is of the utmost importance, ideally pushes the notion that the result of influence develops identity more firmly in contrast to existence. Yet this notion would also perpetuate the presupposition that human nature exists. Golding, too, presupposes the existence of this nature to an extent. He states in Why Boys Become Vicious, “Are men and women born with cruelty as a deep component of their nature? Is civilization largely a heroic struggle to build layer upon layer of varnish upon the rough and splintered raw material of humankind?” (paragraph 3). This goes back to Hobbes’ statement on a state without authority, when Ralph’s faction lost power, they directly went into war. Why would this be a problem? A state without authority too suggests that it is because humans have an inherent brutish nature, otherwise Ralph and Jack would not have instantly been on warring terms. Having to imply that humans have any predetermined nature at all is fallible. The idea of predetermined nature states that there is a purpose for everything. Yet the very concept of purpose is subjective, for example, a situation can be seen as oppressive. But it is until the oppressed see the situation as oppressive, then in the global consciousness it becomes an oppressive situation. The purpose of the “oppressive situation” isn’t given until it is seen as oppressive. The same can be said about life itself, for
William Golding’s Lord of the Flies portrays the lives of young British boys whose plane crashed on a deserted island and their struggle for survival. The task of survival was challenging for such young boys, while maintaining the civilized orders and humanity they were so accustomed too. These extremely difficult circumstances and the need for survival turned these innocent boys into the most primitive and savaged mankind could imagine. William Golding illustrates man’s capacity for evil, which is revealed in man’s inherent nature. Golding uses characterization, symbolism and style of writing to show man’s inhumanity and evil towards one another.
William Golding’s novel ‘The Lord of The flies’ presents us with a group of English boys who are isolated on a desert island, left to try and retain a civilised society. In this novel Golding manages to display the boys slow descent into savagery as democracy on the island diminishes.
When viewing the atrocities of today's world on television, the starving children, the wars, the injustices, one cannot help but think that evil is rampant in this day and age. However, people in society must be aware that evil is not an external force embodied in a society but resides within each person. Man has both good qualities and faults. He must come to control these faults in order to be a good person. In the novel Lord of the Flies, William Golding deals with this same evil which exists in all of his characters. With his mastery of such literary tools as structure, syntax, diction and imagery, The author creates a cheerless, sardonic tone to convey his own views of the nature of man and man’s role within society.
Evil is an inescapable consequence of human nature, and in the correct setting, this intrinsic evil of humanity will emerge. In Lord of the Flies, the island acts as a microcosm presenting the real world, yet it is left uncharted to creating a bare environment away from the destructive nature of humanity. The novel explores the notion in which man destroys every beautiful environment they settle in, and that when in a bare setting, free of social construct, the evil and primal urges would surface. When the boys first arrive on the island, Golding paints it to be beautiful and not yet spoiled by man, highlighted in the use of personification in ‘the palm-fronds would whisper, so that spots of blurred sunlight slid over their bodies’ which creates
William Golding’s novel ‘The Lord of The Flies’ tells the story of a group of English boys isolated on a desert island, left to attempt to retain civilisation. In the novel, Golding shows one of the boys, Jack, to change significantly. At the beginning of the book, Jack’s character desires power and although he does not immediately get it, he retains the values of civilized behaviour. However, as the story proceeds, his character becomes more savage, leaving behind the values of society. Jack uses fear of the beast to control the other boys and he changes to become the book’s representation of savagery, violence and domination. He is first taken over with an obsession to hunt, which leads to a change in his physical appearance This change of character is significant as he leads the other boys into savagery, representing Golding’s views of there being a bad and unforgiving nature to every human.
Within each of us lurks a beast waiting for the first opportunity to bare its ugly fangs. A vestige of ages past, when violence and destruction was man’s only language, the beast only needs a bit of chaos to resurface. William Golding’s novel, Lord of the Flies, is hinged on this idea. In the story, a group of English schoolboys are stranded on an island without a single adult. They try initially to keep a rough semblance of civilization in place, calling assemblies and lighting signal fires, but the beast is soon awoken from its primeval slumber to wreak terror among them. Golding makes it his duty to reveal the innate evil of the human soul in Lord of the Flies by not only displaying general chaos, but detailing specific instances where the violent nature of man bleeds through. The “darkness of man’s heart” (Golding 202) is demonstrated when Roger feels the sudden urge to throw rocks toward a younger boy, when the boys’ game of mock hunting turns a little too real, and when the little savages murder Simon in a passionate frenzy.
