Savagery In Lord Of The Flies

“Piggy fell forty feet and landed on his back across the square red rock in the sea. His head opened and stuff came out and turned red.” (Golding 181). In the beginning of the Lord of the Flies by William Golding, a group of British boys, who were originally sent to a safe place away from the Cold War, become stranded on an island after their plane crashes. The boys are all alone with no adult figure present and ultimately throughout the novel, become animalistic in nature. The transformation of Roger from well mannered to vicious highlights that savagery can become prominent in society when no adult figure is present, which ultimately proves that people are born with evil inside them and if left to their own devices they can revert to an

In the beginning of the novel when the boys first landed, Roger, like many of the boys on the island, were freshly pulled from society. But when chaos and disorder break out on the island Roger suggests that they take a vote in order to find a leader on the island. “He hesitated. The dark boy, Roger stirred at last and spoke up. ‘Let’s have a vote.”’ (Golding 22). Roger suggests a democratic government speaking from his own experiences. Golding uses the word “dark” to describe his ominous personality instead of his physical appearance . Both Roger and the boys are inclined to follow the societal norms and as a result they are quick to search for a form of government and stability on the island. The immediate turn to democratic means of governing displays the impact society and nurture has on Roger’s behavior. While Golding illustrates the importance of civilization and the necessity for nurture, Jeffrey Kluger’s article “What Makes Us Moral” points out that the guidance of adult figures and the ability to distinguish between right and wrong play a large role in the morality and ethics of a person. Kluger describes that from a young age even children can identify the contrasts between right and wrong. “ ...somebody taught the child a rule,but the rule against pushing has a

Roger has joined Jack’s tribe of uncivilized mask wearing children and is ready for the hunting and killing of a pig. They come across the pig and begin to chase and torture it. “Roger ran around the heap prodding with his spear whenever pig flesh appeared... Roger found a lodgment for his point and began to push till he was leaning with his whole weight.” (Golding 135). The boys find the mother pig and begin to harass and torture it beyond normal means of killing to survive. Roger especially has a sadistic nature when confronting the pig. Golding uses the words “prodding” and “leaning with his whole weight” to imitate that of a scene of abuse. During this quote, the sow was suffering from multiple injuries and was dying a painful and unnecessarily brutal death. It is evident that Roger is the boy that most enjoyed the hunt, he found it amusing to slowly take the life away from another being and didn’t regret it at all. At this point Golding illustrates, that when removed from society for too long, people lose all sense of righteousness and the result, is evil at its core. This directly correlates to Goldings article “Why Boys Become Vicious” where Golding notions that there is evil in everyone and when parent(s) are absent, children are at a lose. Golding describes that when