Interpretations Of Lord Of The Flies: Government

Natalie Counts
Mrs. Zimmerman
English 10 honors
2 March 2016
The Lord of the Flies
There are many interpretations of Lord of the Flies. It is a universal story that people all over the world can relate to. Lord of the Flies is an allegory in which each character represents something outside of the literal. The main characters Ralph and Jack are not only young boys, they represent three very different types of government: democracy, anarchy, and totalitarianism, while Piggy represents the ideals of a government. I believe that Piggy doesn’t specifically represent a government. Piggy is the ideal, the whisper, and the dream of what a true democracy should be. “We can use this to call the others. Have a meeting,” he says about the

Ralph isn’t the ideal of a democracy. He exemplifies the actual government. And just like all governments, the theory behind it is much more radiantly splendid than the actual thing. Ralph tries to keep the order and actually succeeds during the first few days, calling meetings regularly and setting up rules that must be followed at all costs. “So remember. The rocks for a lavatory. Keep the fire going and smoke showing as a signal. Don’t take fire from the mountain. Take your food up there”(Golding 81). Ralph desperately tries to keep the fire going, a beacon of light to the outside world. But as the boys begin to ignore their duties and abuse the freedoms that come with democracy, chaos begins to get the upper hand over

From chaos comes the absolute order of a people under a dictator. Jack helps to create this chaos by urging the boys away from their obligations. In the chapter “Painted Faces and Long Hair,” Jack is able to get the boys to let the fire go out to hunt a pig through his use of propaganda, such as having fun, hunting pigs, having feasts, and being able to have their own fort. Jack is able to convince a large majority of the boys to like him over Ralph. Rousseau points out, “As soon as it is possible to disobey with impunity, disobedience is legitimate; and, the strongest being always in the right, the only thing that matters is to act so as to become the strongest”(2). The instant that Jack sees his chance to become a leader over the other boys, he acts as quickly as possible, setting up his own tribe at the other end of the island. In Jack’s tribe, unlike in Ralph’s, he answers to no one, bar himself, while all the boys in turn answer to