An Unbalanced Mind

Side Effects of an Unbalanced Mind Include Symptoms Like... Throughout history people have shared several common characteristics with each other; one of which is an attraction to boundaries and rules. Today psychologists and philosophers study why humans are this way. Some argue that the fewer rules someone has to follow the happier they will be, while others contradict that school of thought by arguing that people subconsciously enjoy the stability and normalcy created by rules. Some people even venture to identify rules seen in common religions that govern followers and how they live. Psychologists also point out the existence of the subconscious mind’s governing system known as the “Ego” that maintains balance between the wilder more animalistic
The boys’ attempt to create a government can be seen in this quote where the boys establish speaking rules, “....We can’t have everybody talking at once. We’ll have to have ‘hands up’ like at school.”.... “ Then I’ll give him the conch.”.... “ I’ll give the conch to the next person to speak. He can hold it when he’s speaking.”(Golding 33). This quote shows how the boys created their civilizations main component which was the ability for anyone to speak. The civilization the boys created, which is now considered a democratic government at this point in the book, relies on the conch and the control that it holds over them to maintain order. By that explanation of the conch’s significance; it means that if the conch were to be destroyed all order would be lost in one fell swoop, which is exactly what happens in this quote, “.... the conch exploded into a thousand white fragments and ceased to exist…. Piggy fell forty feet and landed on his back across the square red rock in the sea. His head opened up and stuff came out and turned red.”(Golding 181). The destruction of the conch and Piggy’s death in this quote signifies the loss of order and logic on the island. Because two major figures of the book are lost in this scene the results are largely evident. The loss of order, due to the conch being destroyed,
They do this by allowing the Id more control than the Superego. In the beginning of the novel the boys are sane and assign jobs, elect leaders, and create a government. This period of peace and sanity marks the time frame when the boys are psychologically balanced in both their Superego and Id. The balance in the boys’ minds was attained, because of society’s grip on them which ensured the morals and values they were previously taught persisted. Society’s grip on the boys’ minds, in the beginning, can be seen in this quote, “There comes a pause, a hiatus, the pig continued to scream and the creepers to jerk, and the blade continued to long enough for them to understand what an enormity the downward stroke would be”(Golding 23). This quote shows that right when he was about to kill the pig Jack couldn’t bring himself to do it because of the “enormity” of taking a life that society had taught him. Being unable to kill the pig showed that Jack’s Superego, like many of the other boys’, was still intact. Later in the book the boys begin falling down the slippery slope of following their Id and the natural wildness that comes with it. One of the main contributing factors to the boys eventual regression to savagery was the discovery of dazzle paint. The effects of the dazzle paint on the boys’ psychological impulses can be seen in this