Nightmares of the Island The nightmares still came sometimes. Even though Ralph was home, even though he was safe, he still remembered the horrors of the island. He didn’t think that he would ever forget what happened. For a brief time, not even a month, he had left civilization. And living on that horrid island, he had seen what people would do when there was nothing to stop them. He knew, deep in his heart of hearts, that he had murdered Simon. He also had seen Piggy die, right in front of him, killed by Jack. He never even knew Piggy’s real name. People had died, on that island, and some of their deaths had been his fault. If the commander had arrived just a little later, then Jack and his band of savages would have killed him. That’s …show more content…
Always, since he was just a tot, he had dreamt of power, and on that island he had taken it. He had been so disappointed when Ralph was made chief, but his time had come in turn. That wonderful island had taught him many things. For one, rules are useless you back them with force. Everyone had left Ralph’s tribe, yet no one had dared leave his. Two, the principle of the carrot and the stick. People would not join you because of merciless discipline. You must offer them rewards. Three, there is no such thing as good and evil. People could so what they liked, but when faced with a threat would follow you, and your commands to do whatever was necessary. Back in England, no one would have followed his commands to murder Simon and Piggy, or his unfortunate failed attempt at the same with Ralph. All of the boys would have said no, but on that incredible island, faced with force, they had not. When he was older, he could tell men to slaughter innocents, and they would follow him. And finally, Jack had learnt that murder felt good. All of the other boys would say that it wasn’t murder that they hadn’t known, or didn’t mean it. Nonsense. It was murder, but why was murder bad. He had dreamt of murder, of killing those who had stood in his way, practically forever, and now he had finally had a chance to kill. He had pulled away from the wonderful island, but the murders he had gotten a chance to perform had given him such a …show more content…
Much has been purged, but historians have pieced together an account of his life story. Jack Merridew was born June 15th, 1942, in Hambleton, England. Nothing much of distinction happened in Merridew’s life, until he was stranded on one of the Cocos islands in 1955, among a group of British schoolboys fleeing the Third World War. By the accounts given of the few survivors, Jack brutally seized power from another boy, and in the course murdered two boys, and attempted to kill a third. This would prove to be an important prelude to Merridew’s life. Jack Merridew entered Sandhurst in 1959, at the precocious age of 17. He graduated with distinction in 1961, and was commissioned as a 2nd lieutenant in the Yorkshire Regiment, which was fighting in Poland at the time. During the course of the remaining three years of the Third World War, Merridew was a model officer, often leading from the front. A combination of this and heavy casualties lead to his promotion to Captain by the end of the war in 1964. After the Treaty of Riga, Jack continued in the massively cut back army. He had an excellent service record in the many colonial pacification wars. By the time of the Anglo-French War (1979-1981), Merridew had been promoted Colonel, and was the head of the Mercian Regiment. He was quite possibly the best commander in that war, and he inspired tremendous loyalty from his men.
This quote is significant because it represents what Jack is and what he has done. Ralph calls Jack these names before they lose their temper and are about to fight. In this quote, Ralph has called Jack out, that he is the reason of all the misfortune that has happened on the island and that he is the beast. That he was the reason of all this savagery and that he caused the evil within the boys, he brought it on through his need for leadership and his want for hunting and killing. Ralph calls him a thief and a swine because of his behaviour towards Piggy. He stole his glasses and turned all the boys against Ralph and Piggy who were the only good people on the island. As well as for making the island a fearful place for the boys. I feel that Ralph is right in everything he has said to Jack. He created the fear on the island all because of his need to be chief. As well as turned everyone against each other at the ending of the novel.
