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Lord Of The Flies Cruelty Essay

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Throughout many parts of the United States, there is a time of the year known as “fire season.” Because of a lack of water during this time, dead plant matter littered across the forest floor start to shrivel up, until they’re practically begging to be lit on fire. During this season, a single ember can ignite a wildfire capable of searing through hundreds of acres of forest. Just like this powerful, heat-ridden ember, a single act of cruelty can ignite even worse, more pitiless acts. In Lord of the Flies, William Golding demonstrates how cruelty gives power to perpetrators and victimizes the weak, He shows that cruelty lies in the heart of every person and child and that it is most prevalent in a society that lacks a penalty system. The …show more content…

He is often subject to harassment because of his weight. When taking roll call, Ralph introduces him as Piggy, so that “ a storm of laughter arose and even the tiniest child joined in” (Golding 14). As shown by this quote, even the youngest boys think they are better than Piggy because they aren’t chubby like him. He is much heavier than the other boys, which is one of the factors that sets him apart. He is never even given a chance to introduce himself; he is just given a nickname that exploits his weight. After this, Piggy never even tries to properly introduce himself. He knows that whatever name he gives will be rejected by the boys who view themselves as superior to him. Those who are isolated are also commonly made victims of. Once his tribe abandons him, Ralph is warned by Samneric about Roger and Jack. Eric says “‘They hate you, Ralph. They're going to do you. They're going to hunt you tomorrow”” (170). At this time, Ralph is considerably weaker than he was at the beginning of the story. He has no tribe to protect him, aside from a few littluns. Piggy and Simon are both dead, and Samneric now are joined with Jack’s tribe. Because of this, Jack can more easily target and kill Ralph. All forests accumulate dead and dried up bits of sticks and leaves that can easily catch fire. These conditions make wildfires inevitable. Cruelty is just as inevitable, and perhaps just as natural. Throughout the story, the boys repeatedly cry “Kill the pig! Cut his throat! Kill the

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