Order And Stability In Lord Of The Flies

Order and stability allow individuals to live in a civilized environment. When individuals are isolated from society's constraints, they let their violent nature take control. Individuals who give in to their savage impulses engage in destructive and abusive behavior. When order is neglected, humans are disposed to violent urges and animalistic behaviors. The boys in William Golding’s Lord of the Flies present man’s violent tendencies when there are no societal boundaries.

The boys' disdain for order reveals humankind's descent into chaos when they are taken from a stable environment. After working all day on the island building huts with only Simon and Piggy, Ralph says, “‘They’re hopeless, the older ones aren’t much better… They're off bathing,

They are living in a fantasy where the island is a vacation away from their parents and from order. They are ignoring the responsibility that comes with building a society showing their lack of order rather than fixing their current situation; they prioritize entertainment over work. When Jack and Ralph are disagreeing about the distribution of power on the island Ralph says, "'The rules!'... 'You're breaking the rules!' (91). Jack retaliates saying, ‘'Who cares?' Ralph summoned his wits. 'Because the rules are the only thing we've got!' But Jack was shouting against him. 'Bollocks to the rules! (91). Ralph believes that rules are the key to maintaining order and building a society. In contrast, Jack disregards the rules and believes that an island is a place for indulgences and an escape from society’s boundaries. Ralph consistently pushes for order yet the impulses of the boys take over and push them toward chaos. After the boys roll over the rock intending to kill Piggy they end up “explod[ing] [the conch] into a thousand white fragments and cease to exist”(181). The conch is a symbol of order and structure, but now its broken state displays the

As Jack and his tribe are preparing to go out and hunt they put paint on their faces creating “The mask …[which] liberated them from shame and self-consciousness…the mask compelled them”(64). The boys wearing the mask marks the start of savagery because the mask offers them an opportunity to act on their savage impulses. The idea that they are compelled by the mask displays the influence that the mask carries as they are driven by a force to do this all as one. The mask liberates the boys from the restraints of societal boundaries transitioning the boys toward savagery. When the predatory boys first hit the pig, “The sow staggered her way ahead of them, bleeding and mad, and the hunters followed, wedded to her in lust, excited by the long chase and the dropped blood” (135). The boys killing the sow reflects their longing for the sensation of murder. They have become numb to the results of their actions and are seemingly acting on self-gratifying impulses. Due to the temptation of the hunt, the boys allow their malignant impulses to take over killing the mother pig, portraying the loss of compassion. After the boys kill the pig they do their chant,“‘Kill the beast! Cut his throat! Spill his blood! Do him in!’(152). But then they see Simon but confuse him for the beast and kill him. The boys act in an animal-like fashion when they act on their