‘The subject ( of Lord of the Flies ) is an effort to follow the defects of society back to the defects of human nature. The moral is that the form of society must depend on the ethical mature of the person and non on any political system nevertheless seemingly logical or respectable. ’
— William Golding
In the fresh Lord of the Fliess by William Golding. Jack Merridew. head of the huntsmans. represents the concealed human passion and animate being inhuman treatment. The name Jack comes from Hebrew and means ‘one who supplants. ’ one who takes over by force. This is how Jack additions and uses power. While Ralph ( his challenger for the island ) . with Piggy and a few other kids. in contrast. represents ‘civilization’ and common sense. The name Ralph. is originally from the Anglo-Saxon linguistic communication. intending ‘counsel. ’ That is how Ralph works. he is an incarnation of democracy ; he is willing to be a leader but knows that it’s of import for each of the male childs to be able to talk their head.
At the beginning of the book the place of Jack and Ralph is more or less equal. They are both good – conditioned male childs of school age. who find themselves on a alone island with some other male childs of assorted age. but non older than themselves. They portion similar sentiments about their state of affairs and its solution. They both want to be rescued and taken place. They both realize that there are a batch of things they must make to last on the island until all of them get rescued. And in conclusion. they both are dominant types. but yet at the beginning of the novel they both acknowledge each other’s authorization and act to each other in a friendly manner.
At the return Ralph found himself entirely on a limb with Jack and they grinned at each other. sharing this load. Once more. acknowledge the zephyr. the cheering. the slanting sunshine on the high mountain. was shed that glamor. that unusual unseeable visible radiation of friendly relationship. escapade. and content.
-‘Almost excessively heavy. ’
Jack grinned back.
– “Not for the two of us. ’
Together. joined in attempt by the load. they staggered up the last measure of the mountain.
Together. they chanted One! ( 39 )
In the beginning of the book Jack was afraid of the blood. afraid of his knife. afraid of the Hunt. He was scared of killing hogs. scared of what he would go if he chose the way of decease and devastation.
“You cut a pig’s pharynx to allow the blood out. ” said Jack. “otherwise you can’t eat the meat. ”
“Why didn’t you- ? ”
They knew really good why he didn’t: because of the outrageousness of the knife descending and cutting into populating flesh ; because of the intolerable blood. ( 39 )
The first. although concealed struggle between Ralph and Jack. the struggle between the two sides. originate when Ralph was elected as the head. ‘the one who decides things’ . The reader is given the feeling from the writer that Jack’s amour propre has been lost. since Jack is used to being in charge. once being the chapter chorister and caput male child.
Ralph counted.
-‘I’m the main so. ’
The circle of male childs broke into hand clapping. Even the choir applauded ; and the lentigos on Jack’s face disappeared under a chagrin.
( 23 )
Thingss changed shortly after Ralph became main. Ralph unwisely appointed Jack as head of the huntsmans ( the leftovers of the former choir ) . therefore making a challenger for his power. Jack. painted his face and donned a ‘mask of a hunter’ . When you wear a mask you pretend you are a different individual. and so Jack did. he pretended he was a barbarian. Through the mask he accomplished killing the hog. though by painting his face. I think he sacrificed all moral moralss and values. He became a heathen. a huntsman. what we would go without moral and regulations of behavior. and queerly plenty he became a victim…
At first Jack and his huntsmans do what they are asked to. but as clip went on. they started to take part in different activities and neglect those needed for the interest of the boys’ redemption and emancipation from the island. One of these incidents was shortly before the jubilation of the first clip Jack slew the hog. The first clip Jack tasted the blood. experienced the bang of the pursuit and the possible wagess of the Hunt. While he had accomplished killing the hog. and conveying meat for the group ; he had neglected the fire and allow a ship base on balls them by. any possible saviors.
Ralph spoke.
-‘You allow the fire out. ’
Jack checked. mistily irritated by this irrelevancy but excessively happy to allow it worry him.
-‘We can illume the fire once more. You should hold been with us. Ralph. We had a bang-up clip.
The twins got knocked over…’
-‘We hit the pig…’
– “…I fell on the top…’
-‘I cut his pharynx. ’ said Jack. proudly… ( 70 )
In Golding’s novel the fire. as many other things. has a symbolic map. For Ralph and his followings. the lone manner how to acquire rescued was to maintain the fire combustion. Therefore. Ralph tried to implement the high quality of the fire onto others. When the fire. the symbol of sense. went out. it was because Jack and his huntsmans got carried off by their hunting passion. which more and more dulls their ‘natural’ human sense. They let the fire out. right when a ship passes by ; this minute emphasizes the significance of the fire and the abysmal difference between human common sense and heads influenced and dulled by avidity ; in this instance it is their avidity for hunting.
