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Who Is Unbalanced In Lord Of The Flies

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Recommended: Freud theory of psychosocial development

Madeleine Frey
Ms. Degener
Pre-AP English 9, Period 4
1 May 2023
An Unbalanced State of Mind
The id, ego, and super-ego must all be equal for the mind to be balanced and live a good existence; otherwise, the mind would become lost ("Freud's Theory Of Personality: Id, Ego, And Super-ego"). Golding demonstrates Freud's theory of balance in mind and what could happen if it became unbalanced in his novel Lord of the Flies, where young boys struggle to survive and establish order on a deserted island. They try to balance the three forces of Freud's theory to resolve conflicts but destroy their superficial democracy. In considering the impacts of Freud's view on the characters, in the novel Lord of the Flies, Golding demonstrates how each aspect …show more content…

The conscience is our "inner voice" that alerts us when we have misbehaved ("Freud's Theory Of Personality: Id, Ego, And Super-ego"). Piggy acts as the conscience when the boys create their society; he advocates for a signal fire to boost the probability of their rescue. "'I agree with Ralph. We've got to have rules and obey them. After all, we're not savages. We're English, and the English are best at everything"' (Golding 42). Golding's use of situational irony is made apparent as the boys devolve into savages themselves. It also demonstrates that Piggy is concerned with upholding order and obeying the rules, two crucial parts of the super-ego's role. Piggy continually supports these principles and tries to keep the boys from descending into savagery. The other crucial part of the super-ego is the ideal self. It is an idealized version of who you should be; it symbolizes your goals for your work, how you should interact with others, and how you should conduct yourself publicly ("Freud's Theory Of Personality: Id, Ego, And Super-ego.") Simon behaves as the super-ego differently, he reflects the ideal self because of his morality which guides his words and actions. '"Maybe," he said hesitantly, "maybe there is a beast.

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He cares about the good for society. Piggy is unique from the rest of the boys because he is the only orphan on the island. Being an orphan, he has to think for himself, and makes decisions that benefit his “Auntie” assuming she is old, and himself. Causing Piggy to have the unique ability to think, and have the voice of an adult. In chapter 11, Piggy holds up the conch in front of Jack’s tribe and says, “Which is better—to have rules and agree, or to hunt and kill?”

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It provides one with more worries about the logistics of the issue rather than fixing the problem. Many of the boys are under the age of 12 and would rather play and talk than take on heavy responsibilities. They are purely innocent, but as time goes on, they all relish in the brutal killing of others, depicting their loss of innocence as chaos ensues. Piggy is the only one who is able to keep his logical reasoning away from savagery and therefore represents innocence. The audience notice that others recognize the importance of Piggy’s slow, thoughtful insight in the face of disaster because Ralph “wept for the end of innocence” (202) and he acknowledges Piggy as a “true wise friend” (202).

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In Lord of the Flies, William Golding conveys using rhetorical devices that everyone has innate evil and when evoked, it overcomes one’s sense of civility and humanity. The author creates a scenario whereby he places a group of boys onto an uninhabited island and examines how the group are effected over time. Through the course of the novel there is a considerable change in mentality throughout the group. The change is due to the lack of a strict and functioning society and ultimately the boys have degenerated into primitivity. In addition, the boys are becoming more evil, embodying evil in their own ways.

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