How Does Beowulf Show Loyalty In Lord Of The Flies
While being written centuries apart, Beowulf and Lord of The Flies share a prevailing idea of loyalty. Beowulf, being king, is supported by his one loyal thane, Wiglaf. Ralph has his loyal friends, Piggy and Simon. The addition of a faithful companion by your side, means that you will never have to face hardships alone. They’ll never desert you in dangerous situations nor will they leave you for a more tempting offer. This sense of loyalty can be seen when Beowulf fights Grendel’s mother underwater. While he’s fighting, his men and the king's army watch as blood seeps to the surface. Believing it to be Beowulf’s death, the army sulked away while his men stood at the water’s edge, waiting for Beowulf to rise from the murky water. (Beowulf 65) . His men showed unmovable loyalty even when their leader was against all odds. Things begin to change however when Beowulf becomes King of the
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Geats. When his hometown is terrorized by a powerful dragon, Beowulf sets out to end the reign of terror with the help of his eleven thanes. When Beowulf fights the dragon his thanes assist him to the best of their ability. But as the fight progresses and the dragon starts spewing fire, ten of his “loyal” thanes run for their lives. Only Wiglaf has the loyalty to stay behind and defend his lord. And for his loyalty Beowulf unclasped “The collar of gold from his neck and gave it to the young thane, telling him to use it…” (Beowulf 89). This essentially means that Beowulf gave Wiglaf the title of King over the Geats.
You don’t need to be a king to have loyal servants. Ralph was elected leader of a small tribe of school boys. In the beginning, everyone was loyal to Ralph because he held the conch shell, which symbolized power and leadership. But as time went on the boys succumbed to savagery and suddenly Ralph and his conch shell became meaningless.
Now Ralph’s “tribe” was whittled down to just a few loyal boys, the two main being Piggy and Simon.
Piggy had always thought of Ralph as a friend, even when the feelings weren't mutual. No matter what Ralph said or did to him, Piggy always followed his orders. When Ralph fell into a state of depression, Piggy was at his side consoling him and reminding him of the big picture. Simon always looked for the good of the group and thus chose to stick with Ralph. His morals wouldn’t let him join the evil camp of Jack. Unlike Beowulf, Ralph had nothing to give to his companions. No gifts, no rewards, and certainly no food. On the other hand, the sadistic Jack ensured everyone's loyalty by providing fresh meat and protection from The Beast. These were all things Ralph lacked for his followers. But then why did Piggy and Simon not abandon Ralph in a heartbeat? It’s because they had a something everyone else lacked, intelligence. Piggy and Simon showed their loyalty to Ralph simply because he was a sane and just leader. Unlike Jack, who only craved for power and the display of
authority.
In both stories loyalty is established when the leader consistently provides gifts and sustenance for his followers. Beowulf was able to spoil his thanes with riches on the promise of them keeping their loyalty. However, his thanes abandon him when their lives are at stake. On the other hand, Ralph held the loyalty of his followers by promising an escape from the island. Sadly this was not enough to keep the boys loyal to Ralph, as the boys hungered for meat and the opportunity to hunt. These feelings quickly transformed innocent school children into barbaric, bloodthirsty monsters. Jack appeased these monsters by creating his own tribe, which focused on hunting wild boars and seeking protection from The Beast. Which ironically is just a dead boar’s head. Having an unwavering allegiance to a single body is called being loyal. Loyalty is determined by the strength of the bond between each person. Beowulf secured this bond by heavily gifting his thanes, hoping they would return the favor in battle. Ralph, being stranded on an island, had to resort to using fair rulings and his promise of being rescued to win the loyalty of his companions. Both stories stress the importance of loyalty between the man in charge and his followers.
Geats. When his hometown is terrorized by a powerful dragon, Beowulf sets out to end the reign of terror with the help of his eleven thanes. When Beowulf fights the dragon his thanes assist him to the best of their ability. But as the fight progresses and the dragon starts spewing fire, ten of his “loyal” thanes run for their lives. Only Wiglaf has the loyalty to stay behind and defend his lord. And for his loyalty Beowulf unclasped “The collar of gold from his neck and gave it to the young thane, telling him to use it…” (Beowulf 89). This essentially means that Beowulf gave Wiglaf the title of King over the Geats.
You don’t need to be a king to have loyal servants. Ralph was elected leader of a small tribe of school boys. In the beginning, everyone was loyal to Ralph because he held the conch shell, which symbolized power and leadership. But as time went on the boys succumbed to savagery and suddenly Ralph and his conch shell became meaningless.
Now Ralph’s “tribe” was whittled down to just a few loyal boys, the two main being Piggy and Simon.
Piggy had always thought of Ralph as a friend, even when the feelings weren't mutual. No matter what Ralph said or did to him, Piggy always followed his orders. When Ralph fell into a state of depression, Piggy was at his side consoling him and reminding him of the big picture. Simon always looked for the good of the group and thus chose to stick with Ralph. His morals wouldn’t let him join the evil camp of Jack. Unlike Beowulf, Ralph had nothing to give to his companions. No gifts, no rewards, and certainly no food. On the other hand, the sadistic Jack ensured everyone's loyalty by providing fresh meat and protection from The Beast. These were all things Ralph lacked for his followers. But then why did Piggy and Simon not abandon Ralph in a heartbeat? It’s because they had a something everyone else lacked, intelligence. Piggy and Simon showed their loyalty to Ralph simply because he was a sane and just leader. Unlike Jack, who only craved for power and the display of
authority.
In both stories loyalty is established when the leader consistently provides gifts and sustenance for his followers. Beowulf was able to spoil his thanes with riches on the promise of them keeping their loyalty. However, his thanes abandon him when their lives are at stake. On the other hand, Ralph held the loyalty of his followers by promising an escape from the island. Sadly this was not enough to keep the boys loyal to Ralph, as the boys hungered for meat and the opportunity to hunt. These feelings quickly transformed innocent school children into barbaric, bloodthirsty monsters. Jack appeased these monsters by creating his own tribe, which focused on hunting wild boars and seeking protection from The Beast. Which ironically is just a dead boar’s head. Having an unwavering allegiance to a single body is called being loyal. Loyalty is determined by the strength of the bond between each person. Beowulf secured this bond by heavily gifting his thanes, hoping they would return the favor in battle. Ralph, being stranded on an island, had to resort to using fair rulings and his promise of being rescued to win the loyalty of his companions. Both stories stress the importance of loyalty between the man in charge and his followers.