Gift For The Darkness: Chapter Analysis

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Chapter Four is important for several reasons; however, the most significant aspect is introducing the beginning of the breakdown of society. Although it is not stated how long the boys have been on the island, it is evident it has been a significant period of time because of the references to their hair being longer. Therefore, it is becoming apparent they are losing their sense of civility and are beginning to abandon the rules which governed them in their previous lives. This is accomplished through the reference to Roger throwing rocks at Henry and the killing of the pig. Although Chapter Four provides evidence the boys are beginning their descent into barbarians, there is also evidence that this descent is not yet complete.
In Chapter …show more content…

As time has passed throughout the novel, all of their positive guidelines they made have been deflected or have changed. The author shows numerous examples to develop the idea that without strong leadership society falls apart and will change people, in this case, the boys are becoming barbaric savages. In Chapter One of the novel, Jack was faced with the situation of killing a pig for food and showed a desire to kill the pig however he couldn’t because of the “unbearable blood” that the aftermath of the situation would impose. He paused “only long enough for [him] to understand what an enormity the downward stroke would be.” In Chapter Four, Jack was faced with this same situation again and killed the pig for the different food source that the boys craved for after living on the island. Jack “cut the pigs throat, [he] said proudly..." indicating a sense of satisfaction showing he is not upset. Jack describes the situation in Chapter Four when he kills the pig, however, “there [were] lashings of blood” that made him “[stutter]” as he completed his thought. The progression of this theme ends in Chapter Eight when Jack kills the pig, out of enjoyment. When Jack brutally kills the sow in was in a situation when the heard of pigs were “sensuously enjoying the shadows” and a “deep maternal bliss” describes the situation as non-threatening, implying that Jack is killing for enjoyment and not for food. This theme is continued to be illustrated when Jack says he “[can] do for some meat.” Jack is a strong example of the reoccurring theme that the author is trying to pursue. The most evident example of the boys descending into barbarism is the gradual brutality that Jack and the other boys display around the

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