Lord Of The Flies Civilization And Savagery Essay Example

As humans, we tend to keep our emotions inside of us as a way of protecting ourselves from the potential consequences that could occur as well as the fear of judgment when expressing our inner selves. However we must learn to overcome this obstacle and have a desire to truly express how we feel about someone and something. With that being said, we must learn to express our emotions in ways that will not depict us as savages or evil, but more perceptive human beings. In the novel Lord of the Flies, the extended metaphor that is displayed throughout the book is the idea of channeling your inner emotions and how the “beast” comes from anyone within if they have the desire to express it.

Throughout the novel, the conch is an important symbol that contributes to a variety of emotions among the boys and ultimately portrays the idea of both a democratic civilization, but intense emotions. While the main goal of the conch is to establish a civilized society on the island, it is used by characters in ways that are tyrannical and unjust. Not only does it also establish control among the group, but it also shows how the boys are equal upon one another. When Jack however has the conch in his possession the idea of being equal and establishing proper leadership seems apathetic. “I ought to be chief…because I’m chapter chorister and head boy. I can sign C Sharp” (Page 22). Ultimately when Jack tries to abuse his power as a leader, he does in a way that portrays him as a tyrannical and unjust leader. When losing to Ralph in the election, he then uses his diminutive powers that are granted to him over the rest of the group. In Jack's mind, he thinks that he is too good not to be chief simply because of the fact that he was chapter chorister and head boy portraying him as a biased individual. Another example that displays Jack to be extremely tyrannical and unjust to the group is when he steals piggy’s glasses as a way of starting a fire. What he failed to understand was that he was doing this at the expense of negatively affecting piggy. “His specs, use them as burning glasses” (Page 159). Clearly Jack is not only selfish, but also cruel for taking piggy's glasses without his permission showing how is nothing short of unsympathetic. While most leaders would try to make decisions that would benefit the group as a whole, Jack is too small minded to be considerate when it comes to his selfish actions.

Another example that is shown throughout the novel that represents the idea  of channeling inner emotions is how the breaking of piggy's glasses. When Jack seems to be infuriated by the competition for power between him and Ralph, he takes his anger out on Piggy. This also results in the breaking of one of her lenses. Jack’s violent assault on Piggy represents his savagery within and makes him appear as coward-like. “He was a chief now in truth, and he made stabbing motions with his spear. From his left hand dangled Piggy's glasses.” (page 168). Jack and his tribe seem to now celebrate the fact that Jack has obtained piggys stolen glasses. Not only does this show Ralph and his group to be powerless and lost, but shows how the civilization in which they established has also been destroyed in a way. The fact that Jack has only gained power through possessing piggy's glasses shows how his poor leadership and savagery has taken over both the group and the civilization as a whole. Ultimately, Jack was able to channel the inner “beast” inside of him by destroying Piggy's glasses and rather than express sympathy for his appalling actions, used it to display his physical dominance over Piggy.

Another way that intense emotion and having the desire to express is shown in the novel is the death of Simon. When Simon first learns that the beast that is feared among the whole group is simply just a dead paratrooper along with his parachute, he realizes that he must report this news to the group. However, it doesn't go as quietly as expected. In fact, Simon is in fact killed by plummeting to his death off the rocks because of a misunderstanding within the group. “We were on the outside.We have never done nothing. We never saw nothing” (Page 143). While Ralph and Piggy are in denial because of the horrific action that occurred the night before, Piggy seems to insist that he didn’t see anything portraying Piggy as the non-innocent person in which he has also viewed himself as. Ultimately the death of Simon has caused the civilization to break down and lead to a social crisis within the group. Furthermore, the death of Simon represents the complete descent from a well rounded society to complete savagery, as well as the human struggles the boys face and the failure to properly adapt to the rules of a democratic civilization. 

Ultimately, the death of Simon, the conch, and the breaking of piggy's glasses all portray the idea of human descent to savagery and the desire to express how we truly feel about certain people or situations. While we are often afraid to express how we feel about these things, we must understand that it is better to suffer the consequences of staying true to one’s self than accepting a false narrative. Specifically in Lord of the Flies, we learn that the extended metaphor that is displayed throughout the book is the idea of intense fear and how the “beast” comes from anyone within if they have the desire to express it. Throughout the novel,  Golding seems to demonstrate the idea of the constraints of human nature and how it draws people to cruelty. The big takeaway is that human nature is considered “savage” because of the way society influences immoral behavior that lies deep down inside of us.