Lord of the Flies by William Golding

In the novel Lord of The Flies by William Golding, the characters Ralph, Piggy, and Jack represent important World War II leaders Franklin Roosevelt, Adolf Hitler, and Winston Churchill. Golding, who had served in World War II, was well aware of the savagery created, and used it to base his book on. Ralph represents Franklin Roosevelt , Jack represents Adolf Hitler, and Piggy represents Winston Churchill. Ralph being of the novel’s main protagonist is important in the outcome of the story because of his views like President Franklin Roosevelt, focus on keeping civilized during the hard times.

Almost everyone knows someone who appears to have grown up without rules or authority figures in his or her life. This person may often act like he or she is better than everyone else. To everyone else, though, this person does not seem to be as civilized as the rest of society. He or she is often rude and inconsiderate and are very mean to others. This happens when no one ever tells the person what he or she is doing is wrong. In William Golding’s novel Lord of the Flies, something very similar happens. Young boys have no rules set by an authority figure, and this causes them to decide that they have to make the rules themselves. When some of the boys start to rebel against the rules, the island spirals into a hysteria of savagery.

In William Golding’s Lord of The Flies, the detriments of an unrefined civilization, such as one without leadership and indulgent citizens who are amoral, can be catastrophic, causing extreme repercussions to society. A lack of solid leadership, such as the arbitrary leader Ralph, can cause confusion, apprehension, and chaos. Jack and other children often indulge their impulses which clouds their judgement causing them to undermine their society. By not reinforcing the difference between savagery and humanity, many people begin to die. Ralph clearly is not well-equipped to lead a group of young men.

According to Golding the inherent nature of man is evil when entirely free from societal restraints. When the boys first arrive on the island in Lord of the

The island in William Golding’s novel, Lord Of The Flies, is one of wonder and a great deal of natural resources. However what develops on this oasis is war, bloodshed and cruelty. This could also be said for Earth, as the same traits occur in the global society as well. Therefor, the island symbolises the entire outside world in three key ways, social relationships, war, and politics.

In the beginning of the Lord of the Flies we are introduced to two young boys, who have survived a tragic plane crash. The aircraft was an evacuation plane and it was transporting the group of boys out of England. One of the boys named Piggy is trying to catch up to the other boy, Ralph. Piggy is described as being very fat and shorter than Ralph. He wears “thick spectacles” (William Golding 7) and he is the first to determine that they are on an island. Piggy is also the one that knows how to use the conch shell and comes up with the use of it, which is to call everyone else to the beach. He believed the conch created order. Once the conch had been used we are introduced to more boys and they gain interest in Piggy’s glasses. They discover that Piggy’s glasses can start fires and they refer to them as “burning glasses” (Golding 40). The boys also rejoiced when they discovered that his glasses could create the fires. They proclaimed, “His specs - use them as burning glasses!” (Golding 38). The spectacles symbolize Piggy’s intelligence, which distinguished him from the others. Without the glasses Piggy would be blind and he would not know what to do. Although Piggy is portrayed as being physically weak and not having a great chance at survival, he is the only one that seemed to know a few survival skills. He is the one that created the fire, sundial and shelter. Without his glasses he would not be ‘intelligent’. His appearance and personality cause him to be shunned

Many people have their own views on humanity. They can either be that humans are essentially good but can become corrupt or that people are just essentially evil. They have their own opinions, some people can tell their perspective on humans in other fashions. If people are essentially good, they how do they become corrupt? Or if are truly evil, then why do some people seem like they are kind people and they can never do such things? To take both of these into account, a person may saw that people are good but deep down have evil within them. People may ask how does the evil within a person come out, the answer to that is that it is thanks to their environment. The environment around a person can undoubtedly draw out the evil within them

Laws and rules are what set people apart from savagery. Leaders are what keep a group alive in times of crisis. In Lord of the Flies, by William Golding, Piggy is the only character who remains civil and does not turn to savagery. The boys notice his appearance more than his brain which blinds them from seeing his intelligence, patience, and rationality.

The theme of The Lord of the Flies, by William Golding, is the reason society is flawed is because people are flawed. Although Piggy is knowledgeable, he has many flaws including his laziness and physical inabilities. Ralph is an authority seeker. He sets rules and laws, yet does little to enforce them. Ralph wants to be the ruler, without doing the work to enforce his laws. Jack is persistent. He is rude, harsh and violent in order to get what he wants. He wants to be supreme. Piggy’s flaws are impactful in the story. His laziness and lack of physical ability hurt him in his quest for survival.

Each character in the novel Lord of the Flies represents a part of the psyche according to Freud. The power struggle between the characters displays the need for civilization to control the instinctual nature of Freud 's theory.

After detecting smoke coming from the island a British naval officer goes to investigate: “I should have thought that a pack of british boys- you’re all british aren’t you- would have been able to put up a better show than that,” (Golding 202). Britain was one of the most advanced societies of the early to mid 1900’s, and complete mayhem emerging out of a group of British boys stranded on an island is more than shocking for the naval officer. It is ironic that the same boys who boldly stated, “We 've got to have rules and obey them. After all, we 're not savages. We 're English, and the English are best at everything,” (Golding 40), quickly regressed into the primal habits of mob mentality. Lord of the Flies was written shortly after World War II. A strong connection can be made between the leadership of the antagonist, Jack, and World War II icon: Hitler. The two leaders both display devoted followers, and a corrupt sense of leadership and control. Golding insists that fear and mob mentality provoke irrational thinking by placing Jack and his followers’ unintelligible response to fear in contrast with Ralph and Piggy’s diplomatic approach. Furthermore, Jack and his followers overcome their fear by providing comfort for each other with a tribal attitude, which ultimately leads to mindless calamity on the island.

The Lord of The Flies, an amazing and controversial book written by William Golding does have some interesting views on society. If you look on the surface you see some kids who are doing what kids do and that is to be crazy and have fun. However, if you look deeper you'll find the roots of Golding's beliefs on society and humanity as a whole. It's more of a pessimistic view. There's also the view of Jean Jacques Rousseau, the author of "Dissertation on the Origin and Foundation of the Inequality of Mankind". They're complete opposites but both have some interesting points on the nature of mankind.

Throughout Lord of the Flies, the ideas of good versus evil and civilization versus savagery creates conflict between the boys. Readers are able to see that inside every human there is a beast, and that beast can only be released when law and order begin to fade out of the picture. Golding uses Ralph and Jack to represent good and evil in Lord of the Flies. Ralph is the main character that represents the good nature of humans, while Golding uses Jack to define the savagery and evil within. It is important that the individual brings forth the change in oneself which will result in a change in society.

Imagine yourself in one of the characters shoes in the novel “Lord of the flies.” You would see yourself loaded with responsibilities, major decisions, etc. “Lord of the Flies” represents a microcosm of adult society. The island can act as a democratic government, demonstrate knowledge, and each character can demonstrate an aspect of adult society. William Golding was in the Royal Navy during WWII. He creates a smaller image for what’s really happening in the world.

CRASH! A plane crashes full of people near an island. The plane is full of grown-ups and