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Postwar Gender Roles In Lord Of The Flies

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Violence in the Lord of the Flies is not distinctly masculine because, the gender of the person has no effect, it’s their story, and how they were brought up. It’s also not distinctly masculine because if gender constructs and roles were taken into consideration, the girls—stereotypically—would have more fight and more determination.
Gender is just a label for our sex. What that is does not determine who we are and our capability for violence. Now in the 1950’s gender constructs were heavy and demanding. For example, an article titled, “Postwar Gender Roles and Women in American Politics.” Says, “…often came at a cost to women who gave up careers to maintain the domestic sphere. This lifestyle stressed the importance of a one-income household, …show more content…

This meant that women were applicable to fill these jobs. According to Khan Academy, “Five million women entered the work force between 1940-1945. The gap in the labor force created by departing soldiers meant opportunities for women.” Even though most of these men wouldn’t let these women have jobs, the men relied on them. This shows that these women took care of the children, had a job, fed their families, and much more while the men were away. Since these adult women persevered and took care of themselves, possibly their young girls could follow suit. Some would say that the girls would be more violent because of their mothers or fathers, but this anger—if they had any—would be used to survive. These authority figures can build on the children’s view of life. In the Lord of the Flies, the little-uns look at Ralph like a mirror of the old life. For example, a quote from the book says, “they obeyed the summon of the conch, partly because Ralph blew it, and he was a big enough link with the adult world of authority” (Golding 59). This means that this “adult figure” they are clinging to is Ralph and what is in Ralph’s personality. If Ralph’s personality is observed, it’s seen that he is benevolent but strict in his rules. Kind of like a mother is. The kids miss their mothers and Ralph is what they cling

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Women at the time had to work double shifts, meaning they’ll work at a job then come home and fulfill home duties such as cooking, cleaning, and taking care of their children. From being depicted as people who must stay home and take care of the home, to going out and getting a job that will support her, her family, and help the war effort, this was a breakthrough for women at the time. Document G, from 1940s.org, delineates women’s life at work and at home. This document expressed how women were able to save the money they earned do the reality that they were not able to spend it on much at the time. After the war, women were able to buy houses and consumer goods that were not available during the war.

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Everyone wanted to forget about the war and the lives lost, and go back to how life was before, with typical gender roles (Nathan 47). And so came the era of the housewives in the early 1950’s. There was no demand for women in the workplace anymore so women became housewives and took care of their families (Nathan 47). The government provided incentive to male breadwinner families with a tax break (Coontz 60). “Marynia Farnham and Ferdinand Lundberg (famous anti feminists) insisted that pursuing a “career,” which they defined at workplace prestige, was antifeminine to its core and an assault on men’s self-respect” (Coontz

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During the war, women took over men’s jobs because there was no source of money for families and the men were off fighting. Women helped the men by working, growing food, and even fighting. Without women growing food and helping the men, they wouldn’t have been fighting as well. After the end of World War II, men took over their jobs again. Men weren’t sure that women were

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While the other was done by one person in particular, the other boys still had something to do with it because they watched and let it happen. There is a very low 10-20% chance that a girl will do a violent act like this. Would Lord of the Flies have turned out differently if it had been about girls rather than boys? This question requires us to consider how gender, society, and the environment influence our behavior. The original story reveals boys becoming violent, but putting girls in the same position might result in different results.

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The Lord of the Flies is a book about a young group of boys that are tragically stranded on a deserted island. The boys are put into a situation way beyond their age capability, however they adapt quite well to their new lifestyle. Even with the mourning losses of Piggy, Simon, and some of the littluns, most of the young boys survived. What if the Lord of the Flies was about a group of young girls instead? Would the group of girls have acted differently?

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Men were always the workers within the family, the ones that were expected to provide for their families. When they went to war, their role within community life needed to be filled. That is when their wives, daughters, and sisters stepped up and took over. “In addition to caring for their families, [women] were left to supervise businesses and farms while the men were away fighting” (Senker). Women were already cooking, cleaning, and caring for their children, but still made time to work and provide as a father figure every single day.

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The book “The Lord Of The Flies” showcases characters that are only male. The boys were unable to maintain a civilized environment, and neglected to provide a safe place for them to grow up mentally and physically. At the young age these boys are said to be boys and girls are very different. Most girls mature faster then boys, being able to exhibit better reasoning and problem solving skills. While boys usually tend to be more violent and solve their problems by simply fighting the other person.

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Violence is prevalent throughout the novel. Immediately after losing the ‘election’, Jack, who later becomes the leader of the savages, or Lord of the Flies, goes hunting for a pig. Giving us a taste of his wicked side, he declares “You cut a pig’s throat to let the blood out” (Golding 31). After failing to kill the pig the author makes it a sense to wickedly declare that next time he will not hesitate to kill one. Following the splitting of the tribes, a boy comes running down to the beach to inform the other boys that the ‘Beast’ is not real; upon arriving, Jack declares that the Beast has taken this boy over and orders his ‘flies’ to “Kill the beast!

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Of all of the aspects mentioned earlier, the best and most interesting would be the symbolic aspect, which is brilliantly showcased throughout the novel. In Lord of the Flies, the characters possess distinguishable traits that define and symbolize every boy (Li & Wu, 2009, p.119). For example, Golding portrays that men are inherently evil, and Jack helps in proving that description. Jack symbolizes savagery and, throughout the novel, is described to be angry and in need of blood (Li & Wu, 2009, p.119). Contrarily, since the novel is only male based, this urges us to think about the opposing point of view where “Lord of the Flies” only consisted of female characters.

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I believe the author wanted to show us that men are not perfect to begin with and even at a young age (like the characters in the novel) the boys struggle with responsibility, maturity, and respect. So, would the story be different if the characters were all female? In this essay I will compare differences on boy and girl characters in the novel and I will replace a character from Lord of the Flies with a female counterpart. Giving details on how she looks, acts, what motivates her to do the things she does, and how would life on the

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