Archetypes In Lord Of The Flies

The antagonist in this novel, Jack, is the archetype of demon. Jack is described by Golding as “tall, thin, and bony; and his hair was red beneath the black cap. His face was crumpled and freckled, and ugly without silliness. Out of this face stared two light blue eyes, frustrated now, and turning, or ready to turn, to anger” (251). His eyes are always used in the novel to depict his emotions, as they are above. His appearance leaves a bad impression on our readers. He seems to be crazy in hunting pigs, which turns worse and worse in a situation far away from the civilized society. Gradually, he becomes an animal without reason, so that sometimes he will disguise himself by the mixture of red, white and black dirt, like a barbarian. “In the beginning of the story Jack, still conditioned by the previous society he had been a part of, could not bear to kill a pig that was caught in the brush. As the plot progresses he becomes less and less attached to any social norms” (Li Xin 104). As structure breaks down, Jack forms his own separate sect separating from Ralph and the rest of the group. In the end, he breaks Piggy’s glasses and leads the others towards Piggy’s murder. He brings the boys into mass hysteria and eventually hunts Ralph down like an animal. Not seeming to care about being rescued,

With an understanding of the inherent darkness in all men and first-hand experience with savagery and violence in World War II, William Golding used Lord of the Flies as not only a historical allegory and a pulpit from which to address the darkness in all men, but also as a metaphor and a example that no one is exempt from human nature. Golding’s characters in Lord of the Flies reflect this idea greatly, but none more so than Roger. Throughout Lord of the Flies, Golding uses the character of Roger to show the follies of mankind and the ability of all people to turn to savagery, as well as the inherent nature of man and society’s internalized acceptance of violence, stemming from Golding’s own experiences with the subject. Golding created

This is seen in the dichotomies of Ralph and Jack, Piggy and Roger, Painted Faces and the Conch, and Civilization and Savagery. To begin, the symbols: painted faces and the Conch. Having been previously explained, their symbolism is already apparent: they represent savagery and moral corruption, and civilization and law, respectively. These are used throughout the book in direct contrast, with Ralph always having control of the Conch, and only Jack and his tribe painting their faces. The holders of these two objects represent a similar dichotomy: Ralph, as the first chief and of those not in Jack’s tribe (herein called the Society), represents law, order, democracy, and civilization; Jack, as chief of the savages (herein called the Tribe), represents disorder, war, despotism, and savagery. The contrast of these two main characters is exemplified by their continuous conflict and power struggle, as shown by their dialogue, with Jack saying “You can’t hunt, you can't sing”, and Ralph’s response being “I’m chief. I was chosen” (91). Their second-in-commands, Piggy and Roger, respectively, paint another prominent contrast: Piggy, being Ralph’s right hand, was intelligent, reasoned, and often timid; whilst Roger was cruel and arrogant. These two, though less important than Ralph and Jack, fill in the gaps for the greater juxtaposition Golding attempts to show: that of Civilization and

Ralph represents common sense and what is best for the group by valuing fire the most, because fire represents salvation. Ralph’s value of fire can be seen when he says, “‘The fire’s the most important thing. Without the fire we can’t be rescued,’” (142). Jack represents impulsiveness and personal desire when he leaves the group so he can have fun and do what he wants. If the conch represents unity, Jack saying they don’t need the conch may be Golding portraying his value of only self interest and disregard for what is best for unity. Allegorically, Piggy represents logic. His logic can be seen when Ralph goes to him for advice. Simon represents looking inwards and self reflection. His self reflection can be seen when he goes on walks alone to think. Simon’s poor communication skills may be Golding conveying how inward thoughts are hard to display outwardly. The on and off tensions between Ralph and Jack may thematically represent how your common sense does not always line up with your personal desires in

William Golding, winner of the 1983 Nobel Prize for Literature, argues in his 1954 book Lord of the Flies that humans are evil in nature. He uses multiple symbols to define what savagery really is and how it can affect even the youngest of society. Some symbols, such as painted faces or a pig's head on a stick are used as shocking narrative tools but are necessary in order to portray these children as ruthless monsters. Golding’s use of painted faces does symbolize that when there is anonymity, humans will commit atrocious acts, especially if they are in a position of power.

In the The Lord of the Flies they're are many different characters that embodys various types of archetypes, one of those is Simon as the "Christ" figure. In the book Simon is portrayed like Christ because he is a very kind, compassionate, and peaceful person. He is also shown as a provider of food for example he provided fruit where in this case Christ provided bread. Around the end of the book simon is seen as a prophet just like Christ, he starts to apprehend who this beastie on the island truly is. When Simon tries to tell the boys on the island what he thought he was killed but in reality he was just an innocent boy, just like Christ was you can say "crucified".

