The Lord of the Flies : the beast within all humans

From : http://www.slideshare.net/keesijzerman/lord-of-the-flies-21390536 

My posts about literature keep growing and growing. I already wrote posts about Defoe's  Robinson Crusoe, about Hemingway's The Old Man and the Sea, and Charles Dickens's Oliver Twist. I have lately read another outstanding piece of literature : The Lord of the Flies, by William Golding . This thrilling novel tells the story of a group of pre-teenagers who must endeavour to survive on a deserted island without any adults around, after the crashing of their plane. 

At the beginning, everything seems promising. A boy, Ralph is elected leader by coincidence when he happens to find a conch and blows it calling the first assembly. He starts to arrange things on the island, instructing others to make a fire and keep it burning; to construct shelters and have fun. However, little by little, as time goes by things get worsen and the gang of boys start losing their childlike innocence to brutal savagery and barbarity. 

Soon after they arrive on the island, most of the boys start bullying one of the most intelligent lads, nicknaming him 'Piggy'. They start to despise and insult him. In addition, the small society is quickly divided between 'Bigguns' (the oldest ones) and 'Littluns' (mostly kindergarten or pre-school children who are unable to take care of themselves). 

Soon one of the boys, Jack Merridew, opposes the leader. He is jealous of him and wants to become the leader of the group. He hunts for food and little by little he persuades the others to join him. They forget to let the fire going and they descend into savagery and lose their humankind. They barely wear any clothes, they paint their faces, they hunt for food and they dance like in a ritual. In no time, a battle arises : a battle between Ralph, the original leader (backed up by Piggy), and Jack (supported by the rest of the boys); a battle between humankind and savagery; a battle that will take some lives...

The question here is 'why is this book so riveting ?' The answer is simple : it deals with complex problems of humankind. It depicts topics that are still current nowadays. First and foremost, William Golding analyzes the darkness within the human soul. Throughout the book, the children lead an unquenchable quest for a beast. However, the best is always within them. That beast is a metaphor of the human violence and savagery. Both the survival instincts and the abandonment of society lead the man to wander around like animals. When Jack and his group paint their faces they have lost their humanity; they are wild animals willing to do whatever it takes, even despicable things like killing and torturing others, or burning the island on fire. The message that the author is sending is clear : we have a beast within that will lead us to derailment. Humanity is about controlling that beast. Not controlling that beast means going back, becoming soulless and animalistic, as can be seen in the following excerpt : "Jack began to dance and his laughter became a bloodthirsty snarling." This is precisely what drives the group to ritualistic behaviours. They turn into a ruthless tribe. They offer some sacrifices to the beast, but what they are actually doing is to enlarge their beast within. 

From : https://englishosaca.wordpress.com/sixth-grade/lord-of-the-flies/

Another important topic is life in society. There is an eternal debate going on in the book. In extreme cases, must we live in society and obey a leader, or, on the contrary, must we do whatever it takes to survive; must we surrender to our most primitive instincts ? This struggle is dealt with in the book, as can be seen in the following extract : “Which is better –to have rules and agree, or to hunt and kill?”At the beginning, they behave humanely. They obey their reasonable and humane leader, Ralph. However, when they run out of food, they decide to follow Ralph, who is less humane but it is a survivor, able to hunt for food and keep them alive. The littluns are abandoned and neglected: they consider them weak and a burden for the survival of everyone. The society of the children is a mirror of the society of adults when lousy decisions are made. If we don't make the right choices, society is bound to fall apart. 

From : https://aliciamarrone.wordpress.com/

The book describes some current and important issues in nowadays society, namely bullying and the loss of innocence in children. The first one is dealt with in the figure of Piggy. He is the voice of reason, but he is beaten and insulted with no reason, even by his own friends. He is a victim unable to escape his destiny. As for the innocence, when the children arrive on the island, their innocence is intact. Due to the conditions of the island and their action, they lose their innocence and behave cruelly. The message is demolishing : not even children are safe from their beasts within. 

From : http://chrishanze.blogspot.com.es/2014/02/discrimination-against-piggy-deeper.html

To conclude, this book proves to be compelling and enthralling given that his author seems to know human nature perfectly. You must read this book, despite its pessimistic -yet truthful vision about human beings. 

To illustrate the novel much better, here you have a parody made by The Simpsons and the trailer of the movie. I hope you enjoy them.