Golding has a rather pessimistic view of humanity having selfishness, impulsiveness and violence within, shown in his dark yet allegorical novel Lord of the Flies. Throughout the novel, the boys show great self-concern, act rashly, and pummel beasts, boys and bacon. The delicate facade of society is easily toppled by man's true beastly nature.
In viewing the various aspects of the island society in Golding's Lord of the Flies as a symbolic microcosm of society, a converse perspective must also be considered. Golding's island of marooned youngsters then becomes a macrocosm, wherein the island represents the individual human and the various characters and symbols the elements of the human psyche. As such, Golding's world of children's morals and actions then becomes a survey of the human condition, both individually and collectively.
One of the main themes in William Golding's 1954 novel Lord of the Flies is that without civilization, there is no law and order. The expression of Golding's unorthodox and complex views are embodied in the many varied characters in the novel. One of Golding's unorthodox views is that only one aspect of the modern world keeps people from reverting back to savagery and that is society. Golding shows the extreme situations of what could possibly happen in a society composed of people taken from a structured society then put into a structureless society in the blink of an eye. First there is a need for order until the people on the island realize that there are no rules to dictate their lives and take Daveers into their own hands. Golding is also a master of contrasting characterization. This can be seen in the conflicts between the characters of Jack, the savage; Simon, the savior; and Piggy, the one with all the ideas.
The novel “Lord of the Flies” was written by William Golding to demonstrate the problems of society and the sinful nature of man.
This paper will explore the three elements of innate evil within William Golding's, Lord of the Flies, the change from civilization to savagery, the beast, and the battle on the island. Golding represents evil through his character's, their actions, and symbolism. The island becomes the biggest representation of evil because it's where the entire novel takes place. The change from civilization to savagery is another representation of how easily people can change from good to evil under unusual circumstances. Golding also explores the evil within all humans though the beast, because it's their only chance for survival and survival instinct takes over. In doing so, this paper will prove that Lord of the Flies exemplifies the innate evil that exists within all humans.
William Golding’s Lord of the Flies shows man’s inhumanity to man. This novel shows readers good vs. evil through children. It uses their way of coping with being stranded on an island to show us how corrupt humans really are.
William Golding's first book, Lord of the Flies, is the story of a group of boys of different backgrounds who are marooned on an unknown island when their plane crashes. As the boys try to organize and formulate a plan to get rescued, they begin to separate and as a result of the dissension a band of savage tribal hunters is formed. Eventually the "stranded boys in Lord of the Flies almost entirely shake off civilized behavior: (Riley 1: 119). When the confusion finally leads to a manhunt [for Ralph], the reader realizes that despite the strong sense of British character and civility that has been instilled in the youth throughout their lives, the boys have backpedaled and shown the underlying savage side existent in all humans. "Golding senses that institutions and order imposed from without are temporary, but man's irrationality and urge for destruction are enduring" (Riley 1: 119). The novel shows the reader how easy it is to revert back to the evil nature inherent in man. If a group of well-conditioned school boys can ultimately wind up committing various extreme travesties, one can imagine what adults, leaders of society, are capable of doing under the pressures of trying to maintain world relations.
William Golding’s Lord of the Flies is an author’s painting of the evil that resides in all of the human race. The tropical island setting presents an environment free from civil order introducing a battle ground for the war of good and evil. Showing different side of human nature one can ponder the question “What would I do?” Golding explains the good, bad and balance of human nature, revealing that in times of despair man can easily regress to a primitive state, leaving the strong willed to promote civil order, but often be extremely out numbered.
In addition to being a political activist, a literary and musical critic, and a novelist, George Bernard Shaw was a playwright and a remarkable one at that; his extraordinary commentary on such facets of life as marriage, education, government, religion, and social status sets him apart from other playwrights of his time.