Masculinity In William Golding's Lord Of The Flies

A recurring theme among leaders in many societies today is that “absolute power corrupts absolutely” (John Acton, a 1700’s English Catholic historian, politician, and writer). In William Golding’s Lord of the Flies, this idea of leadership, power, and corruption is put in the spotlight. Jack, one of the boys on the island, forces his way into the leadership position without actually earning it. It is clear that Jack has become corrupt as he turns into a person who is intimidating, egotistical, and selfish. Ralph, on the other hand, is a quality leader under most conditions as he appeals to the boys’ sophisticated side and has a

A boy longs for connection at the same time he feels the need to pull away, and this opens up an emotional divide. This struggle between his need for connection and his desire for autonomy finds different expression as a boy grows. But, regardless of their age, most boys are ill-prepared for the challenges along the road to becoming an emotionally healthy adult. Whatever role biology plays (and that role is by no means clear) in the ways boys are characteristically different from girls in their emotional expression, those differences are amplified by a culture that supports emotional development of girls and discourages it for boys. Stereotypical notions of masculine toughness deny a boy his emotional resources. We call this process,

wrote this after publishing Lord of the Flies. It is our world, in the form of a story. The two leaders in the story are Ralph and Jack. Ralph starts off a comfortable leader of the boys, but by the end of the book, Ralph and his companion Piggy are alone facing Jack and the rest of the boys. As the novel progresses and the society on the island starts to change, so does Ralph. He begins thinking he has all the answers, but comes to realize that without Piggy he would have never gotten this far. By the end of the book, Ralph and Jack are complete opposites. Jack is about savagery and fun while Ralph is holding on to society, rules, and civilization. Appearing to be a weak leader due to defection of his followers, Ralph is actually dedicated and insightful, only loosing his followers because he could not compete with one category that attracts nearly everyone in the world: fun.

Within Lord of the Flies, we see firsthand the tendency toward violence and destruction that lies within humanity, and boys in particular. Without society, they fell apart. They committed atrocities that go against every rule, every social expectation, we see in humanity. Although Lord of the Flies shows important ideas about boys’ place in society, it also allows the reader to form unrealistic views on ideas such as death, violence, and conflict.

This starts in childhood when false masculinity is induced by a parent, mentor or neighbor. In a number of social situations, a boy is continuously taught that emotions are not a man’s zone. A strong association of emotions and femininity is imposed on a boy when someone says that crying makes him look like a girl. As a result, a low level of emotional intelligence is one of male typical features by their teens. This means that the skill of being aware of their own feelings is underdeveloped with most men. The greatest emotional outburst is usually about anger because it is associated with “macho” type. This is why it is so typical when a man cannot help feeling angry even in situations when he should normally feel another emotion like sorrow or offence. A psychologist says that many men are “trapped in the

Literary devices are techniques often used by authors to portray in-depth analyses of major characters, storylines, and central themes, which take place in a story. These analyses help readers understand a message the author is trying to convey. In the novel Lord of the Flies, William Golding uses different literary devices in order to demonstrate the boys’ struggle against the lack of society and law on the island, as well as the consequences that have transpired due to this loss. This conflict is evident through the different instances of irony, foreshadowing, and symbolism that occurs throughout the novel.

It may have taken millions of years for humans to evolve enough to create the sprawling civilizations known today, but it only takes a few months for a group of civil, educated boys to regress back into savagery. In his novel Lord of the Flies, author William Golding depicts a group of young British boys getting stranded on a deserted island sans adults. The boys must look out for themselves, forming a basic governing system and trying to survive. But the challenge soon proves too much to handle, and order deteriorates. William Golding conveys the universal theme of civilization vs. savagery in his novel Lord of the Flies using the literary elements of plot, setting, and characterization.

The article “How Boys Become Men” written by Jon Katz, gives a positive statement on how boys still haven’t change and are still growing up the same. Jon Katz, shares with us while walking his dog one day, he saw a boy get beaten by a group of older boys. While walking towards him, Katz asked if he was okay; the boy said yes and begun to swing like nothing happened. I believe that what Jon Katz states is true, because the fact is; boys are always going to think they’re the Alpha Male in every situation. For example: who can climb the highest Rock, who can make a bigger splash in the pool or who can maybe get a girlfriend first.

