Preview

William Golding's Lord Of The Flies

Better Essays
Open Document
Open Document
1425 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
William Golding's Lord Of The Flies
William Golding stated in a radio broadcast that “the boys are suffering from the terrible disease of being human”. Explain how this pessimistic assessment of human nature is constructed in “Lord of the Flies”. What indicators are there of “a light at the end of the tunnel”, that is, of any signs of hope for the future of humanity?

The novel ‘Lord of the flies’ is a text by William Golding which deals heavily with underlying themes of an evil that lives in the heart of all of mankind. The novel does indeed portray the idea of the boys suffering from ‘the terrible disease of being human’, and this is suggested at various instances throughout the text. There are also references to a light at the end of the tunnel through the appearance of the character Simon. Throughout the novel, …show more content…
This shows that even the strongest of men can be reduced to tears at the thought of humankind and its ways.

To conclude, the pessimistic nature of man is constructed throughout the novel in the form of various acts and metaphors representing the different social statuses of the boys on the island, such as face paint representing savagery, and naked faces and the conch represent civilization. However, there is also some ‘light at the end of the tunnel’ depicted through the uncorrupted characters of Simon and Piggy. Though ultimately killed, their existence shows that perhaps there is still hope for mankind, despite its humane sickness. The ever changing dance of opposites between good and evil is finally resolved on the island, but as Ralph realizes, the darkness of man’s heart will never be
Continue Reading
View Writing Issues

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    Lord of the Flies by William Golding: Savagery Triggered by the Incessant Presence of the Id
    • 810 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Lord of the Flies by William Golding: Savagery Triggered by the Incessant Presence of the Id

    Lord of the Flies, an emblematic novel written by William Golding in 1954, is often interpreted as an allegory of the human psyche. For example, in a literary criticism of Golding’s Lord of the Flies Diane Andrews Henningfield, a professor at Adrian College, states: “According to Freud the id works always to gratify its own impulses…Golding seems to be saying that without the reinforcement of social norms, the id will control the psyche.” (Novels for Students 188) In Lord of the Flies Jack, the conch shell, and Piggy’s glasses descend into savagery when detached from the manacles of civilization because they are dominated by selfish desires and desperately seek to gratify them without considering the well-being of anyone else.…

    • 810 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Satisfactory Essays

    William Golding Lord Of The Flies Human Nature Analysis
    • 118 Words
    • 1 Page

    William Golding Lord Of The Flies Human Nature Analysis

    The book Lord of the Flies was written by William Golding after World War II. He describes about the group of boys who survive from the airplane crash. At first, all the boys have never known each other before but when the story progresses, all the characters start to show off their real personalities, and they have very different characteristics and opposing thought to each other. Golding uses the theme of human nature to show how difference the society is and the contents allude to some instinct in human nature in both good and bad way. In William Golding’s Lord of the Flies (1954), the theme of human nature is represented by the beast, violence, and religious reasoning.…

    • 118 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    William Golding's Lord Of The Flies: Character Analysis
    • 689 Words
    • 3 Pages

    William Golding's Lord Of The Flies: Character Analysis

    Lord of the Flies by William Golding tells the story about a group of English boys who are stranded on an island after a plane that they were on was shot down. On this island the boys have the freedom of living without adults. They must find a way to set up a society that is livable in and that maintains order. However as time passes the characters see that those tasks are easier said than done. In Lord of the Flies, there are many different characters that show development and growth. Characters like Piggy, Ralph, and Jack all show signs of maturing and growth near the end of the book. Some of the characters were humane and try to maintain order, but other characters fall into the savagery that is within everyone. This statement is best depicted…

    • 689 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    'Lord Of The Flies' By William Golding: Character Analysis
    • 926 Words
    • 4 Pages

