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Forms Of Government In William Golding's Lord Of The Flies

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Forms Of Government In William Golding's Lord Of The Flies
The Disassembly of Government
Lord of the Flies, a novel about a group of young British boy’s struggle for society and survival after their plane crashes on a deserted island. The boys slip into many forms of government while trapped. Their unstable government contributes to the ultimate fall from civilization to savagery. Golding's characters, Jack, Ralph, and the littluns, carry attributes of the many forms of government and how the different types, totalitarianism, democracy, and socialism, affected their success on the island.
Ralph instills a sense of concordance and structure in his group, leading based on what he learned in society. He uses the conch, which becomes a symbol for democracy and order, to call assemblies and vote on problems
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Desperate to keep his power he goes to extreme measures to make sure none of his tribe ever leave him. This becomes a destructive society because he knows no one will ever attempt to overthrow him so he can do whatever he pleases. Jack becomes a symbol of a king or God, worshipped by the boys, “Before the party had started a great log had been dragged into the center of the lawn and Jack, painted and garlanded, sat there like an idol.” (149). The boys mistake their fear as respect. They look up to Jack despite his corrupt actions. Totalitarianism only benefits Jack, but none of the boys recognise this. With this government comes chaos and the fall to what's left of order on the island.
Golding uses Lord of the Flies to make clear the flaws of every government. He begins his novel with young, innocent boys who have never had any experience with leadership before and writes of their shift to maturity through their attempt to form a functioning society. Golding’s novel demonstrates how no government is flawless and how they lead to Anarchy. With corrupt leaders or mob rule, society will come to a fall. Golding book highlights the problems of government and how they still apply to modern society, making it clear there is no real perfect

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