Roger From Lord Of The Flies Analysis

Behind the mask emerges a malice liberated by the concealments of anonymity; That malice resides in every human, waiting to surface. It is under the mask where humans are free to express the inner savage, the side that promotes violence and cruelty. Comparatively, The rise of the Nazis and the birth of World War II gave way for people to hide under the title of their uniforms and kill with no repercussions. After joining the Royal Navy and experiencing the horrors of war, William Golding saw the dark side of human nature. During a period of violence, Golding wrote “Lord of The Flies” which demonstrated what would happen if a group of boys were put on an island with no adults. The result, and everything that led up to its end, is mirrored with

Notably is Roger who entertains himself by generating emotions such as fear, sorrow, and anger out of the boys and more specifically, the littluns. It is the littluns that provide an easy target for Roger to pick on as they are virtually innocent, and harmless. Henceforth, a littlun named Henry becomes a victim of Roger’s sadistic pranks. After Roger loses pleasure in kicking down sandcastles, he turns to the delight of throwing rocks at Henry but aiming to miss. Roger misses because the rules of society tell him to do so. “Here invisible, yet strong, was the taboo of the old life” (Golding 33). Surely Roger wasn’t concerned for Henry’s safety but was instead halted by his arm which was conditioned to a civilized society that stopped him from committing indecent acts. Despite Roger refraining from hitting Henry, his game quickly turns violent when he is given the chance to be anonymous. With Jack in power, Roger is offered a whole new identity that encourages the innate cruelty he has been forced to keep quiet. Jack’s reign offers Roger to take up a distinct role of being the killer and torturer. It also lets Roger blend in with the rest of Jack's tribe giving him the ultimate freedom of expression. When Ralph and Piggy challenge Jack’s tribe, Roger takes advantage of an escalating situation. Seeing that Piggy had a disadvantage with no glasses and that Ralph was struggling to fend off Jack entices Roger. He no longer looks down at a group of human beings but instead, as figures opposing his tribe. “Ralph was a shock of hair, and Piggy was a bag of fat” (Golding 198). This sort of dehumanization frees Roger from any thought of moral decency leading him to do the unthinkable. With a boulder waiting to be moved, Roger’s arm is not conditioned to civilization because the mask has allowed