Lord Of The Flies: Civilisation vs Savagery

By: Adriel, Naveen and Taufiq

Golding's message

- Civilisation is but a mirage- Mankind is born a savage

Golding's message

- William Golding is conveying the message that human beings must have rules, authority and government in order to maintain a safe environment.

- When man is left free from rules, discipline and governmental regulations, he will return to his base instincts and become much like an animal. He loses respect for human life and his sense of right and wrong.

Civilisation defined

– An advanced state of intellectual, cultural, and material development in human society, marked by progress in the arts and sciences, the extensive use of record-keeping, including writing, and the appearance of complex political and social institutions.

Character evaluation: Ralph

– Ralph is the primary representative of order, civilization, and good leadership in the book. While most of the other boys initially are concerned with playing, having fun, and avoiding work, Ralph sets about building huts and thinking of ways to maximize their chances of getting rescued.

– In the earlier parts, Ralph does not understand why the other boys would give in to barbarism and bloodlust. He finds the chanting and dancing of the other boys distasteful. However he then learns that this savagery exists in all boys but is determined not to let this savagery get the better of him.

Character evaluation: Piggy

– The embodiment of maturity amongst the children because he did not believe that they were going to be saved by Ralph's father who was in the navy. He was intellectually superior compared to the rest but physically inferior. This is seen when he found the conch but gave it to Ralph to blow because of his asthma.

– He represents civilisation because of the fact that he was "frowning to remember names". He sees each boy as a fellow human being, and wants to give him the right and privilege of being called by his proper name. Having names matters to Piggy, because, just like the conch, it represents a system of rules and order.

Character Evaluation: Piggy

– Piggy insists on rules and order and defends the conch. This is because people like piggy would get tramelled by the likes of Jack. However with the conch, his voice would matter as much as everyone else's, with the conch everyone has a fair chance of being heard. This is also probably why piggy defends the conch even when he is attacked by Jack and his hunters demanding, "Which is better—to have rules and agree, or to hunt and kill?"

Symbolism on Civilisation

–Conch : ‘he can hold it when he is speaking’

The conch represents organization and unity

-Piggy’s glasses : It represents science and logical reasoning in society. When the boys use the glasses to start the fire, it signifies intelligence. Also, when Jack’s hunters raid Ralph’s camp they steal Piggy’s glasses, effectively taking the power to make fire, leaving Ralph’s group helpless. This shows how the boys use their intelligence while stranded.

-

Symbolism on Savagery

–The beastie : it gives an instinct of savagery. The boys are afraid of the beast but only Simon figures out that the beast exists in them. All in all, the more fearful the boys are of the beast, the more savage they become. By the end of the book they start making sacrifices to the beast, treating it as their leader

- The scar on the island : The rip in the forest caused by the crash landing of the plane symbolises how man and his savage nature will destroy paradise by entering it.

Degradation of Civilisation and uprising of Savagery

Savagery defined

– The property of being untamed, violent and primitive

Character evaluation: Jack

– Jack is strong-willed and egomaniacal. He is the novel’s representative of the instinct of savagery, violence, and the desire for power. He basically is the opposite of Ralph. While Ralph is determined to stay civilised and peaceful, Jack completely embraces savagery and bloodlust.

– Jack initially shows a level of self constraint and was the leader of the choir. He was furious upon losing the leadership position to Ralph because of his egotistical properties. Upon letting the pig live, Jack becomes devoted to his role as the hunter and lets this sense of bloodlust and barbarism consume him completely. This is seen in “Jack began to dance and his laughter became a bloodthirsty snarling” when he becomes one with his prey and is practically morphing into an animal.

Character Evaluation: Jack

– Jack's love for authority and senseless violence eventually become interconnected as both gives him the sense of power. He also learns to manipulate the boys fear of the beast to control them. The more savage Jack became, the greater the grip he had on his tribe.

Character evaluation: Roger

– Roger is Jack's right hand man and symbolises the most inhumane of society. He is a cruel sadist who bullies the younger ones. He eventually kills piggy by rolling a boulder onto him. Roger is the epitome of a savage brute as he finds joy in the suffering of others. This is seen as he rolls a boulder over Piggy to kill him. He does not hesitate to follow Jacks every command as Jack is the only one he fears.