    'Lord Of The Flies' By William Golding: Character Analysis

    In William Golding's 'Lord of the Flies', a group of schoolboys find themselves on a deserted island alone after a plane crash. They attempt to form a society and elect a 'chief', however this fades and the boys begin to destroy the island and each other. Ralph, the main character and 'chief' of the society the boys initially form, is a character who drastically changes throughout the narrative.…

    • 926 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Dialectical Journal For Lord Of The Flies Essay
    • 1020 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Dialectical Journal For Lord Of The Flies Essay

    The only boy on the island that understands the truth about humans, tries to save them from their self-destruction. Throughout the book, Simon represents a Jesus-like figure. He helped Ralph with the shelters, handed ʻlittlunsʼ food and was very perceptive about the true meanings of the world. When the boys believed in the beast, he was the only one who knew the truth, ʻmaybe there is no beast . . . maybe itʼs only usʼ (Golding pg 111). Simonʼs death represents the idea that goodness is weaker than evil. The murder of Simon is the point of no return for civilisation on the island and shows that even decent people like Ralph and Piggy are capable of committing heinous crimes. His death unlike Jesus did not lead them to salvation but lead them to destruction and a deeper inner evil. After Simons death, Jack the leader of his tribe, became merciless and cruel. Jack often used other characters fears to control the people on the island. ʻMy hunters will protect you from the beastʼ (Golding pg 185). Jack is the first of the boys to succumb to his inner evil and become a savage. This is ironic because at the beginning of the novel he says, ʻWeʼve got to have rules and obey them. After all, weʼre not savages. Weʼre English.ʼ (Golding pg 55). He uses the fear and evil within all the characters to force them to follow under his dictatorship. Throughout the book Jack has a crazy obsession with hunting, the more times he kills the less civilised he would become. Jack is the one responsible for sending the boys on the island into this deep dark evil that they cannot seem to escape from. As Jack becomes more evil as the book progresses, Golding makes him the representation of the evil in every man. Lord of the Flies is a deep and meaningful novel, with a pessimistic view on human life. Golding uses the characters for his novel, the setting of the island and the symbolism throughout the book to show the potential for destruction and chaos in the world. The idea that evil is…

    • 1020 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Savagery In William Golding's Lord Of The Flies
    • 579 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Savagery In William Golding's Lord Of The Flies

    Ralph realizes that the savages would not know when they crossed the line because the broken conch and “the deaths of Piggy and Simon lay over the island like a vapour.” The deaths deluded Ralph’s mind making him think that there was no hope for the savages. The author implies that Ralph could not mentally deal with all the disasters that happened and lost all hope in the other boys.…

    • 579 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Better Essays

    Theme Of Savagery In William Golding's 'Lord Of The Flies'
    • 1500 Words
    • 6 Pages

    Theme Of Savagery In William Golding's 'Lord Of The Flies'

    n the Lord of The Flies, William Golding represents the characters' descent from civilization to savagery through symbolism. One of the ways it is represented is fear, and its evolution as its source ceases to be external factors such as nature and becomes people, suggesting all the boys have a potential for evil within them. Becoming more savage and letting go of their civilized morals, the boys oppress one another, resulting in many of them becoming submissive and scared.…

    • 1500 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Better Essays
    Read More
  • Better Essays

    How Is Jack Portrayed In Lord Of The Flies
    • 747 Words
    • 3 Pages

    How Is Jack Portrayed In Lord Of The Flies

    Human nature isn’t perfect and has many negative aspects to it. The novel Lord of the Flies written by William Golding includes many negative aspects like greed, ill treatment, and jealousy that are portrayed through the outcome of the characters. These negative views of humanity are shown through the outcome of the characters Jack, Simon and Ralph.…

    • 747 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Better Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    'Lord Of The Flies' By William Golding: Chapter Analysis
    • 1961 Words
    • 8 Pages

    'Lord Of The Flies' By William Golding: Chapter Analysis

    Furthermore, as Chapter Two begins, the boys agree to establish some rules since they don’t have any authority figures present. In an endeavor to maintain what they are used to, the boys use to conch to assist them in creating rules and order. Ralph, the chief, mentions while holding the conch, “And another thing. We cannot have everybody talking at once. We’ll have to have ‘Hands up’ like at school” (Golding 33).…

