Psychological Desires in Lord of the Flies Essay Sample

In this book there are plenty of surprising events that arrange from as little as a group separation all the way to murder all these characters minds are resorting to savagery, stuck on an island with nowhere to go and uncertainty of being saved would you be able to stay sane? The group the hunters are not thinking as a sane person would, Jack has convinced them all that due to them having the will to hunt whenever they please they should do so, even while not having a need to kill which causes them to constantly want to get blood on their hands for power. Another thing is Ralph thinks in the beginning that by keeping the fire always burning that they will become saved, although through the time of the book this becomes more of an obsession and shows the deeper meaning that through savagery, he still wants to make it back home. Then towards the end of the book before the complete chaos the boys split into groups causing savagery thoughts to spread quickly throughout their brains since now there's a chance of the characters starting war and they are not able to remind each other of human values. Throughout William Golding ``Lord of the Flies``, the characters’ focus on their psychological desires as shown in Maslow’s Hierarchy of needs even as they descend into savagery as evidenced through Jack’s constant urge to hunt, Ralphs fixation on keeping the fire burning and the groups ultimate separation. 

The focus of the characters in this novel are the psychological desires shown in Maslow’s Hierarchy of needs because Jack is constantly needing to kill, Ralph needs the fire always burning, and the group separating for the better even though they are turning to savagery. Jack's urge to kill resembles the psychological desires shown in the Maslow’s Hierarchy of needs by killing even when it is not needed, he still is wanting to kill and uses the excuse for food even though they do not need more at the moment. The quote “We’re strong – we hunt! If there’s a beast, we’ll hunt it down! We’ll close in and beat and beat and beat -!” (Golding 99) shows how Jack just wants to kill and he believes that he can defeat anything. Jack is always trying to find a reason to hunt which is causing a huge impact on the group because he is always urging to kill no matter what and this puts the boys at risk of being hunted themselves if not obeying him. Jack’s mind is constantly having the idea to kill, and hunt shows that he is turning to savagery because he isn’t doing it for the sake of keeping alive anymore, he just wants the thrill of seeing the blood. This proves that through his hunting urge and willingness to survive is still there even though the characters are turning to savagery. 

Adding onto that Ralph has fixated on the fact that the fire must always be burning, or they will not be saved. While Jack is disobeying Ralph's orders, he is still trying to prove that he is in charge and they need to listen, the quote “I was chief, and you were going to do what I said. You talk. But you can’t even build huts—then you go off hunting and let out the fire—” (Golding 99) is a perfect example of Ralph trying to insert his power of being leader of the group. Ralph believes that there should be a fire always burning regardless of the situation that they are in. While Ralph did put the hunters in charge of the fire, he is constantly double checking with them that someone was watching the fire. The impact that this gave the group was that Jack would constantly order the hunters to disobey Ralph’s orders even though he was the main leader causing conflict within the group. The fire is just a symbol of how Ralph is obsessing to feel the need of warmth and safety again, this fire gives reassurance there's a chance of being saved which keeps the smallest bit in his brain from turning completely savage. 

As well during the major change of the boys' mindset they are turning to savagery which causes them to have many different priorities with conflict causing a massive separation.  Jack is done with this group and doesn’t think that his values are the same as theirs “I’m not going to play anymore. Not with you...I’m not going to be a part of Ralph’s lot” (Golding 158) he is trying to leave thinking this would be better for the boys. In the beginning of the book the boys had all gathered, picked a leader and wanted to be one group to stay alive although as time passed on the island, they grew resentful. The separation of these two groups shows that they are turning to savagery because it is an example of how everyone is turning against each other and not staying civilized. Savagery would overtake the boys as they had separated because the boys are no longer reminding each other of simple human morals and values leaving them to the new mindset they have created for themselves. These characters feel they’re stuck forever, us readers never get a true timeline of how long they’re stuck, with all this time their minds have turned to savagery to keep themselves going, thinking about basic human needs but not in the way they should be thinking of getting those needs like killing even if not needed for food.

The characters' emphasis on their mental cravings as displayed in Maslow's Hierarchy of necessities even as they plunge into viciousness as confirmed through Jack's steady inclination to kill, Ralph's obsession with keeping the smoke signal going and the characters feeling the need to go separate ways. The characters' minds are slowly turning to savagery but they’re still trying to stay sane the slightest bit in hope. The way that their sane thoughts are hidden though little ways, such as Jack's urge for the hunt shows that his brain is still thinking about how it needs food for survival. Ralph's need to keep the fire going shows he still wants to be saved. This was showing that they were trying to hide from having conflicts with each other causing arguments. The amount of time these characters spend on this island must have been excruciatingly long in their minds, as kids they shouldn’t have gone through that, their brains are still developing which causes them not to know how serious this situation was, although if you put a group of adults in this situation what would be different? Would they really be able to last for a longer period because they know more, or would this cause them a quicker ending?