The knife. on the other manus. has a wholly different symbolic significance. For Jack and his cortege it represents the Hunt. which finally leads to decease. which it besides symbolizes. Jack tries to act upon the knife and the Hunt onto others by beastly force. by painting their faces and making a mask of misrepresentation. This was effectual. because they believed that when they wore a mask they were different people. so they could kill whoever and do whatever. It is the bang of the Hunt. that the knife represents. that is responsible for Jack going a dictator and a autocrat. When you remove the knife. the mask. and the Hunt. from Jack. you get Ralph. Possibly if the Hunt had non consumed Jack. things would hold been different on the island.
Thingss took a honkytonk for the worst with the outgrowth of the animal. The animal represents the fright of adult male. the frights and biass that occur when one doesn’t understand or frights something or person. But the male childs. except for Simon. believed that the animal was manifested in a physical signifier that they could kill. and they wanted to make so. Jack played against their frights. and their biass against the animal like a marionette maestro and gained great position in their eyes when he offered to run the animal down. He mutinied against Ralph by stating he was a coward like Piggy. He divided the group into two for good. dividing his huntsmans. from Ralph’s kin.
“I’m non traveling to play any longer. Not with you. ”
Most of the male childs were looking down now. at the grass or their pess. Jack cleared his pharynx once more.
“I’m non traveling to be portion of Ralph’s lot-“
He looked down along the right – manus logs. totaling the huntsmans that had been a choir.
“I’m traveling off by myself. He can catch his ain hogs. Anyone who wants to run when I do can come excessively. ” ( 127 )
The bulk of Ralph’s few staying Alliess left him to fall in Jack’s party. What could Ralph offer them anyhow? To guard the fire. how were they. kids all aged under twelve old ages old. to understand the importance of the fire? Jack could offer them the bang of the Hunt. meat every dark. and possibly most significantly freedom from such duty.
What I find interesting about the undermentioned paragraph. is how God – like Jack appears. It is obvious he is in control here. sitting on a throne – like log. Painted and garlanded. like a heathen God being worshipped by his toadies. Offering others to pay court to him and partake in the beebread. their ‘God’ will supply for them.
Before the party had started a great log had been dragged into the centre of the lawn. and Jack painted and garlanded. sat there like an graven image. There were hemorrhoids of meat on green foliages near him. and fruit. and coconut cells full of drink. ( 149 )
Jack was speedy to kill all those who would ne’er ally themselves with him. and coerce the remainder to fall in him. Ralph tries to hide himself so that Jack and the huntsmans can non happen him. Now that the whole island is mastered by the hunters’ inhuman treatment. Fortunately for Ralph. the rescue-party arrives ‘on time’ and all the male childs who remains on the island get rescued. Ironically. it is the fire started by the huntsmans to kill Ralph which attracts their saviors. Had it non been the fire that spread on the island. the male childs would likely hold ne’er been rescued. Here the importance of fire as a symbol of sense is consummated.
The fire reached the coconut thenar by the beach and swallowed them noisily. A fire. apparently detached. swung like an acrobat and licked up the thenar caputs on the platform. The sky was black. The officer grinned cheerfully at Ralph.
-‘We saw your fume. What have you been making? Having a war or something? ’
Ralph nodded. ( 201 )
The fresh Lord of the Flies is every bit much a political narrative as it is anything else. it tells the narrative of the war between democracy and absolutism. and the maltreatment of power. it tells the narrative of World War II. Though it tells this in such a fast – traveling and exciting composing manner. that it is difficult for the reader to detect this until after much rereading and contemplation.
The island puting plants as a metaphor for the universe at the clip. the reader must maintain in head Golding wrote the Lord of the Flies in 1954. shortly after World War II. The male childs were trapped on the island. as people were trapped in Germany. France and other states politically and economically involved in World War II. What happens there becomes a commentary for the universe at the clip.
Jack. represents a Hitler – like dictator. he believes in commanding the island through beastly force. and governs the island through his reserves of huntsmans ; through autocratic power. As with Hitler. and about every dictator. Jack grew from the common frights of the multitudes. in this instance the fright of the animal. and the inability of Ralph to slake this fright.
Ralph. and his kin. portray the allied forces ; they believe in regulating the island through democracy. As in the instance of the allied forces. they won. but they had to give the lives of Piggy and Simon to carry through it.
In my sentiment. I think that Jack was possibly the most of import character in the book. he represented the ‘dark side’ . adding a mildly bitter gustatory sensation that blended absolutely with the secret plan. Had he non been in the book. their would non be a sense of daunting of fright. He was the Brutus in Julius Caesar. He was a necessary immorality.
Ironically. the same could be applied for Adolf Hitler. if it had non been for his distorted racial biass. could we genuinely have learnt so much about anti – semitism and racism?
