Selfishness In Lord Of The Flies

As a base of human desire and need, power has always been one of the number one desire of mankind since the dawn of time. To place yourself above others, or gain control over your followers or a situation brings safety and comfort to a leader. A well written example of this concept lies within the twisted world created by William Golding in his, “Lord of the Flies”. Throughout the story, Jack seeks power above all else, and stops for nothing in this lustful quest of dominance. We can get a glimpse of Jack’s desires through his iron grip within his choirboys, how he clashes with Ralph, and how Jack’s actions bring about a deeper symbolism underlying within the story.

In this quote the two boys Ralph and Jack start thinking about making a fire. They quickly come to realize they have no matches to start a fire. As they look around in embarrassment they quickly see Piggy’s glasses. From this we are able to see the glasses that were being used as an item to see quickly becomes a tool of innovation, that is able to start fires without Jack and Ralph looking like an embarrassment after they had no matches or tools.

"His specs-use them as burning glasses” (Golding 40)! This quote was said when Ralph and Jack were trying to figure out how to start the fire. As the boys figure out how to use the lens to create fire, the idea of the glasses representing power increases. The glasses also seem to increase their chance of survival. The spectacles represent the kids’ only way of achieving the fire, by reflecting the sun’s rays. "Piggy's glasses flew off and tinkled on the rocks"(Golding 71). In this quote, Jack hit Piggy on the head, resulting in the fire. This caused the glasses to be broken. When the glasses broke, it represented the last tie of humanity the boys

Towards the end of the novel, as the change in leadership from Ralph to Jack occurs, Jack becomes extremely powerful and takes control over most of the boys on the island. As chief, Jack decided to raid the huts where Ralph, Piggy, and a few little ones were sleeping to steal Piggy’s glasses to aid in the formation of a fire. “Then there was a vicious snarling in the mouth of the shelter and the plunge and thump of living things . . . Piggy’s corner became a complication of snarls and crashes and flying limbs” (149). Instead of simply asking to borrow Piggy’s glasses, Jack used his power to manipulate his followers to not only steal the glasses, but also fight Piggy and Ralph in the

The boys forget the main goal, being rescued. Ralph repeatedly reminds them, “If a ship comes near the island… we must make a fire” (38). Ralph knows the chances of being rescued are slim, but creating a fire will increase those chances. This decision reveals Ralph’s ability to collaborate with the others in order to get the necessary work done. The fire is a logical idea because is someone sees it they will eventually be rescued. Comparatively, Jack uses his resources when no one knows how to start a fire as he commands, “His specs-use them as burning glasses!” (40). Jack resourcefulness of using the glasses to start the fire not only works, but helps them get rescued, keeps them warms, and allows them to cook. Nevertheless, Jack forcefully taking Piggy’s lenses is a symbol of lack of respect because he takes advantage of Piggy after viewing his vulnerability. Jack uses Piggy’s glasses is resourceful because they can use the lenses to create a fire with the sunlight. Their decisions display their responsibility and how they both qualify to become

When people think of a beast, a few ideas may come to mind. The monster that lives under your bed, a creature with fangs, or abomination waiting in the dark. But how often does one consider that the scariest beast may be humans themselves? In Sir WIlliam Golding’s novel “The Lord of the Flies,” boys stranded on a remote island are terrorized by a beast, similarly to some children and even adults in the real world. However, the events and actions of Jack and Ralph in Golding’s novel illustrate that the beast is really humans themselves, and their unending selfishness throughout the story.

He has a disagreeable attitude toward them and uses Piggy’s glasses to his advantage. “Piggy’s glasses flew off and tinkled on the rocks.” (71, Golding)  When Jack slapped Piggy and broke them, that resembled the full disorder and chaos experienced on the island. It showed how far the group has come from orderly civilization when the glasses are misused and not being used for smarts or reason anymore. The glasses are also one of the last remaining tools from the outside world. The boys use this tool, instead of more primitive means, to light the signal fire which shows the initial desire for order. But the glasses, like the conch shell, are broken by savagery. When the glasses break, the last link the boys had to their past society is broken.

Sigmund Freud once said, "Men are more moral than they think and far more immoral than they can imagine." Freud was credited with the theory of psychoanalysis, and he believed that there were three stages of moral development. First, in the Id stage, people don't have any empathy; they want what they want and they want it now. In the Ego, people are starting to care more about others and gain empathy, but they still may succumb to their self-gratifying desires. In the Superego, others' desires and wills go first because of their selflessness and empathy. Freud's statement, along with his psychoanalysis of the human mind, can be applied to William Golding's novel Lord of the Flies. In the novel, Jack, Ralph, and Simon represent the Id, Ego,

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.

One day while one of Jack's hunters were supposed to keep watch over the fire, they went on a hunt with Jack to kill a pig. Meanwhile on the beach, Ralph, Simon, and Piggy are building forts when they realize that a ship is passing over the island. Then, they realize that the fire is out, so they sprint up the mountain but by the time they get there, the ship was gone. At the same time, Jack and the hunters had just come back from the hunt. They see Ralph and know exactly what their mistake was. So, Jack tries to lighten up the mood by saying to Ralph that he should have been there because it was so much fun. Ralph gets very angry at them and says that they could have been rescued if they had been watching the fire. In retaliation to Ralph's anger, Jack takes Piggy's glasses and breaks one of the specs. Then they try to rebuild the fire while Ralph is blocking them, and Ralph doesn't move. (Golding 65-75). "No one, not even Jack would ask him to move and in the end they had to build the fire three yards away and in a place not really as convenient. So Ralph asserted his chieftainship and could not have chosen a better way if he had thought for days. Against his weapon, so indefinable and so effective, Jack was powerless and raged without knowing why. By the time the pile was built, they

Piggy’s glasses symbolize reason and innovation throughout the novel; Golding most commonly associates them with the old camp on the beach. Piggy uses his glasses to help the other boys “see”, both physically and intellectually, the best and most reasonable way forward. However, any time they are removed from the beach, chaos is sure to ensue. The first time, when the boys go to the mountain to light the signal fire, Jack and the other boys pry the glasses off Piggy’s face so they can use them as burning glasses. While this does help to start the signal fire so they can be seen by a ship, it traumatizes Piggy since even at this point in the book, Jack scares him. Despite the good intentions for the fire, it soon goes wild and even results in the death of a littlun.

Secondly, in the novel, Jack and Piggy’s relationship was fairly better than the relationship they had in the movie when they were trying to figure out how to start a fire it was Jack who noticed piggy's glasses and told them they could use them. On the other hand, in the film, it was Ralph who had the idea to use his glasses, because Jack’s relationship was very weak with “the boy who had asthma.” And they surely didn’t get along.

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.

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.