The Superego in Lord of the Flies and Fahrenheit 451

Ralph shows actions of id and superego by deciding to act as a leader or become savage like Jack. Montag also shows actions of id and superego by trying to save society or be part of the corrupt society. Both Ralph from Lord of the Flies and Montag from Fahrenheit 451 have the same goal to save people through superego actions, which results in having vicious people trying to kill them.

In the beginning, Ralph is indecisive between id and superego. He shows superego when Ralph says,” I was chief, and you were going to do what I said. You talk. But you can’t even build huts – then you go off hunting and let out the fire” (Golding 59). The fire is the only way in which the guys can be rescued. When the guys miss their chance of rescue, Ralph gets mad and restates the importance of keeping the fire going. Ralph wants the guys on the island to listen to him and act more like a leader. “The rules!” shouted Ralph. “You’re breaking the rules!” (Golding 79) Ralph sets out certain rules for the society on the island to get alone with each other and get rescued. Ralph wants them to survive before they get rescued and starts to create a society among them, however, Jack, an ill-driven enemy, hates the idea of Ralph being leader and starts to do id-driven actions. Although Ralph is driven by superego, he also shows id when Ralph says,” This is our island. It’s a good island. Until the grownups come to fetch us we’ll have fun” (Golding 27). Ralph wants to just have fun at the beginning and doesn’t care about rescue. Ralph doesn’t care because he doesn’t think about the war that is going on and relies on his dad to rescue him. Ralph starts to realize the facts and starts acting more civilized. Ralph also shows id when he “was f...

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...h Ralph from Lord of the Flies and Montag from Fahrenheit 451 act towards superego, which leads to creating id-driven enemies, however, they both reach their goal of getting rescued or saving society. As Ralph becomes a leader through help from Piggy, he tries to stop the savage ways of Jack and his group. Similarly, Montag starts to understand the truth and decides to participate in helping society know about books. Both of them have a lot in common as they progress through the story.

Works Cited

Golding, William. Lord of the Flies. New York: Penguin, 1999. Print. (1954)

Bradbury, Ray. Fahrenheit 451. New York: Simon and Schuster, 1967. Print.

Henningfeld, Diane Andrews. "An overview of Lord of the Flies." an Essay for Exploring Novels. Gale, 1998. Rpt. in Literature Resource Center. Detroit: Gale, 2013. Literature Resource Center. Web. 21 Nov. 2013.