Jack ruled with, what we call today, an “Iron Fist”. Golding shows this by telling how Jack ruled, how he’d beat those who didn’t obey him and how he was violent, greedy, and self-absorbed. He rolled a boulder down the mountain the killed Piggy and organized a party to mutilate Ralph. By this point in the story, he was so infatuated with power that he didn’t care about being rescued and that he was willing to spend the rest of his life on that island just to be the leader and ruler of all everyone. This is Golding’s way of showing how Jack had become so obsessed with power that he would kill anyone who said he was unfit for it and have a public “example” to show what would happen to those who opposed and threatened his
The officer led the boys to the ship, one by one in a line, they
For instance, the denial from Ralph and Jack leads the boys to make decisions that caused havoc to their society on this island. As they; Ralph, Jack and the boys engrossed the island, they simultaneously lost hope. Such as, Simon says to Ralph, “You’ll get back to where you came from” (111). Ralph tries telling the boys they are going to get rescued. But as days pass and how long they have been on the island, he is undetermined. Jack, on the other hand, does not believe that being rescued will ever occur. He tells the boys it is hopeless of them to think they can get out of the island. Furthermore, not only did they deny being rescued, but Ralph and Jack do not acknowledge the deaths of Simon and Piggy. For example, as stated in the book. “The breaking of the conch and the deaths of Piggy and Simon lay over the island like a vapor” (184). However, Ralph does acknowledge a bit of Simon’s and Piggy’s death, but afterwards he forgot due to Jack and his tribe willing to go after him. As to Jack, he was neglectful about th...
We all want to live in a world where we have freedom, rights, opinions and democracy gives us that. In the book Lord of the Flies, Ralph’s democratic leadership style is much better than Jack’s dictator leadership style because everyone has equal rights and that is fair. Firstly, Ralph gives everyone on the island a chance to express their opinion and contribute. Secondly, getting rescued is the most important thing for Ralph. Last but not least, Jack is very self centered and selfish. He is rude and inconsiderate. He doesn’t care about anyone but himself.
When Ralph sees the naval officer that appears on the island to save them, he realizes that he will return to civilization. The shock causes him to reflect on what has happened. The rescue does not produce joy; instead he feels despair at what he has been through. He is awakened to the reality that he will never be the same. He has lost his innocence and learned about the evil that lurks within himself and all men through his experiences on the island. Ralph’s revelation to his loss of innocence and societal order among the boys is exemplified through the collapse of the attempted Democratic government, the killing of the pig, and the death of Piggy and Simon.
To begin, survival is the key in every ones mindset. You only live once as most people say. However, with Jack and Ralph and the rest of the boys, they all seemed that all hope was lost. They had been stranded in the island for months, hoping that one day, someone will find them and return them home. Ralph was the most panicked person in the group simply because he hadn’t cut his hair and it was growing. He also did not shower at all, and he did not shave or eat as much simply due to the lack of surviving. He had given up on the hope for rescue, until in chapter 12, he, along with Jack and the rest of the boys, were saved by an officer which saw the destruction and the vicious bodies of the ...
This scene described the rabid behavior read as, “...tearing of teeth and claws” (Goulding 153). I felt a wave of terror go through my body as I read that line. Just the image of it in my head, I felt violated. The image of boys ripping their friend to bits and pieces terrifies me. The boys were turned into savages at this point of the novel and the only person who slightly seem to have realization of what just happened was Ralph when he stated, “That was murder” (Goulding 156). I’m sure that Ralph felt guilt and shame of the people the island has morphed him into. If I were Ralph I would feel shame of practically murdering a person who showed me nothing but kindness. Goulding including Ralph’s realization it showed the readers that he wasn't completely lost and he still had a small part of his human self within him. Next, the death of Piggy brought tears to my eyes. Piggy’s dead body was described as, “Head opened and stuff came out and turned red” (Goulding 181). My favorite character had to die in such a painful and terrifying way and I felt great amount of sadness and especially because I related him the most than the other
Lord of the Flies takes place on an uncharted island in the Pacific Ocean. The Island is likely near or on the Equator because the type of vegetation that grows on the Island indicates that the Island is of a tropical kind. The boys discover this Island while on a plane that crashes and the boys find shelter on the Island. The Island has no human inhabitants on it besides the boys and its main inhabitants are pigs. The Island’s landscape includes a jungle, a forest, a mountain, and a small lagoon. On one side of the Island, there is a coral reef and the deep blue ocean and on the other side, it is riddled with rocks and more of the deep blue ocean. There is also a very large rock that appears a bit detached from the island and this is where Jack sets up his headquarters towards the end of the book. The vegetation on the island is mainly palm trees, fruit trees, and vines. None of the plants on the Island
Katherine Paterson once said, “To fear is one thing. To let fear grab you by the tail and swing you around is another.” William Golding, who is a Nobel Prize winner for literature, writes Lord of the Flies, originally published in 1954. Golding’s novel is about a group of boys who crash land on an island. All of the adults are dead and they are abandoned on an island. The boys try to set rules and create a fire in efforts of being rescued. The group of boys chooses Ralph to be their leader. This choosing makes a literary character named Jack, who doesn’t show his anger until half way through the plot. The novel shows the nature of humans and how fear can control them. The novel also shows the difference between good and evil. Golding experienced this when he was in World War II. There were many times fear controlled the boys in the island in Lord of the Flies.
