Lord Of The Flies Human Nature Analysis

In William Golding’s novel, The Lord of the Flies, a large group of privileged English schoolboys are stranded on an island in the Pacific with no adults after the plane they were on crash-landed. The boys are brought together by the Conch that is blown by Ralph in the beginning of the book. The conch is symbolic of order and authority in the book. The boys go under a transformation of these privileged schoolboys to a group of rag tag savages trying to kill each other for power throughout the course of this book. This essay will be outlining the transition from good boys that listen to authority, into boys that rely on their id of savagery, and the descent to evil, destruction and panic through the journey and

Throughout Lord of the Flies, Golding shows his views of the inherent evil of humans. He shows how humans can be in such a savage state, practically mimicking the way of life of their prehistoric ancestors. He exemplifies this with acts of carnage carried on by the young stranded children. It all started with a slight urge to hunt down a pig and then continued on to murdering another human being. Golding shows his views best at the end of the book with the boys being rescued by a Navy crew, which would go on to war it self.

It is a very arguable subject on whether or not people are born with good intentions, and therefore taught by others the ‘evil’ side of their personality. Whether it is the absence of ethical conduct in human nature, or just the way one perceives a situation, evil seems to be prominent in our everyday lives. Humans seem to have a moral code that follows them with every decision they make, yet despite the laws of morality and society, people of this world still seem to behave inhumanely because of the act of self-preservation, human interest, and who exactly the authority figure is at the time.

Lord of the Flies is often claimed to be an allegory of modern society. While this is true, Golding’s intentions in writing this novel are much deeper. William Golding’s Lord of the Flies provides an enlightening insight into the true nature of human beings; along with why people refrain from acting upon the evil that resides within them. He presents these ideas through symbolism within the novel and it proves effective in many ways. Through symbolism, Golding can unfold the excellent plot of his novel, while subsequently sharing his ideas on the relationship of mankind and society. Golding uses the beast, the conch shell, and Piggy’s glasses to symbolize the human impulse towards ‘savagery’ and the social constructs put in place to prevent it.

One’s behaviour can have an substantial impact on a society's outcome. There is a common notion that humans are nurtured to be peaceful and civil. However this belief is contradicted by the action of the boys, in William Golding’s, “Lord of the Flies”. A group of schoolboys are abruptly thrown out of their controlled and civil circumstances into an inhabited tropical island in the middle of the Pacific. The novel is Golding’s attempt to trace the defects of society back to the defects of human nature, by using symbolism to delineate this theme. Golding’s extensive use of symbolism, such as the conch, the signal fire and the painted faces helps demonstrates the defects of society. These symbols are used by Golding to illuminate the subsequent effects on the boys’ behaviour, which undoubtedly illustrates the defects of human nature on society.

Imagine being stranded on an island without hope or assurance of help being on the way. This is the scenario William Golding presents in his novel, Lord of the Flies. Golding uses many symbols throughout his novel to help shape the theme of how the flaws of human nature create the flaws within a society. Jack and Ralph interact throughout Golding’s novel to demonstrate how the flaws in human nature cause the flaws and chaos in a society. Jack begins to show his oppressiveness and power hungry characteristic not too long after he separates himself from Ralph.

The emotional behavior and irrationality of human nature guarantees that any society created by people will be plagued with defects and flaws, particularly the disownment of logic and reason. This is due to the reality that people act on emotion and instinct rather than on logic and rationality, causing humans to be, by nature, corrupt and narcissistic. As a result, people are inclined to fulfill their selfish desires, causing them to reject order and democracy, and instead embrace the development of chaos and anarchy. William Golding’s Lord of the Flies documents the story of a coalition of schoolboys, stranded on an island, and how the society that they form devolves into turmoil. Evaluating how Piggy is rejected due to his unseemly appearance and ideas, his respect for order and peace in contrast with the boys’ lust for destruction, as well as Piggy’s attempts and overall

Through symbolism, irony, and diction in Lord of the Flies, Golding demonstrates that in the absence of order, people become more savage. Throughout the novel, many symbols show the boys losing their conditioned way of life for one that is more savage. The boys have begun to ignore the

Human nature is altered when there are no consequences. In the novel Lord of the Flies there are young boys stranded on an island, In order to survive the true characteristics of man come out. Some characters appear to be born angelic however some are naturally born evil. When a young boy named Roger murders a boy and rapes a pig there are no consequences. Rogers lack of remorse is then exacerbated when tossing a pebble at a young child turns into murdering a young boy with a boulder, which demonstrates that mankind's pure evil will not stay hidden when there are no consequences.

In the novel, Lord of the Flies, William Golding is able to use his outstanding writing abilities utilizing metaphors, symbolism, and other literary devices to establish a hidden message throughout the novel. The hidden message that Golding builds on is that there is a natural evil inside every human being, which is suppressed in an organized society through laws, rules, and punishment. The young boys in the novel are on an island all by themselves. There is no punishment for their actions, therefore allowing that evil to come out of most of the boys. All humans have an innate evil within them and that evil is brought out when there is a lack of civilization and consequence as seen in Simon’s murder,

Lord of the Flies by William Golding is a story that happens between a group of schoolboys on an island. The boys establish their own society, and wait for being rescued in a peaceful environment on the island in the beginning. However, the conflicts about the issues of hunting, disciplines and leadership eventually sever the boys to two different groups. The separation and the arguments between the boys ultimately result in the sorrowful ending that the island becomes a place that is filled with deaths and chaos. According to William Golding, the theme is able to trace the flaws of the society back to the flaws of the human nature.

William Golding’s allegorical novel, Lord of the Flies, demonstrates the chaos in human nature with the loss of order and government. A group of boys is trapped on an island without an adult and are forced to survive using their own set of skills. Each boy struggles with the beast within, some boys are able to control it while other let it take over them completely. Golding illustrates the balance between order and chaos that each boy deals with and through this he displays the darkness that lies in the hearts of all humans.

Human nature is the “general psychological characteristics, feelings, and behavioral traits of humankind”. Between the Book, Lord of the flies and The Crucible, human nature is strongly portrayed through similar characters such as Simon and Mary Warren, Satan/Devil and the Beast, and Jack and Abigail. Simon and Mary Warren both share their wise and kind traits and being bringers of truth, while Satan/Devil and the Beast share the characteristic of exotic and the unknown, both are also able to bring out each person’s human nature like Jack and Abigail’s, which is consisted of being selfish liars. Lastly, Jack and Abigail, who both portray betrayal and the same characteristics of being evil, lying , and selfishness.

William Golding’s Lord of the Flies is a gritty allegory of adolescence, innocence, and the unspoken side of human nature. Countless social issues are portrayed, however one of the most reoccurring is the nature of man. Throughout the novel there is an ever-present focus on the loss of innocence amongst the boys, shown by the deterioration of social skills and their retrogression into a barbaric form of society. Also portrayed is the juxtaposition of a cruel, evil main character and a more classically good counterpart, and their eternal rivalry for power and authority over their younger subjects. Does society or the lack thereof create evil in human nature, or simply magnify a pre-existing

James Madison once said, “If men were angels, no government would be necessary”. But men are not angels and there is a need for government, because men are not inherently good. Throughout the novel, Lord Of The Flies, William Golding successfully portrays his view of human nature as inherently evil by the actions and thoughts of the boys who are stranded on an island. The catholic church’s standpoint that human nature is inherently good is overpowered by William Golding’s view. William’s view is expressed throughout the Lord Of The Flies through the savagery in the book, the desire to kill/ hunt, and the loss of their innocence.