Lord of the Flies
Lord of the Flies Essay
The shape of society must depend on the ethical nature of man. In Golding’s Lord of the Flies, he reveals the idea of human’s evil nature beneath the veneer of civilization. In the story, the boy’s experience on the island reflects the defects in their character. Their action promotes the belief that man has primitive and savage instincts which reveals themselves under certain circumstance. Golding uses situational, dramatic and verbal ironies to highlight men’s essential struggle between civilized behaviour and the barbaric side within human nature. Throughout the story, Ralph strives to keep the fire burning, seeing it foremost to hunting. However, the fire does not rescue the boys until Jack intends to smoke Ralph out by setting up the fire. When the officer meets Ralph, he says, “’We saw your smoke. What have you been doing? Having a war or something?’” (P.223). The coincidence makes Ralph’s efforts seem pointless. The boys, who are forced to survive on the island, show their civilized and educated side at the beginning of the story; conversely, they appears savage and uncivilized at the end. The readers have been led to believe that the civilized society will be maintained, but the outcome is different from what is expected. “Nobody killed, I hope? Any dead bodies?” (P.223) comments the officer, and he is surprised when Ralph tells him two are killed. As mentioned before, evil has always been hidden in human’s heart. It has somehow become part of the human instinct. Evilness roots everyone’s mind. When the boys are rescued, the officer says, “’I should have thought that a pack of British boys would have been able to put up a better show than that’” (P.224). Ironically, the naval officer is behaving in a similar manner, but on a global scale. The situational ironies Golding uses supplements the evil hidden in the human heart. In the novel, Golding also
The shape of society must depend on the ethical nature of man. In Golding’s Lord of the Flies, he reveals the idea of human’s evil nature beneath the veneer of civilization. In the story, the boy’s experience on the island reflects the defects in their character. Their action promotes the belief that man has primitive and savage instincts which reveals themselves under certain circumstance. Golding uses situational, dramatic and verbal ironies to highlight men’s essential struggle between civilized behaviour and the barbaric side within human nature. Throughout the story, Ralph strives to keep the fire burning, seeing it foremost to hunting. However, the fire does not rescue the boys until Jack intends to smoke Ralph out by setting up the fire. When the officer meets Ralph, he says, “’We saw your smoke. What have you been doing? Having a war or something?’” (P.223). The coincidence makes Ralph’s efforts seem pointless. The boys, who are forced to survive on the island, show their civilized and educated side at the beginning of the story; conversely, they appears savage and uncivilized at the end. The readers have been led to believe that the civilized society will be maintained, but the outcome is different from what is expected. “Nobody killed, I hope? Any dead bodies?” (P.223) comments the officer, and he is surprised when Ralph tells him two are killed. As mentioned before, evil has always been hidden in human’s heart. It has somehow become part of the human instinct. Evilness roots everyone’s mind. When the boys are rescued, the officer says, “’I should have thought that a pack of British boys would have been able to put up a better show than that’” (P.224). Ironically, the naval officer is behaving in a similar manner, but on a global scale. The situational ironies Golding uses supplements the evil hidden in the human heart. In the novel, Golding also