Calamity In Lord Of The Flies
The boys in William Golding’s Lord of the Flies, all experience changes over the course of the book. As they stray away from the civilized natures of their old life, they bring upon devastation to the island and themselves. First, loss of civility is most evident in Jack’s character who paints a tribal mask on his face, pretends to kill a littlun, and beats an innocent boy without justification, is ultimately responsible for the calamity that is Simon’s death. Roger also shifts from his status as an English boy to a savage over the course of the novel, as he triggers this de-evolvement by throwing stones at the boys, commends Jack’s cruelness as a leader, and ultimately becomes the most brutal of the savages, bringing about the death of Piggy
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The reader first sees Roger as a tempered little boy, but he still has a few hidden restraints from the old life, as “[his] arm was conditioned by a civilization that knew nothing of him and was in ruins.” Roger understands the implications of throwing and hitting, and he is still fearful of the consequences, though there are no adults on the island. However, this fear is only temporary, as he soon loses the distinction between right and wrong. Secondly, Roger admires Jack’s very destructive catapult and becomes inspired by his approach to leadership, saying “ ‘he’s a proper Chief, isn’t he?’ ” (176). As he looks up to Jack, also looks up to his mistreatment of the boys and extremely unnerving mannerisms such as killing creatures for pleasure and beating up boys because of internal anger. This influence compels him to go beyond what any other boy would do, as he “edged past the Chief, only just avoiding pushing him with his shoulder... Roger advanced upon them as one wielding a nameless authority” (202). Now, he does not even recognize that the chain of command must not be broken, making him more savage and dangerous than Jack and the others, as they become afraid of Roger’s volatile behavior. Furthermore, Piggy’s death and the destruction of the conch, both important symbols of order and civility, are destroyed; demonstrating that there is no further hope left for civilization to revert back to the island. Therefore, this immense consequence is brought about by Roger’s total degeneration from order and advancement to
The reader first sees Roger as a tempered little boy, but he still has a few hidden restraints from the old life, as “[his] arm was conditioned by a civilization that knew nothing of him and was in ruins.” Roger understands the implications of throwing and hitting, and he is still fearful of the consequences, though there are no adults on the island. However, this fear is only temporary, as he soon loses the distinction between right and wrong. Secondly, Roger admires Jack’s very destructive catapult and becomes inspired by his approach to leadership, saying “ ‘he’s a proper Chief, isn’t he?’ ” (176). As he looks up to Jack, also looks up to his mistreatment of the boys and extremely unnerving mannerisms such as killing creatures for pleasure and beating up boys because of internal anger. This influence compels him to go beyond what any other boy would do, as he “edged past the Chief, only just avoiding pushing him with his shoulder... Roger advanced upon them as one wielding a nameless authority” (202). Now, he does not even recognize that the chain of command must not be broken, making him more savage and dangerous than Jack and the others, as they become afraid of Roger’s volatile behavior. Furthermore, Piggy’s death and the destruction of the conch, both important symbols of order and civility, are destroyed; demonstrating that there is no further hope left for civilization to revert back to the island. Therefore, this immense consequence is brought about by Roger’s total degeneration from order and advancement to