...Lord of the Flies: A Psychological Study of the Nature of Humans William Golding once said, “What a man does defiles him, not what is done by others.” The phrase is approached so easily with his novel, Lord of the Flies (September 17, 1954), to depict the darkness of the natural man. The twentieth-century British writer in his novel argues the savagery of true mankind through a prose involving a band of young British schoolboys who are stranded on an empty island after a plane crash. He generalizes the human race by first developing the boys as helpless as they try to create a form of democracy with Ralph being the leader (and protagonist), then by creating opposition to the governmental tradition through Jack and his followers who separate...
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...concept that William Golding and John Steinbeck both vividly exemplify. Steinbeck’s use of racism and discrimination through characters powerfully demonstrates cruelty. Golding illustrates cruelty through examples of bullying, self-preservation, and abandonment. However, although man's cruelty to other men is expressed clearly in William Golding's work, Lord of the Flies, as well as John Steinbeck's novel, Of Mice and Men, they are both epitomize the concept in alternative ways. In Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck, cruelty is shown by targeting people over things they can’t control,...
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...Savagery vs. Civilization The civil and savage nature lies in all human beings, each instinct dominant when the other is not. This is the overall theme of William Golding’s novel Lord of the Flies. William Golding was a British poet, playwright, and novelist, most famous for Lord of the Flies. This novel is about the internal struggles of young boys marooned on a tropical deserted island. They fight to maintain their civil ways, in which each boy learned, isn’t all that easy. When civilization isn’t present in a person’s life, the savage beast inside them takes over. Roger, Ralph, and Simon all have entirely different struggles with the opposing forces within them. Some succumb easier than others. Roger lost the civilized life he was used to and because of that the natural savage instinct inside of him took over, and a bully and eventual murderer was created. In this quote, the sadistic Roger is beginning to blossom, but he still has a stronger civil instinct in control. “Roger gathered a handful of stones and began to throw them. Yet there was a space around Henry, perhaps six yards in diameter, into which he dare not throw. Here, invisible yet strong, was the taboo of old life Round the squatting child was the protection of parents and school and policemen and the law” (Golding 56). Roger is so tempted to throw these rocks at Henry, a younger boy, but his socially acceptable standards at home are still burned into his mind, for he reluctantly backs down. The invisible...
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...where there are unbending and definitive divisions between the upper, middle and lower class Society is conditioned to fear the outside world, and one of the methods for achieving this is the restriction of information and freedom. A corrupt authoritarian and totalitarian government creates or sustains the poor quality of life This government makes people believe that society is proper and just, even perfect. State propaganda makes citizens worship the state the leader of the state and the government. There is strict conformity among citizens and the general assumption that having opinions and individuality is bad The penal system often employs psychological or physical torture Violence, cruelty and aggressiveness are always present. Dystopias are frequently written as warnings, or as social satire, criticizing a current trend, norm or political system. In order for the dystopia to have an effect on the reader, the author uses characteristics of every day society so that the reader knows what he’s talking about. Therefore, the society portrayed has echoes of today, of the reader's own experience. Authors can use a dystopia effectively to highlight their own concerns about societal trends. Common traits of the dystopian protagonist: often feels trapped and is struggling to escape believes that something is...
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...The evil nature and intentions of people can either hurt or harm individuals or it can bring about resilience and determination. In the novel To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee revealed that humans often have other motives in life; some are born to be evil in nature, some are naturally innocent and then there are some that are born to protect the innocent. Are humans decidedly cruel or is there some moral good in each of us? In Lord of the Flies, William Golding presents a different view of the individual, specifically that within each person there is a struggle between right and wrong, but that evil will end up winning in the end. Initially, the boys listen to their consciences and act according to the moral code they were taught during their...
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...civilized people, violence is always present in some form whether it is a hunt or a world war, which illustrates humanity’s inherent desire for evil that has unsuccessfully been suppressed by society. Similarly, William Golding in Lord of the Flies explores inherent evilness of mankind and its bias to violence through a group of English boys stranded in a tropical island without any adults, who struggle to keep order, but ultimately fail due to their superstitious beliefs and their transition into their state of nature. Golding agrees with Hobbes’ philosophy through Jack and his group of the savages, portraying humanity's inherent malevolence, but denouncing his advocacy of an absolute monarchy through...
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...harmony. When we humans have a thought or commit an atrocity that goes against our morals or long standing beliefs we either apologize or justify the action, telling ourselves that the person we hurt deserved it and brought it upon themselves. We continue to search for justification until we no longer view ourselves as in the wrong. This mental capability has, in my opinion, been the leading agent in nationś wars and oppression against others. The most prominent being attempts to stamp out races because of their so called ¨inferior race/ heritage¨. Mental dissonance is also an ingredient in many dystopian societies...
