Human Flaws In Lord Of The Flies

Kunwer Chhatwal

Mr.Frey

Honors English 9127 Works Cited

10 May 2023 Humans are the downfall of their own societies Societies often fail due to the defects of human nature and behavior. In William Golding's novel Lord of The Flies, the idea that human flaws can derail a society is emphasized throughout the story. Since their early days on the island, two of the main characters, Ralph and Jack, constantly fight for leadership and power. However, although both are natural leaders, their views on society and ideas are very different. Ralph is a narrow-minded leader who is indecisive and often unassertive, while Jack is controlled by his thirst for power and need to defy authority. Ultimately, these opposing flaws of Jack and

At the beginning of the story, Ralph emerges as the elected leader. However, as he struggles to assert his power effectively, Jack and some of the other hunters challenge his leadership and gain power. Since the boys have reached the island, Ralph has established that in order for the boys to speak at a conference, they must have the conch. Ralph does this to maintain order and demonstrate his democratic authority over the boys. However, with Jack and his followers challenging Ralph’s authority, the conch which previously meant a great deal earlier in the novel, no longer has value. After Ralph realizes the meaning of the conch has declined, he states, “If I blow the conch and they don’t come back; then we’ve had it. We shan’t keep the fire going. We’ll be like animals. We’ll never be rescued”(Golding 92). Through his statement, it is clear that Ralph’s authority has diminished due to his lack of assertion and inability to maintain his power. Since the beginning, the conch has been a symbol of democracy and order for Ralph and the boys. However, with his authority steadily decreasing, Ralph fears all hope is lost if he blows the conch and the boys do not respond. This loss of power is due to Ralph’s lack of assertiveness over the likes of Jack and others despite having been elected leader. His strict focus on the conch’s meaning and inability to understand the different priorities of others portrays his narrow-minded thinking as well. While many such as Jack prioritize hunting, Ralph prioritizes matters such as the conch that are not important to the others, resulting in his decline in authority. Without the order and democracy that had been established earlier by Ralph, society has now fallen into disorder as Ralph seems to have lost any power and his rules no longer hold place in the boy's civilization.