This is also influenced to boys by their fathers when they are growing up. Kids see what is happening around them and they are like sponges once they see something they will soak it up. So when a father is being demanding to a mother then their kid is soaking it up and later on in life the kid will us it on any women that might enter his life. This is an example as of how young boys get the idea to be stronger than a women. Boys also might be the same way with their mom but the mom will see it and hopefully tell them that it’s not a good thing to do to a women. Kids are growing up and noticing what they are doing but still do not want to change their ways because they think it is

One influence would be media and the other would be peer group. In the film “Tough Guise 2” we saw how media has such a big impact on men’s violence. Media not only teaches boys how they are supposed to look to be considered manly but also how to act. And a key factor in this is to stop expressing themselves emotionally. From a young age, boys are taught not to cry or let people know if they are upset. It is perceived as a weakness and seen as feminine or gay. This is supported by “We can’t show any emotion except anger. We can’t think too much or seem too intellectual. We can’t back down when someone disrespects us. We have to show we’re tough enough to inflict physical pain” from the film “Tough Guise” On the other hand, girls are not stopped from crying or expressing themselves emotionally since a young age. Thus, they grow up thinking it is not an issue to express themselves.

Often when boys get hurt, or fail class they will not show them out, they try to hide the emotion inside them. Over the story, it seems like boy’s are fear of what other people think of them and scare of reject, they carry on their emotion inside, they afraid people around them see their weakness. These prove why most boys don’t cry even though they are hurts. If the boy cry or act their emotional out then that boy is a sissy. Pollack states, " Men take a whole range of feelings and emotions and put those behind a mask.”(P. 73) These show that boys have to stand on their own two feet try to be tough and they are a shame to show any emotion. According to Pollack “boys are shame phobic and "some will even kill to avoid shame”. It seems like the society only allows men to express their emotion only through anger. With many strict conflicting expectations, a

The boy code has been around for many generations, passed down from father to son, like a family heirloom. It is cherished and use to make boys into men. As boys grow up they are taught that it is not ok to cry and not to show any emotion unless he is fighting for his manhood. Boys are raised with shame and a certain type of sadist way. A father’s responsibility to his son is to raise him to be a man. Sensitivity and weakness is not allowed but, if he slips up and cries, he may be shamed and may come to fear the repercussions. The things that a boy may hear are “man up”, “quit crying”, “quit being a sissy” and “unless you want a reason to cry you better shut up”. No a days instead of building them up males are treated like they must put their emotions in a box, locked away and never used in any situation.

While it is normally considered acceptable for women to be feminine and show their sensitive side, if a guy does this, he will often be made fun of. I think this is a good example of patriarchy within our society – being a strong alpha male is considered a good thing, and being feminine and sensitive is considered weak and bad. I watched an interesting documentary last year in my psychology class about toxic masculinity and the affect it has on boys even at a young age. In many traditional families, parents teach their boys to toughen up or “man up” if they are hurt, instead of allowing them to be emotional. Boys often feel as though they have to constantly be tough and brave, and are not allowed to show any type of emotion because it is considered weak. This is extremely toxic behavior to teach young children, and often causes issues as the child grows up. All children should be taught that they should be free to express themselves however they want, regardless of their

As a boy grows into a man he faces the ever-raising mountain of masculinity. In regards to the occurrence, he finally reaches maturity he has no choice but in order to fight to retain his measly sense of manhood. He is not allowed to act feminine or else he’s not man enough, he can’t show his emotions, he has to hide that he can do anything a woman can do sans give birth. Boys grow up being told they are not allowed to cry and that they are supposed to be tough, that they are not able to be like girls and in the event that they are then they are not real boys. This concept is known as toxic masculinity, some people are not aware that men are being forced to suppress their emotions or even that toxic masculinity should be a topic that is

A lot of males’ violent behavior and females’ complaisance can be accredited to family and institutional socialization. Parents usually raise boys on aggressive sports, such as hockey and football, which encourage violence. Girls, however, are generally brought up on "feminine" activities, dance and figure skating to name a few, which promote a gentle, polite nature. It is the rare parent that heeds their four-year-old son’s aspiration to be a ballet dancer by purchasing the child a pair of tights and a leotard. When a boy shows more interest in dolls than in trucks, his family may be distressed, and provoke him to reveal his "masculine" side. After striving for egalitarianism between the sexes for so many years, families still deter young girls from pursuits of hockey stardom, hoping to interest them in Pointe shoes. Displays of emotion by boys are often criticized for being "unmasculine", whereas emotional behavior in girls tends to be expected and accepted. As a result, boys tend to not only hide their feelings, but criticize friends for showing their emotions. Girls, on the other hand, encourage one another to express feelings and console one another naturally.