Lord Of The Flies Character Analysis Essay

, Research Paper

Lord of the Flies – Character Changes

In his first novel, William Golding used a group of boys stranded on a tropical

island to illustrate the malicious nature of mankind. Lord of the Flies dealt with changes

that the boys underwent as they gradually adapted to the isolated freedom from society.

Three main characters depicted different effects on certain individuals under those

circumstances. Jack Merridew began as the arrogant and self-righteous leader of a choir.

The freedom of the island allowed him to further develop the darker side of his personality

as the Chief of a savage tribe. Ralph started as a self-assured boy whose confidence in

himself came from the acceptance of his peers. He had a fair nature as he was willing to

listen to Piggy. He became increasingly dependent on Piggy’s wisdom and became lost in

the confusion around him. Towards the end of the story his rejection from their society of

savage boys forced him to fend for himself. Piggy was an educated boy who had grown

up as an outcast. Due to his academic childhood, he was more mature than the others and

retained his civilized behaviour. But his experiences on the island gave him a more

realistic understanding of the cruelty possessed by some people.

The ordeals of the three boys on the island made them more aware of

the evil inside themselves and in some cases, made the false politeness that had clothed

them dissipate. However, the changes experienced by one boy differed from those

endured by another. This is attributable to the physical and mental dissimilarities between

them.

Jack was first described with an ugly sense of cruelty that made him

naturally unlikeable. As leader of the choir and one of the tallest boys on the island, Jack’s

physical height and authority matched his arrogant personality. His desire to be Chief was

clearly evident in his first appearance. When the idea of having a Chief was mentioned

Jack spoke out immediately. “I ought to be chief,” said Jack with simple arrogance,

“because I’m chapter chorister and head boy.” He led his choir by administering much

discipline resulting in forced obedience from the cloaked boys. His ill-nature was well

expressed through his impoliteness of saying, “Shut up, Fatty.” at Piggy. (p. 23)

However, despite his unpleasant personality, his lack of courage and his conscience

prevented him from killing the first pig they encountered. “They knew very well why he

hadn’t: because of the enormity of the knife descending and cutting into living flesh;

because of the unbearable blood.” (p. 34) Even at the meetings, Jack was able to contain

himself under the leadership of Ralph. He had even suggested the implementation of rules

to regulate themselves. This was a Jack who was proud to be British, and who was

shaped and still bound by the laws of a civilized society. The freedom offered to him by

the island allowed Jack to express the darker sides of his personality that he hid from the

ideals of his past environment. Without adults as a superior and responsible authority, he

began to lose his fear of being punished for improper actions and behaviours. This

freedom coupled with his malicious and arrogant personality made it possible for him to

quickly degenerate into a savage. He put on paint, first to camouflage himself from the

pigs. But he discovered that the paint allowed him to hide the forbidden thoughts in his

mind that his facial expressions would otherwise betray. “The mask was a thing on its

own behind which Jack hid, liberated from shame and self-consciousness.” (p. 69)

Through hunting, Jack lost his fear of blood and of killing living animals. He reached a

point where he actually enjoyed the sensation of hunting a prey afraid of his spear

and knife. His natural desire for blood and violence was brought out by his hunting of

pigs. As Ralph became lost in his own confusion, Jack began to assert himself as chief.

The boys realizing that Jack was a stronger and more self-assured leader gave in easily to

the freedom of Jack’s savagery. Placed in a position of power and with his followers

sharing his crazed hunger for violence, Jack gained encouragement to commit the vile acts

of thievery and murder. Freed from the conditions of a regulated society, Jack gradually

became more violent and the rules and proper behaviour by which he was brought up

were forgotten. The freedom given to him unveiled his true self under the clothing worn

by civilized people to hide his darker characteristics.

Ralph was introduced as a fair and likeable boy whose self-assured

mad him feel secure even on the island without any adults. His interaction with Piggy

demonstrated his pleasant nature as he did not call him names with hateful intent as Jack

had. His good physique allowed him to be well accepted among his peers, and

this gave him enough confidence to speak out readily in public. His handsome feature

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