The author, William Golding uses the main characters of Ralph, Jack, and Simon in The Lord of the Flies to portray how their desire for leadership, combined with lack of compromise leads to the fall of their society. This desire for leadership and compromise led to the fall of their society just like multiple countries during times of wars.
As Ralph is trying to hide from them overnight, he wonders, “Might it not be possible to walk boldly into the fort… pretend they were still boys, schoolboys who had said, ‘Sir, yes, sir’- and worn caps? Daylight might have answered yes; but darkness and the horrors of death said no” (186). No matter how hard Ralph tries, he cannot discard his new knowledge of Jack and his tribe’s potential for evil and corruption. For a long time Ralph seems to be in denial; like many others, he seems to want to stay true to his belief in the overall goodness of the human heart. Ralph’s expectations for human kindness are finally challenged to the point of irreversibility when Jack attacks him and tries to pursue him on a vicious manhunt. When Ralph collapses on the beach and a naval officer arrives, “With filthy body, matted hair, and unwiped nose, Ralph wept for the end of innocence, [and] the darkness of man’s heart...” (202). One might think it strange that rather than rejoicing over rescue, Ralph and the rest of the boys cry out in grief. The young schoolboys come to understand the enormity of human greed and evil, and unfortunately it is a lesson that they will not be able to ignore or forget. They witness and play a role in their own loss of innocence, and the time they spend on the island teaches them what
While his situation allowed his personality to blossom into something horrible, the desire for blood and power already flowed through his veins. An example from the beginning, before the corruption of the boys, was when Jack first arrived at the meeting with his choir following behind. They were wearing their cloaks in the heat and Jack only let them rest after Simon had fainted. Jack’s controlling nature can be observed from the very beginning of the book. At this time, decorum still covered his bloodlust, but it was quickly triggered after he hadn’t been able to kill a pig. The text reads that “Next time there would be no mercy”(p.31) He was not only embarrassed of his weakness and wanted to uphold his status, but he was also losing the civility that an organized society ensured. The island was the key that unlocked Jack’s hidden, savage
... people are out in the wild, and also have no civilization or government to keep their evil suppressed. At the very end of the book when the boys are rescued Golding writes, “ His voice rose under the black smoke before the burning wreckage of the island; and infected by that emotion, the other little boys began to shake and sob too. And in the middle of them, with filthy body, matted hair, and unwiped nose, Ralph wept for the end of innocence, the darkness of man's heart, and the fall through the air of the true, wise friend called Piggy” (202). In this quote Ralph is crying because he has now lost all of his innocence that he once had before he got on that horrible island, due to everything that has happened on the island. He is also crying because he had just lost his friend Piggy because of the savagery acts of the boys and now he realizes how evil everyone is.
is left with the decision of whether or not to drop the rock. Roger is