    • 1961 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    William Golding's Lord Of The Flies: Allegory
    • 1014 Words
    • 5 Pages

    William Golding's Lord Of The Flies: Allegory

    In Lord of the Flies William Golding uses allegories to illustrate the human psyche. Different characters are used to represent different parts of an individual 's mental structure: the impulses of the Id, the rationality of the Ego, and the moral understanding of the Superego. Golding carefully describes each character 's actions to coincide with each part of the psyche. Jack, Piggy, Simon, and Ralph are characters in the story that represent the psyche.…

    • 1014 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Mental Changes In William Golding's Lord Of The Flies
    • 754 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Mental Changes In William Golding's Lord Of The Flies

    Nonetheless, Ralph barely dodges death on the island while Simon and Piggy actually die. On page 200, "Then he was down, rolling over and over in the warm sand, crouching with arm to ward off, trying to cry for mercy." Even though Ralph is lucky, the choir boys kill Simon thinking he is the beast. Page 154, "Simon's dead body moved out toward the open sea." Lastly, Roger pushes a huge boulder into Piggy resulting in his death on page 181, "Piggy's arms and legs twitched a bit, like a pig's after it has been killed. Then the sea breathed again in a long, slow sigh, the water boiled white and pink over the rock; and when it went, sucking back again, the body of Piggy was…

    • 754 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    William Golding Lord Of The Flies Analysis
    • 913 Words
    • 4 Pages

    William Golding Lord Of The Flies Analysis

    There is no end to fear, no one can be saved from it, and nothing can make it forgotten. In William Golding’s Lord of the Flies, a group of young, British schoolboys’ plane crashes on a deserted island during a war, leaving these young boys to fend for themselves with no adults. Throughout the book, the boys are driven by their fears of the island, eventually leading them to savagery. The boys become beasts within themselves as they tear and burn the island down to ash. Once the boys have lost all sense of humanity, and they stand amongst a burning civilization, a naval officer arrives on the island to rescue them. Realizing there is no true end to the fears they have all experienced, the boys break down, sobbing as the officer stands, waiting to take them all back to a war stricken world. By looking at the conclusion of Lord of the Flies, one can see how Golding uses it to show the effect of fear on the boys’ personalities; this is important because fear is the driving factor of society’s dismay.…

    • 913 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    lord of the flies
    • 544 Words
    • 3 Pages

    lord of the flies

    In William Golding’s novel The Lord of the Flies , he questions the nature of man and origins of evil within human beings. The plot involves a plane full of British boys, between the ages of six to twelve, crashing on an empty island. There, they are stranded without any adults and as time progresses, the upbringing of the boys regarding societal rules and morals are tested as they revert into a life of savagery. Golding proposes a shocking revelation that human nature is naturally evil. This is demonstrated through mob mentality as well as hidden symbols throughout the book.…

    • 544 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    William Golding's Lord Of The Flies
    • 634 Words
    • 3 Pages

    William Golding's Lord Of The Flies

    "He began to dance and his laughter became a bloodthirsty snarling" (Golding, 54). William Golding depicts a scene of utter rejoice and of foul behavior. A group of boys stranded on an island, are forced to leave the arbitrary laws that dictate modern society. Lost in a place without rules, without a government, or adults to run it, the young boys manifest a society of their own. Struggling between the need for civilization and the thrill of savagery, two young boys are revealed as the social outcasts, of a society without function.…

    • 634 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Human Nature In Lord Of The Flies
    • 418 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Human Nature In Lord Of The Flies

    Tragic events have always pushed humans towards either acts of great compassion or even greater contempt. In William Golding's Lord of the Flies, this human nature is depicted through his characters. Golding's book portrays his belief that humans are innately evil.…

    • 418 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More

Related Topics