Lord Of The Flies Essay Summary Example For Students

Lord Of The Flies Essay Summary Symbolism in Lord of the Flies The story, Lord of the Flies, has many interesting symbols relating adult society to kids surviving on an island. Many of the characters and items in this novel such as Jack or the conch can be interpreted on a macroscopic scale but the most important being this; a microcosm of children on an island makes a great symbolic message about human nature, society and how grown-ups live and govern and how they cannot. When you consider the time period this book was written, you can see where Golding got some of his inspiration. Europe was still recovering after WW2 and the author probably wanted to comment on the political turmoil during the 50s. The island is a microcosm of the world during this time, and its scar represents human destruction once the kids were dropped or â€Å"reborn† on the island. If we look at the book as a political statement we can already sense leaders and followers. Obviously, Ralph, described as a good-looking, relying on common sense type of regular fellow, is the likable, fair, and even admired, democratic leader. Jacks unwillingness to acknowledge the conch as the source of centrality on the island and Ralph as the seat of power is consistent with the portrayal of his particular self-importance. Freud also linked the id to what he called the destructive drive, the aggressiveness of self-ruin. Jacks antithetical lack of compassion for nature, for others, and ultimately for himself is thoroughly evidenced in his needless hunting, his role in the brutal murders of Simon and Piggy, and finally in his burning of the entire island, even at the cost of his own life. In much the same way, Piggys demeanor and very character links him to the superego, the conscience factor in Freuds model of the psyche. Golding marks Piggy with the distinction of being more intellectually mature than the others, branding him with a connection to a higher authority: the outside world. It is because the superego is dependent on outside support that Piggy fares the worst out of the three major characters in the isolation of the island. Piggy is described as being more socially compatible with adults, and carries himself with a sense of rationale and purpose that often serves as Ralphs moral compass in crisis; although Ralph initially uses the conch to call the others, it is Piggy who possesses the knowledge to blow it as a signal despite his inability to do so. Similarly, Piggys glasses are the only artifact of outside technology on the island, further indication of his correlation to greater moral forces. In an almost gothic vein, these same glasses are the only source of fire on the island, not only necessary for the boys rescue, but responsible for their ultimate destruction. Thus does fire, and likewise Piggys glasses, become a source of power. Piggys ideals are those most in conflict with Jacks overwhelming hunger for power and satiation. It is in between these representations of chaos and order that Ralph falls. Goldings depiction of Ralph as leader is analogous to Freuds placement of the ego at the center of the psyche. Ralph performs as the islands ego as he must offset the raw desires of the id with the environment using the superego as a balancing tool. This definition is consistent with Ralphs actions, patronizing Jacks wish to hunt with their collective need to be rescued, often turning to Piggy for advice. Initially, in the relative harmony of the island societys early emergence, Ralph is able to balance the opposing id and superego influences in order to forge a purpose: rescue. It is only as the balance devolves that the fate of the islands inhabitants is darkly determined. Among Ralph, Piggy and Jack exists a constant struggle to assert their particular visions over the island. As the authority of leadership by default falls to Ralph, the conch then becomes symbolic of the consciousness. Its possession rotates between Ralph and Piggy in order to determine logical courses of action for the boys. Jack however, constantly eschews the authority of the conch, consistent with Freuds model with the id