Savagery In Lord Of The Flies

Sir William Golding wrote Lord of the Flies in 1954 to exemplify the differences of civilization and savagery in society. Golding’s novel begins hen adolescent children find themselves stranded on an island without any adult presence. All of their previous knowledge on civil norms and regulatory processes, previously administered by mature adults, were wiped clean from their survival strategies on the island. Throughout the story, the characters gravitate towards opposing lifestyles, which are civilization and savagery. Golding created metaphors between order and chaos often throughout the novel, and the reader deducts a common theme of the struggle between leaders as they attempt gain power in distressful moments. Both civilization and

Piggy, Ralph’s main supporter in establishing a civil government, represents knowledge and informative reasoning in society. The children’s rescue fire sparked from Piggy’s much-needed specs. Realizing how important the specs were to signaling a rescue ship or plane, Ralph and the other orderly boys cherished the simple and proprietary fire-starting tool. Piggy resented the savage and chaotic ways of the choirboys because of their carelessness on the island. “Like kids! [You savages] are all acting like a crowd of kids!” said Piggy while defending Ralph as he attempted to start a fire and gain order (Goldman 36). Piggy’s glasses were the only way for the civil and obedient children to gain a slim chance of

Human or adult presence was not able to encourage or enforce societal norms and rules upon the children, as they would have experienced without a wartime plane crash. The natural path the children took can be seen in society in various capacities throughout history. Human tendencies have not changed dramatically throughout world history, and several instances drew concise comparisons to the Ralph, Jack, and Piggy. Golding did not write Lord of the Flies to tell a story of children landing upon an island in search of survival. Lord of the Flies was written to epitomize human history and cultural adaptations, which lead to our very actions and traditions today. The freedom of which the children found themselves upon represents the innocence of the first humans to inhabit the earth. The children, just like the first humans, developed lifestyles and groups into monarchial governments and hunting tribes, fear of the supernatural, and persecution against the intellectual in society. Outside influence did not create these thoughts and actions; the human body was created in a certain way, which has been closely aligned since the first Egyptian society containing government and