The 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.

William Golding utilizes Lord of the Flies to prove that the inherent nature of man is truly savage and cannot be contained by any form of civil government. Characters, setting, atmosphere, and other elements are all used by Golding in the novel as metaphors and symbols to ultimately reveal the natural intention of man. In Thomas Hobbes’ Leviathan, John Locke’s Concerning Civil Government , and Jean-Jacques Rousseau’s The Social Contract, they share their own personal interpretations on man’s inherent nature, with the closest to Golding being Hobbes. Although both Golding and Hobbes state that man’s true nature is evil and selfish, Hobbes advocates for an absolutist government as capable of controlling man through fear of punishment, as opposed to Golding’s belief that no form of government is sufficient to control man. Conversely, Rousseau argues that men are born with morality and inalienable freedom, and John Locke believes that man is free but is neither inherently reputable nor immoral but a blank slate. Both want the people to be in control to prevent corruption from changing man, although Rousseau insists that a direct democracy to completely give power to the people would be more effective rather than only a representative democracy where the people would have individuals represent them which Locke suggests.

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.

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

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.

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.

Lord of the Flies tells a story about a group of school boys who are twelve and younger. They crash on an unknown island whilst they are being evacuated at the dawn of the next world war. Ralph, who is the protagonist of the story, struggles to maintain vestiges of civilization against the call of human nature and savagery. William Golding’s Lord of the Flies is a hero’s story because Ralph, the elected leader of the boys, portrays the archetypal hero, he faces a road of trails like all heroes do, and, he gains gifts from his journey.

When wisdom is lost, civilization crumbles and savagery rises. William Golding makes this statement apparent through the character of Piggy in Lord of the Fies. The main idea of the book is fixated on a group of young boys struggling to survive after a plane crash on a deserted island. They must put their independent thinking and logic to the ultimate test, without a proper head of authority to show them right from wrong. Golding portrays Piggy as wisdom and the voice of reason. Once the voice of reason is gone, civilizations ceases to exist.

According to Lord of the Flies is still a Blueprint for Savagery by Eleanor Learmonth and Jenny Tabakoff, the words “I’m afraid. Of us” first appeared in Golding’s novel 60 years ago. Lord of the Flies by William Golding follows a group of schoolboys trapped on an island after a plane crash during a world war. At the beginning, they celebrate as they have total autonomy as there are no adults around. They attempt to establish a civilization but when order collapses, they go on a journey from civilization to savagery. In Lord of the Flies by William Golding, Jack mostly represents id, Ralph mostly represents ego, and Piggy mostly represents superego.

Evil is at in the center of anyone’s soul, and that’s what Golding shows in Lord of the Flies. The book is about a plane crashing onto an abandoned island, and a large group of boys is stranded without any adults. They let their animalistic sides slowly take over throughout the book, becoming practically different people. Golding shows this evil throughout the book with early signs of evil, characters with evil intentions, and clear signs of evil at work. The beginning of the book is about the boys meeting up with each other and establishing rules for their group.

William Golding’s survivalist, dystopian novel, Lord of the Flies, reveals the civilizing influence of good order and discipline in human society, and the consequences of the absence of these conditions. Throughout the work, Golding’s employment of the conch shell as a symbol illustrates the importance of authority, discipline, and civility in the young boys’ lives on the island.

In the book Lord Of The Flies by William Golding, symbols are used to highlight the impactful nature of Ralph, the main protagonist. Ralph is brought to so much power being credited to finding the conch and rising but also falling in power along side it. The supporting character of story, Piggy, helps us show how the conch is a double edged sword. It gives Ralph the ability to become leader and create a civilization but also helps Jack, the antagonist, resist the conch and help build his own empire on the island which tears everyone apart and creates savagery which is controlled with the tips of his fingers. Ralph uses the conch to symbolize order, which

Nature is an integral part of our lives that often isn’t taken seriously. Many people, commonly big companies, destroy nature to gain status and profit. This has been going on since humans came to be. In the novel Lord of the Flies, this is a prominent theme. In the book, many British schoolboys are stranded on an island after a plane crash. Immediately, roles are developed. Jack is a power-hungry choir boy who disrespects nearly everything- especially nature. Ralph is the leader of the group, a strong, well-built boy. Simon is an outcast. He is often analyzed as a Jesus-like figure and he is truly kind. During the novel, Jack is constantly disrespecting nature; he is always killing animals and destroying plants. Simon is very harmonious with it, he doesn’t harm anything he doesn’t have to. Ralph changes his attitude due to whom he’s with, as he is much more destructive when he is with Jack, and is kinder when with Simon. As the novel progresses, so does the severity of their traits. This theme develops at the same rate as many of the other relevant themes in the book such as ‘civilization vs. savagery’, ‘loss of innocence’, and ‘the nature of good vs. evil’. William Golding’s work, Lord of the Flies, develops a foil triad between Jack, Ralph, and Simon around the concept of ‘man vs. nature’.