Personification In Lord Of The Flies Essay

A pack of boys crash-land on a desolate island and are left to survive on their own without the influence of society. After the boys struggle with their animal nature the protagonist, Ralph, gazes at the ocean and contemplates their deteriorating civilization. Golding expresses the idea that the boys will not be rescued from the island because of their savage nature through the use of personification, syntax, and juxtaposition. Through the combined use of personification and animal imagery Golding expresses the progression of the boy’s savagery, which prevents them from being rescued. For example, at one point Ralph observes, “…[the waves] gather with a roar, irresistibly swelling over point and outcrop, climbing the little cliff…” (125). The ocean is portrayed as a wild animal climbing the cliff towards the boys as if hunting them, similarly to the rise of the boy’s subconscious beast. This action is described as “irresistible”, indicating the boys cannot defy
For example, he writes “…one was clamped down, one was helpless, one was condemned, one was—” (125). By repeating “one”, the author shows that the boy’s animalistic need for independence and their refusal to cooperate with each other is a driving force in their continued isolation on the island. The connotation of the verbs become increasingly negative, progressing from “clamped down” to “helpless” to “condemned”. As time progresses the boy’s society changes in a similar manner, becoming steadily worse as their savagery increases. The final word “condemned” foreshadows that the boys will be trapped on the island until they die. Finally, the sentence ends abruptly in a dash to emphasize the difficulty of the boy’s situation. The situation is bad enough that Ralph’s fear is so great he can’t even bring himself to think the final word, which is assumed to be “dead”. Golding also uses juxtaposition to convey a similar