Cruelty And Violence In Lord Of The Flies Essay

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Imagine flying on a plane and crash landing on an unknown island with a select group of people. How would humans deal as a result of this horrific situation? Is cruelty and violence the only solution when it comes down to it? In Lord of the Flies, William Golding explores the relationship between children in a similar conflict and shows how savagery takes over civilization. Lord of the Flies proves to show that the natural human instincts of cruelty and savagery will take over instead of logic and reasoning. William shows how Jack, the perpetrator in the book, uses cruelty and fear for social and political gain to ultimately take over, while on the other hand shows how Ralph falters and loses power without using cruelty and fear. In Lord of …show more content…

Ralph’s power at the beginning is secure but as the group succumbs to their savage instincts, Ralph’s influence declines as Jack’s rises. This is due mainly to the cruelty and violence that goes on in the story. This cruelty reveals that Ralph’s commitment to civilization and being rescued is so strong that he will not allow himself to change his morals and become cruel like the others. The cruelty in this novel also shows that Ralph is a very intelligent character. His intelligence can be proven because there was a point in the novel when he hunts a boar for the first time and he experiences the thrill of bloodlust. He also attends one of Jack’s feast where he is swept away by the frenzy and participates in the killing of Simon. This is a very tragic moment for Ralph because this is when he realizes the evil that lives within himself and every human being. It is the cruel acts that happen in this novel that reveals Ralph’s character of being intelligent and being able to think deeply about human experiences. He even weeps when getting saved because of his knowledge about the human capacity for …show more content…

The irony of the plane crashing to start the story, the environment of an unknown island and many other cruel acts function into the work as a whole because it really does set up the major plot in the story. Cruelty will bring out the worst in people and this phrase proves to be true when it comes to Jack. The killing of the pig and the obsession of blood lust drives Jack into savagery and reveals that he is not morally strong. The violence also shows that Jack is manipulative as he uses the fear of the beast to gain power. While cruelty transforms Jack, Ralph stays morally strong and represents civilization throughout the novel. Cruelty proves to shows that Ralph’s character is very intelligent as he is able to think deeply. Cruelty also reveals how strong morally he is and how he will not succumb to savagery like the majority of the boys do. Lord of the Flies by William Golding, just proves to show that the cruelness of our savage, beast like instincts will take over without the order, rule, and conduct that civilized societies have to

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