Jack in Lord of The Flies by William Golding

Jack in Lord of The Flies by William Golding

The title says it all, 'Lord of the Flies' in Hebrew is Satan. The

evil, the evil within us all. As we can deduct from this tital the

book with have darker elements to the narrative. This book about boys

trapped on an island is named after evil incarnate.

Once you start to read the book the title makes no sense, over the

first few pages you notice no sinister hidden meanings and evil

behaviour on any of the boys part. Yet as you turn the pages a picture

is created for you, one of savage behaviour and brutal consequences.

This book explores authority and mankind's urges to resort to savagery

when there is lack of it. This essay will explore the question,

"Is Jack evil when he arrives at the island, or does he become evil?"

Jack is a major character of the book, he starts off as a traditional

authoritarian figure leading his choirboys along the beach in their

robes.

"The creature was a party of boys, marching approximately in step in

two parallel lines and dressed in strangely eccentric clothing."

"The boy who controlled them was dressed in the same way though his

cap was golden"

From the start Jack wields power over people, we have to take this

into account when you look at his behaviour later in the book, at the

start he is a leader, and Ralph takes this leadership away from him,

he offers him a token of friendship 'The Hunters'. This proves to be

one of Ralph's greatest mistakes, once Jack controls his choir as a

band of hunters he has absolute power and soon turns them against

Ralph.

,

"I ought to be chief, said Jack with a simple arrogance, "Because I'm

a ...

... middle of paper ...

...an see the evil of his character he is

the one always with Jack, always on the hunt, always ready for the

kill. The deaths of two innocents mark the end of the fire, the end of

the conch the symbol of meeting. It means the end of society on the

island, the end of law and the rule of justice.

In conclusion I think Golding knew exactly what boys are like, he made

us see a compelling story, with vivid realism which tells a tale of

the disintergration of a civilisation under the pressure of blood and

savagery and a bloody climax. The book shows the fear of the dark in

men's hearts, the loss of innocence, that society can easily be

undone, that some times the people, with the most knowledge are

shunned. Most of all it tells a tale of Jack, a boy turned into an

evil savage, the most shocking of all the aspects in the book.