Lord of the Flies is often claimed to be an allegory of modern society. While this is true, Golding’s intentions in writing this novel are much deeper. William Golding’s Lord of the Flies provides an enlightening insight into the true nature of human beings; along with why people refrain from acting upon the evil that resides within them. He presents these ideas through symbolism within the novel and it proves effective in many ways. Through symbolism, Golding can unfold the excellent plot of his novel, while subsequently sharing his ideas on the relationship of mankind and society. Golding uses the beast, the conch shell, and Piggy’s glasses to symbolize the human impulse towards ‘savagery’ and the social constructs put in place to prevent it.

One’s behaviour can have an substantial impact on a society's outcome. There is a common notion that humans are nurtured to be peaceful and civil. However this belief is contradicted by the action of the boys, in William Golding’s, “Lord of the Flies”. A group of schoolboys are abruptly thrown out of their controlled and civil circumstances into an inhabited tropical island in the middle of the Pacific. The novel is Golding’s attempt to trace the defects of society back to the defects of human nature, by using symbolism to delineate this theme. Golding’s extensive use of symbolism, such as the conch, the signal fire and the painted faces helps demonstrates the defects of society. These symbols are used by Golding to illuminate the subsequent effects on the boys’ behaviour, which undoubtedly illustrates the defects of human nature on society.

Christians often use the teachings of Jesus Christ as source of guidance. In the 20th century dystopian novels Brave New World by Aldous Huxley and Lord of the Flies by William Golding, the authors use archetypes in reference to the protagonists and their societies, to warn against the dangers of self indulgence.

Human nature is complex. It may take over an individual’s mind in many desperate and threatening situations. In Golding’s compelling novel, Lord of the Flies, it is implied that the evil, or bad side of humanity will overshadow the good. However, there are certain situations present in the novel that portray the opposite. The depiction of human nature in this novel creates a nice balance between the positive and negative aspects of humanity. Although Golding’s novel is portrayed as pessimistic, Ralph’s words and actions when dealing with various situations, Sam and Eric’s loyalty to Ralph, and the boys’ rescue at the end of the novel contradict this idea, creating a commendable balance of pessimistic and optimistic situations.

After World War II countries were in shambles, overran with fear that was fueled by the abundance of hate and violence that stemmed from Germany. The plentiful amounts of evil William Golding was witnessing drove him to write Lord of the Flies. Form this, we can conclude that aspects of his story are an allegory to what Golding observed throughout the war. In his story, William Golding expresses the importance of a civilization’s nature to be ethically correct and explains that without the precise guidance, the natural savageness of humans can prevent society from thriving. Golding’s statement is correct because without society’s moral compass humans would revert to their savage nature, pray on the weak, and would be driven toward aggression.

There is a quote by Edmund Burke, “man is the cruelest animal”, that perfectly describes the truth about human nature; that humanity, at its core, is an evil species. William Golding acknowledges this fact in his 1954 novel, Lord of the Flies. Throughout the novel, Golding highlights the cruelty of children, the carelessness of their actions, and the evilness present in the very fabric of society.

Lord of the Flies is a marvelous non-fiction paradigm of the contrast of civility and savagery in human nature. In the novel, the author, William Golding, masterfully tells of how one characteristic taints the other, and eventually takes possession of its host. Throughout the novel, multiple results of these two attributes, along with many other situations, are portrayed using objects and characters, conveying the overall message

    Despite the progression of civilization and society's attempts to suppress man's darker side, moral depravity proves both indestructible and inescapable; contrary to culturally embraced views of humanistic tendencies towards goodness, each individual is susceptible to his base, innate instincts. In William Golding's Lord of the Flies, seemingly innocent schoolboys evolve into bloodthirsty savages as the latent evil within them emerges. Their regression into savagery is ironically paralleled by an intensifying fear of evil, and it culminates in several brutal slays as well as a frenzied manhunt. The graphic consequence of the boys' unrestrained barbarity, emphasized by the

William Golding’s Lord of the Flies is a gritty allegory of adolescence, innocence, and the unspoken side of human nature. Countless social issues are portrayed, however one of the most reoccurring is the nature of man. Throughout the novel there is an ever-present focus on the loss of innocence amongst the boys, shown by the deterioration of social skills and their retrogression into a barbaric form of society. Also portrayed is the juxtaposition of a cruel, evil main character and a more classically good counterpart, and their eternal rivalry for power and authority over their younger subjects. Does society or the lack thereof create evil in human nature, or simply magnify a pre-existing