Lord Of The Flies: Savagery

Societies’ rules and structures often hide an underlying evil within them. William Golding’s book Lord of the Flies is set on a deserted island after a plane crashes. The boys, who were on the plane, are stranded without any adults to help guide them. In an attempt to create order, the boys picked a leader and set out to create rules for them to all live by. As time passes, the effect of living in a world with no supervision is seen. In his writing, Golding’s depiction of the boys’ descent into savagery reflects his belief in the inherent evil within human nature. While this may seem extreme, it accurately displays the evil within human nature, as seen through the themes of power and violence. Golding believes human nature is evil and barbaric,

his arms and legs twitched a bit, like a pig after it has been killed” (Golding 181). Roger let the anger and aggression within him out by killing a fellow boy. Since the boys do not have someone telling them what is and is not okay, they resort to their nature to make decisions. Golding demonstrates how the internal nature of a person can make poor decisions due to a lack of rules. The killing of Piggy to gain power symbolizes the triumph of savagery over reason. Thus symbolizing the evil in human nature. Some may argue that the circumstances alter the perception of human nature. At the start, the boys worked together and comforted the younger boys. Once a younger boy spots “The Beast,” Jack and Ralph are quick to comfort him when Jack states: “Ralph’s right, of course. There isn’t a snake thing. But if there was a snake, we’d hunt it and kill it” (Golding 36). The boys here are staying civil in order to keep everyone feeling safe and protected. Golding’s view that human nature is evil remains accurate because, later on, the boys resort to violence and a power

The theme of violence in human nature is also seen in the play 12 Angry Men. While the men are arguing, Juror 3 gets up and shouts, “Let me go! I’ll kill him. I’ll kill him!” (Sergel 43). The men were locked in a room together with nobody but themselves. Like Lord of the Flies, they remained civil at first but eventually got aggressive. Thus, it demonstrates human nature’s innate violence and evil when not kept in check. Evil in human nature is also seen through power. In Lord of the Flies, Jack wants all the power of himself. Jack wants to “have rules”! Lots of rules!” and then when “anyone breaks them, Wacco! Bong! I am a snob! Doink!” (Golding 33). Jack’s insistence on creating rules and enforcing them with violence shows his authoritarian leadership style and desire to have complete control. This leadership style is evil because it involves abusing power and strong-arming to punish those who defy the rules. This ties back to Golding’s view of how human nature is evil because instead of sharing power and agreeing on rules, Jack would make up rules and hurt anyone who does not conform to them. Jack wants complete control over the boys to fuel his need for