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...Fear is the main driving force in The Lord of the Flies. How does fear in various forms affect the boy’s attitudes and behavior? Golding's novel in which a lot of prominent theme, the Lord of the Flies, is fear. From the first chapter, until the last, fear plays an important role in this novel. It is the only thing that will stop the boys from acting rationally, from questioning strange circumstances and hindering physically almost all of the boys, so often. The ongoing role of fear in Lord of the Flies, was deliberately used by Goldin, because he knew it would cause any kind of image. Fear is described by Webster's Dictionary of English Mirriam- because ?? to upset or worried. "The feeling was mutual for all the island boys experience many different ways. Originally the boys have obviously fear alone, and then we know the beast, or as littluns mean, as fear ?? Beast "brought. While this fear continued throughout the novel, we have come into contact with the other three events of fear. The first one is the fear of the consequences of civilization, only when the child is regarded as a young boy of civilization, the first chapter is displayed. The last two are different in nature, and these fears losing power, fear of rejection, fear of the minority. All these different fear, then traced back to the characters, such as Goldin was expertly planned, and will affect people's attitudes and behavior....
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...How effectively does Golding anticipate de conflicting forces of good and evil at the beginning of the novel? In the novel Lord of the Flies, William Golding permanently creates situations where good and evil are confronted. This contrast is made evident through different resources: behaviour of the characters, forces of nature, metaphors, contrasts and other literary devices. These dense forces flow within a primitive environment where leadership based on physical superiority will take over the ethical principles of civilisation. Conflicts between good and evil, represented through the contrasts of civilization versus savagery, order against chaos, and reason in opposition to impulse, will take over the island and pull the children apart. But how does the author introduce us to this rivarly and what is he trying to show us? I would say that Golding’s approach, so as to make the reader perceive the permanent parallel between good and evil, runs along three strategic lines or levels. The first way in which he approaches the conflicting forces involves actual behaviours of the children that bring forth good or evil ways. These are built upon the characters’ actions which are based on their values, morals and ethics. By doing this, Golding begins to expose the theory that there is always a power struggle present in human beings. This is firstly unmasked in pages 29 to 30. When the time arrives to choose a leader, Jack blurts, "I ought to be chief because I'm chapter chorister...
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...In the midst of a raging war, a plane evacuating a group of schoolboys from Britain is shot down over a deserted tropical island. Two of the boys, Ralph and Piggy, discover a conch shell on the beach, and Piggy realizes it could be used as a horn to summon the other boys. Once assembled, the boys set about electing a leader and devising a way to be rescued. They choose Ralph as their leader, and Ralph appoints another boy, Jack, to be in charge of the boys who will hunt food for the entire group. Ralph, Jack, and another boy, Simon, set off on an expedition to explore the island. When they return, Ralph declares that they must light a signal fire to attract the attention of passing ships. The boys succeed in igniting some dead wood by focusing sunlight through the lenses of Piggy’s eyeglasses. However, the boys pay more attention to playing than to monitoring the fire, and the flames quickly engulf the forest. A large swath of dead wood burns out of control, and one of the youngest boys in the group disappears, presumably having burned to death. At first, the boys enjoy their life without grown-ups and spend much of their time splashing in the water and playing games. Ralph, however, complains that they should be maintaining the signal fire and building huts for shelter. The hunters fail in their attempt to catch a wild pig, but their leader, Jack, becomes increasingly preoccupied with the act of hunting. When a ship passes by on the horizon one day, Ralph and Piggy notice...
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...even Ralph and Piggy is meant to show? 2. Why does Jack command the boys to dance and chant, and why is this an effective leadership tactic? What psychological effect does dancing and chanting have on the boys? Think back to the effect that putting on makeup had on them in Chapter 4. Jack commands the boys and chants to display his leadership. In addition he does this because he saw the “beast” and were luring to kill him. This is also shows the savagery because they aren’t thinking straight and are being savages. Their dance is very wierd or creepy because according to the text, “ The hunters took their spears, the cooks took spits, and the rest clubs of firewood” (151) shows what the hunters do, who are kids. The psychological effect is the kids obeying Jack to do a dance; stealing the freedom of the kids. 3. What is the “beast” that the boys kill? How is this event ironic and especially tragic (not only for the “beast,” but for everyone on the island)? How is it symbolically significant? The “beast” that they killed was Simon. This was tragic to the whole island because they killed one of their peers. It’s tragic because they...
