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Man must have rules in order to control his savage side. William Golding brings out this theme in the novel Lord of the Flies. When you first read Lord of the Flies you may think it is merely a simple adventure story of boys on a deserted island. But if you take a deeper look into it and consider the statement above you will see that this book is also an attempt to trace the defects of civilization back to the defects of human nature. There are many characters in the story that help prove how man must have rules in order to control his savage side. Ralph is the chief and he represents civilization and its parliaments.
Piggy is Ralph's brain trust and an intellectual. Both Ralph and Piggy represent the struggle for order and democracy. Jack is the spark of wildness that burns hot and close to the surface, which later conflicts with Ralph. From the very beginning Jack seems to harbor emotions of anger and savagery. Simon has them most positive outlook out of all of the characters and is a Christ figure.
He is good and pure and insists that they will be rescued. Roger represents pure evil and wrongness. He gets pleasure in torturing pigs and was the first one to intentionally kill another boy when he smashed Piggy with a boulder. Sam and Eric are the twins that do everything together. They represent unity and reliance. Later in the story they reveal Ralph's hiding place to Jack because the loss of civilization led them to lose any real sense of loyalty to others.
These characters assist in showing how the theme is brought out. There are also many symbols in the novel. The conch represents rules, civilization, democracy and order. Piggy's glasses represent clear-sightedness and intelligence. The state of the glasses represents the status of social order. When they break it marks the progressive decay of rational influence.
The island represents the world. The scar represents mans destruction. The Lord of the Flies represents the Devil and the great danger or evil. The killing of the sow and the hunting of pigs are accomplished in terms of sexual intercourse. The beast that the little uns are afraid of is created by the emotions that all of the boys on the island are experiencing.
The beast represents the evil residing within everyone and the dark side of human nature. All of the boys on the island have experienced murders; death, sexual love, fears and terrors. These feelings release forces of death and the devil on the island, which create the beast. The most symbolic event in the book was the interview of Simon. The head was saying, Everything was a bad business.
The mouth that Simon imagined he looked into represents ravenous, unreasoning and eternally greedy nature. These are most of the main symbols of the novel that help to bring out the theme. Man must have rules in order to control his savage side. In the beginning of the book everyone follows the rules. Assemblies are called, the conch is used, and Ralph is the chief.
But then later in the story Jack causes some controversy. Without rules there will be chaos. Jack feels that they do not need the rules. Throughout the book you can see some foreshadowing of his savageness. While Jack's first attempt to kill the pig failed, his quote "next time... " foreshadowed his future of savage hunting. The primal dance performed by the hunters shows their change into savagery.
Piggy and others are against the idea, but Jack is starting to become more and more savage and overpowering. Earlier Jack said, Bullocks to the rules! Were strong! We hunt! If theres a beast, well hunt it down!
Well close in and beat and beat and beat-! The assembly soon falls apart and the hunters begin to chant and dance. Jack remarked, We dont need the conch anymore. We know who ought to say things. What good did Simon do speaking, or Bill, or Walter? Its time some people know theyve got to keep quiet and let the deciding things to the rest of us.
Ralph, on the other hand, showed his uncertainness in blocking his innate savagery when he joined in on the pig hunt and dance. Even to Ralph, "the desire to squeeze and hurt was overmastering. " Even the mock pig hunt is becoming something of danger and great cruelty. The beating of Simon by all the boys, even Ralph and Piggy who were caught up in the frenzy, fulfills the Lord of the Flies' "prophecy. " Even these boys were overcome with their savage side when in such close contact with all the other boys. His distressing death and the crushing of the conch represents the disappearance of some of the last remains of democracy.
With Samneric taken under Jack's control, Ralph is the only one left with the weakening sense of democracy and goodness. After Jack took away the rules and started his own tribe they lived in chaos. They have killed two people, Simon and Piggy. They were also about to kill Ralph. They did not care about being rescued and having a fire. The only thing they cared about was hunting.
Without rules they have turned into savages. This is expressed by what Piggy says before his death. Which is better- to have rules and agree, or to hunt and kill? Which is better, law and rescue, or hunting and breaking things up?
Golding is trying to prove that man must have rules in order to control his savage side. He is proving that you need rules or else there will be chaos and you need rules to survive. Even if some people do not like them they still must have them. Society and civilization must have rules.
People need rules because they cant go around being savages. Rules are what make the world go around. One of the most basic and obvious themes is that society holds everyone together, and without these conditions, our ideals, values, and the basics of right and wrong are lost. Without society's rigid rules, anarchy and savagery can come to light.
Golding is also showing that morals come directly from our surroundings, and if there is no civilization around us, we will lose these values. In conclusion, Lord of the Flies is more than merely an adventure story about boys on an island. It shows how man must have rules in order to control his savage side. It also demonstrates what will happen in a world without rules.
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Research essay sample on Lord Of The Flies Ralph And Piggy
