Artificial Restraints In Lord Of The Flies

Essay, Research Paper

Artificial Restraints in Lord of the Flies

“GOLDING PUTS SO MANY ARTIFICIAL RESTRAINTS ON HIS STORY IN ORDER TO EMPHASISE HIS POINT, THAT THE WHOLE THING COMES OUT TOO NEATLY AND, IN FACT, REDUCES THE POWER OF HIS MESSAGE.”

I think that, while the boys experience immense bad luck due to the author, the story still proves its point. It is still possible though, that the bad luck of the boys could have been experienced in real life. I think that without this bad luck, the point of the story wouldn t be as great, because without the restraint s Golding placed on the boys, life on the island would have been too easy for the boys.

The major constraint that Golding puts on the boys is the personality clash between Jack and Ralph. From the beginning, when Ralph is elected leader, Jack hates Ralph, and towards the end of the book, the feeling becomes mutual. Without Jack and Ralph s problems, life would have been easy, and the darkness of man s heart would not have been conveyed to the reader. Jack shows the darkness and if he and Ralph had just been friends, there would never have been an opportunity for Jack to show this darkness which lurked beneath the surface.

Golding also uses the dead pilot conveniently against the boys – the way in which he is caught in the trees just in the right position to be caught by the wind and look like the beast and the way the wind picks up after Simon has let him down from the trees and carries him out to sea, so that the other boys cannot see that it wasn t a beast. The author uses the boy s fear against them, and although this could possibly happen in the situation, Golding uses it as a weapon against them, their morale and their companionship. I think that the boys split up and go to Jack because of the fear – he can kill the beast, he can get them meat, and if they ever get upset, he can start a dance and all will be fine.

The whole message of the story is about the darkness of man s heart , which exists in everyone. To emphasise this side of human nature, the author had to make a situation where it was possible to display these characteristics. It would have been impossible for Golding to get his point across without these constraints, and even if it is thought that the story comes out too neatly, I think that the story was written to make a point, and Golding has achieved that.