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...because it is lasting instead of transient. Outer beauty is the easiest kind of beauty a person can notice. When meeting a person we don’t know for the first time, we often find ourselves intrigued at the sight of them. In this case, however, we are only analyzing his/her outer beauty. While physical beauty is alluring and possibly the drive behind why most people choose to interact with each other, many times someone considered “beautiful” can also have a malicious personality. A well known English classic, “Lord of the Flies” by William Golding, gives a perfect example of why inner beauty is lasting and outer beauty is transient. The story is about a group of school boys stranded on an uninhabited island. They must create their own “adult free” society. The sophisticated novel reflects the nature of human beings through the boys’ makeshift society as they try to find order on the island but most of them end up giving into the more animalistic and savage nature of human civilization. One of the boys, dubbed with the nickname Piggy because of his chubby appearance, is quickly portrayed as the most rational thinker of the group. He has intelligent ideas and is able to organize the boys through the creation of the “assembly”. Piggy...
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...Reading the Novel in English 1950–2000 i RTNA01 1 13/6/05, 5:28 PM READING THE NOVEL General Editor: Daniel R. Schwarz The aim of this series is to provide practical introductions to reading the novel in both the British and Irish, and the American traditions. Published Reading the Modern British and Irish Novel 1890–1930 Reading the Novel in English 1950–2000 Daniel R. Schwarz Brian W. Shaffer Forthcoming Reading the Eighteenth-Century Novel Paula R. Backscheider Reading the Nineteenth-Century Novel Harry E. Shaw and Alison Case Reading the American Novel 1780–1865 Shirley Samuels Reading the American Novel 1865–1914 G. R. Thompson Reading the Twentieth-Century American Novel James Phelan ii RTNA01 2 13/6/05, 5:28 PM Reading the Novel in English 1950–2000 Brian W. Shaffer iii RTNA01 3 13/6/05, 5:28 PM © 2006 by Brian W. Shaffer BLACKWELL PUBLISHING 350 Main Street, Malden, MA 02148-5020, USA 9600 Garsington Road, Oxford OX4 2DQ, UK 550 Swanston Street, Carlton, Victoria 3053, Australia The right of Brian W. Shaffer to be identified as the Author of this Work has been asserted in accordance with the UK Copyright, Designs, and Patents Act 1988. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, except as permitted by the UK Copyright, Designs, and...
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...process, and with a little bit of analysis, you can usually detect some or all of the types below. * Major or central characters are vital to the development and resolution of the conflict. In other words, the plot and resolution of conflict revolves around these characters. * Minor characters serve to complement the major characters and help move the plot events forward. * Dynamic - A dynamic character is a person who changes over time, usually as a result of resolving a central conflict or facing a major crisis. Most dynamic characters tend to be central rather than peripheral characters, because resolving the conflict is the major role of central characters. * Static - A static character is someone who does not change over time; his or her personality does not transform or evolve. * Round - A rounded character is anyone who has a complex personality; he or she is often portrayed as a conflicted and contradictory person. * Flat - A flat character is the opposite of a round character. This literary personality is notable for one kind of personality trait or characteristic. * Stock - Stock characters are those types of characters who have become conventional or stereotypical through repeated use in particular types of stories. Stock characters are instantly recognizable to readers or audience members (e.g. the femme fatale, the cynical but moral private eye, the mad scientist, the geeky boy with glasses, and the faithful sidekick). Stock characters are normally...
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...About thirty years old at the start of the play, Hamlet is the son of Queen Gertrude and the late King Hamlet, and the nephew of the present king, Claudius. Hamlet is melancholy, bitter, and cynical, full of hatred for his uncle’s scheming and disgust for his mother’s sexuality. A reflective and thoughtful young man who has studied at the University of Wittenberg, Hamlet is often indecisive and hesitant, but at other times prone to rash and impulsive acts. Hamlet is extremely philosophical and contemplative. He is particularly drawn to difficult questions or questions that cannot be answered with any certainty. Faced with evidence that his uncle murdered his father, evidence that any other character in a play would believe, Hamlet becomes obsessed with proving his uncle’s guilt before trying to act. Claudius - The King of Denmark, Hamlet’s uncle, and the play’s antagonist. The villain of the play, Claudius is a calculating, ambitious politician, driven by his sexual appetites and his lust for power, but he occasionally shows signs of guilt and human feeling—his love for Gertrude, for instance, seems sincere. Gertrude - The Queen of Denmark, Hamlet’s mother, recently married to Claudius. Gertrude loves Hamlet deeply, but she is a shallow, weak woman who seeks affection and status more urgently than moral rectitude or truth. Polonius - The Lord Chamberlain of Claudius’s court, a pompous, conniving old man. Polonius is the father of Laertes and Ophelia. Ophelia - Polonius’s...
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