Power Masks In Lord Of The Flies By William Golding

Violence begins to emerge in Jack at the end of the novel. This is the last quality that shows Jack is a dynamic character. By the end of the book, Jack has become a murderer. Not only

Symbols in a story allow readers to understand the main message and idea that the author attempts to convey within literature. Often, masks are used to perform, be disguises, and even act as protection. William Golding includes the use of masks in his book, Lord of the Flies. The mask is worn by the ferocious leader Jack Merridew. Jack creates the mask with materials that he found scattered around the island. On his face, he uses black, red, and white charcoal which creates a covering of his face. He uses the mask to become a different being which changes his attitude and changes his conscious. As the novel progresses, the mask terrorizes kids and eventually begins to terrorize the animals and nature that surround the boys. The symbol of the mask in William Golding’s Lord of the Flies begins as anonymity, becomes a protection from guilt, and concludes as savagery.

Jack, one of the lead characters in the novel, alludes to the biblical figure Judas for his betrayal to the good of the people brought forth by Jesus. Jack is the reason Simon is killed, for he betrayed Ralph’s rules and brought forth the evil within the children’s minds. Jack refuses Ralph’s ideas and regulations in trade for fun and hunting. This shows his betrayal to the good of man and his want to bring evil forth to the island.

Jack is a character that is very influential. Jack represents savagery and evil in the book, by the way his civilization is canceled out by the bloodlust. Jack starts as a potential leader in the book by keeping the hunters organized. He seemed to support the fire when he said the following, “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.” (Page 38) One day when Sam and Eric were guarding the fire Jack asked them to

Masks have held countless uses and meanings throughout history. Masks have been used in plays, like those of Shakespeare, traditional dances, social gatherings, even as a form of casual or corporal punishment. Although masks have several different uses in different cultural situations, the meaning of the masks is generally the same. Masks are used to conceal an appearance and assume the identity of another. Metaphorically, masks can be used to hide feelings, to protect oneself, and to block out the outside world. Many of these examples are shown in Art Speigelman 's Maus.

Jack represents evil, violence and how people can have a dark side emerge in a period of hardship. As a former choirmaster and "head boy" at his school, he lands on the island having had control and power over others, by overpowering the choir with his bad attitude. He wants to make rules similar to Ralph but his rules are much harsher. Jack’s rules are more black and white.

Symbols in literature are like the Earth, there are multiple layers until you get to the core meaning. In the novel, The Lord of the Flies, William Golding, utilizes symbols in order to get his deeper meaning across. In a novel about boys isolated on an island during the time period of World War II, Golding shows the outcomes of what isolation can have on a group of people. While trying to get these messages across, the author uses symbols as an aid These symbols range from strength, hope, and fear. One of the most important symbols in the book is Jack’s mask. The mask starts out as a way to help Jack hunt and grows from there. Therefore, Jack’s mask begins as protection from Jack’s own identity, evolves to his strength, and

In the “Lord of the Flies,” William Golding uses ordinary items to symbolize bigger universal ideas. These symbols can be seen throughout the text and will evolve as the story progresses. In the beginning of the Lord of the Flies, one of the most frequent topic the boys discuss is hunting and their desire to have meat. However, not a single boy is able to hunt successfully as they are all afraid of killing another living thing. The boys only have a successful hunt when they use the mask. The mask in the Lord of the Flies is one of the many symbols used to communicate Golding’s universal ideas. When the mask is used in the Lord of the Flies the mask serves the purpose to hide the boys from the pigs when they hunt. However, when the text is examined in an allegorical means, the mask can be defined as hiding from oneself, strength, and savagery. The allegorical definition of the mask, proves how the mask does not only hide the boys from the pigs, but also hides the boy’s inner connections with their former selves. The mask in the Lord of the Flies initiates as hiding from oneself, evolves to strength, and ends a savagery.

Jack was a very power hungry young boy.  Although he doesn't have any power at the beginning of the novel, he took every opportunity to take the position of chief and was eventually successful. Jack's dictatorial style of leadership contrasted very directly with the more democratic and passive style of Ralph.  Jack ruled with an iron fist, allowing no one to question him or his leadership. Jack represented the wanting for a single, all-powerful leader to guide the followers of society using any means he feels necessary.

Jack Merridew is presented as the indifferent, older character of the novel. He is the antagonist and could be seen as a devil figure in the story. Jack is the hunter, the dictator and, throughout the story, is at constant battle with Ralph for his leadership. Jack wants to be in control of the island and the kids but the type of leadership that he offers is brutal and similar to that of a dictatorship and communism. Jack also believes that the group should have fun and stuff oneself with the food they hunt. He is not very concerned with the future of being rescued. On the other hand, Ralph wants order and work and is much more concern with being rescued.

Throughout the book, Jack is heavily influenced by the male figures in his life. His father leaving his mother left

It is easy for readers to categorize Jack as a cruel, cold hearted, upper class bigot considering his actions and words. I have to admit I think he comes off that way sometimes. But he also is a lot more than just

To begin with Jack, Jack wants power and leadership. The situation Jack is in makes his evil grow. Jack is letting the situation control him which is increasing the evil inside of him. The evil inside him is making him more selfish and violent. For example, at the starting of the novel when Jack had failed to kill the pig he cries to Ralph, “[Jack] tried to convey the compulsion to track down and kill that was swallowing him up. ‘I went on. I thought, by myself-’ The madness came into his eyes again. ‘I thought I might kill.” (Golding 51). The quote shows how at the starting of the novel Jack had good inside of him as he had feared killing an animal which makes sense as he is a kid. This shows that Jack was not evil from the beginning. But the situation and atmosphere increase the evil inside of him when he says, “I thought I might kill” this shows how the

In the beginning of the book you are introduced to the antagonist Jack , who is in the middle of killing the

Later on in the novel, Jack put his rebellion into full force. He got everyone