Ys In Lord Of The Flies

Under the supervision of adults, children act civilized, following the rules that were carefully taught to them by their parents. However, without the close watch of any adults, children feel relieved of the pressure to behave and become errant, allowing themselves to tease each other and become crude. These children show their true nature, since the lack of guidance gives them the freedom to do whatever they please. The boys experience a similar sensation of independence on the island, which ultimately leads to anarchy and the revealing of man’s nature. In William Golding’s Lord of the Flies, Jack, Ralph, and the conch demonstrate the true contents of man’s core: savagery and mercilessness. Golding uses violent diction and selection of detail to show
the boys’ growing savagery and loss of civility through Jack. Jack first exhibits savagery in Chapter One when the boys are exploring the island shortly after landing and encounter a piglet.
Immediately, Jack takes out his knife with a “flourish” (Golding 31). This demonstrates Jack’s rush to get his knife and kill the pig, indicating a sense of excitement and a desire to kill. However, Jack cannot bring himself to slaughter the pig, so there is “a pause, a hiatus”, during which Jack understands the “enormity of the knife descending and cutting into living flesh” (31). Contrastingly to before, Jack is no longer willing to kill in that moment, because he realizes that he would be taking the life of a living thing. This shows that Jack is still human and sympathetic, although he is beginning to become savage. Since it has not been that long since the boys got to the island, Jack is still under the influence of civilization and morality. There are no rules or adults on the island, but Jack continues to feel the pressure to act like a proper British boy. Although, as time on the island progresses, Jack starts to stray from civility and humanity, as shown in Chapter Four, when Jack and the boys march in, maliciously and barbarically chanting, “Kill the pig. Cut her throat. Spill her blood” (69). The harsh and violent use of diction
with the words “kill”, “cut”, “spill”, and “blood” clearly demonstrate the boys’ savagery and brutality, especially with Jack, since he was “inevitably leading the procession” (68) as the leader of these boys. The boys are reciting this satanic phrase, advocating violence and killing when they were hunting primarily for the sake of their survival and not their enjoyment. Then, the boys proceed to compare the satisfaction of taking a life to a “long satisfying drink” (70). This greatly contradicts Jack’s previous feelings of remorse during his encounter with the pig in Chapter One. Earlier, Jack was unable to kill the pig due to the thought that he would be taking the life of an innocent creature. Now, he can kill more easily without that feeling of uncertainty and dishonor. Jack no longer feels guilt in killing, but pride and amusement. This shows Jack’s progression away from humanity and towards barbarism.