An Allegory of Sigmund Freud’s Psychoanalysis Theory in William Golding’s Lord of the Flies

The id is the unconscious part of our mind that "contains our secret desires, darkest wishes, (and) intense fears" ("Psychoanalytic Criticism" 2). The id is entirely irrational and serves only to fulfill urges and wishes that the person most desires. The superego is also unconscious and is driven by the morality principal. It "represents the demands of morality and of society" (Mullahay 39). The superego urges us to do what will be accepted by our peers and by society. It can be compared to our conscious in the sense that it drives us to do what is right so that we won’t feel guilt or remorse. The third part to the trio is the ego, which is based solely on logic and rationality, and is part of the conscious mind. The ego "represents reason and sanity" and makes sensible and logical decisions even though these decisions may not fulfill all of our desires (Mullahay 36). "The ego (can be called) the battleground for forces of the superego and id" in that it "regulates (the) id and comes to terms with (the) superego" ("Psychoanalytic Criticism" 2).

People show who they really are when there are no rules and chaos takes over. A man named Sigmund Freud creates the idea that all people are made up three main characteristics. The fist characteristic is the Id, wanting anything that will bring it immediate happiness. The Ego is the second characteristic, feeding the Id in socially acceptable ways to continue getting what it wants. The final characteristic is the Superego. The Superego is developed last and is the part of all humans that does things for the greater good. In William Golding’s Lord of the Flies, Golding uses three characters to represent the idea of Id, Ego, and Superego. William Golding uses a character named Jack to represent the Id, doing anything to get what he wants. Golding uses Ralph to represent the Ego, trying to get what he wants in socially acceptable ways. Finally, a boy named Piggy is used to represent the Superego, doing things for the greater good of the group. The three characters represent the three main characteristics that every human has, Jack is the Id, Ralph is the Ego, and Piggy is the Superego.

The ego is the mediator between the id and the circumstances of the external world to aid their interaction. The ego represents reason in contrast to the id. Freud called the ego ich, which translates to English as “I”. The ego follows the reality principal. The ego does not exist independently of the id. The ego exists to help the id, and is constantly striving to bring about satisfaction of the id’s instincts. If the ego fails to keep a balance with the id and superego, a person may have difficulty

Ralph and Jack begin the novel with similar beliefs, both wanting to implement rules. “I agree with Ralph. We’ve got to have rules and obey them.” But then the wanting of power from Jack comes to- Ralph

The ego is the part of the mind that represents consciousness. It employs reason, common sense, and the power to delay immediate responses to external stimuli (Storr). When making a decision, the ego balances out both needs of the id and the superego. In Freud’s own words, “It performs that task by gaining control over the demands of the instincts, by deciding whether they are to be allowed satisfaction, by postponing that satisfaction or suppressing their excitations entirely,” (Freud). Being a stereotypical earnest

theory of the Superego, the Ego and the Id. The Id is the centre of

development of the plot. It comes down to the point where a self-respected-man like himself

Simon is symbolized as things such as depression and loneliness which is very important, in the book because there is one point where someone says to the boys on the beach, which means that he thought about it while the others did not think about it. He thought about the problem and the things that the boys did, he becomes the beast himself. The story states, ”maybe we are the beast” (Golding).

And though a large part of the ego is unconscious, it nevertheless includes what we think of as the conscious mind.

However, According to Freud, the super-ego exists as a way to level out the ego, and, in a way, keep it in check. Therefore, the super-ego is responsible for an individual’s conscience, or, their ability to feel guilt. Freud continues his explanation of these concepts by asserting the idea that the super-ego calls our attention to our own failures and misconducts, and attempts to assist us in learning from them in order to avoid making similar mistakes in the future. Furthermore, the conscience is the form in which the super-ego controls our actions and thoughts, and creates guilt within us. Therefore, the ego is the decision-making, acting part of an individual, while the super-ego acts as the ego’s voice of authority and control (Freud).

Explain how the ego, id and superego interact. Use an example from your own experience.

The third and final element in the Freudian mind is the ego. The ego is our conception of ourself in relation to others. This is in contrast with the self-centered id. If one has a "strong ego" that person feels confident in dealing with others and can accept criticism. To have a "weak ego" is to need continual approval from others. The ego is very similar to the self-esteem concept. This is the part of the mind that develops from an awareness of social standards and is modified by contact with the social world. The ego is like the mature adult. When the id is saying, "I want that" and the superego is questioning what is right and wrong, the ego enters the equation and decides what to do. A mature ego will deny immediate pleasure in order to avoid any consequences.

Sigmund Freud’s theory of personality and the stages of consciousness and its constant battle paint a very negative picture of human life. The ego constantly has to battle the id and its selfish demands and the superego flying in trying hard to aid the id in calming down and strengthening the ego. As such our mind is constantly in war, our ego constantly battling off the evil id and losing every battle.

Freud said that the Ego is the mediator between the Id and Superego and the outside world. For the Ego to do its job, it has to delay the desires of the Id until it is socially acceptable to give the Id the needs. So our conscious-driven Ego is a balance of the Id and Superego, evening out our primal needs

William Golding is a very strange man. The types of stories that he wrote are very demonic, strange, and very insane to the reader. His demonic ways of life all lead to him writing the novel, Lord of the Flies. Throughout the book, William Golding shows examples of Freud’s characteristics of the three different types of personality. The three characters that show these examples are stranded on an island and showing whether or not they will have the civilized side of them left. ("Id, Ego and Super-ego") The three characters on the island are Jack, Ralph, and Piggy.