“Lord of the Flies” is a novel published in 1954 by William Golding about a group of boys who got stranded on a remote island with no one to care for them. The plot of the book is set at around the 1950s after their plane was shot down in a war. At first, Ralph finds himself stranded on a beach, who meets with another boy named Piggy, and they manage to group together everyone. Among them includes a choir, whose leader is called Jack Merridew. Ralph gets picked as the “chief”, angering Jack. The boys also feared that there is a “beast” on the island, and when the body of a soldier fell on the island, everyone believed it to be the “beast”. Soon, Jack and his followers set up an “offering”, which is the head of a pig to help protect them from the beast. Simon, a quiet boy, ventures on his own into the forest, and has an imaginary discussion with the head who is called the “Lord of the Flies”, who tells him there is no beast. Simon rushes to tell Jack’s tribe, but they thought he is the beast, and beat him to death. Jack and his group then steals Piggy’s glasses, and when Ralph, Piggy, and a pair of twins called Sam and Eric tries to get them back, they kill Piggy. The next morning, Jack sets the entire island on fire, intending to kill Ralph, who narrowly escapes and meets a British officer who rescues them.
Idealism and realism can affect how one thinks and how they react, especially when they differs in the mind on how one thinks. On the basics, idealism is the scenarios that one thinks about, which are not necessarily true, while realism focuses on the solid view of life that is straightforward. In the book, Ralph and Jack fought for leadership. Ralph showed leadership, fairness, bravery, and maturity, while Jack was arrogant, power-hungry, violent, and savage. Ralph’s team made shelters and a fire so they could be seen, which proves to be long-term benefits, while Jack’s team made sure everyone was well fed by hunting, which is only a temporary solution that takes immediate effect. Their ideology is also different. Ralph’s group showed idealism where they tried to do everything to get rescued, even though it is not certain when. Jack’s team showed realism as they tried to get food and safety first, since they don’t know when to get rescued. Idealism vs. realism is a topic that relies mainly of one’s ideology. Although idealism and realism reflect different time periods, they still go to the same idea which is that idealism isn’t necessarily fulfilled as it is more imaginary, while realism is based from solid evidence and what is possible rather than what could be possible. In the end, realism and idealism comes down to possibilities and certainties. Idealism and realism goes down to affect how one reacts to possibilities, since it is not always the same in certainties.
Civilization and barbarism can shape how one thinks and behaves, and they often show one’s personality and how they are known to act. Being civilized is basic and an easy thing to accomplish, but barbarism and savageness can make someone change how they behave and completely divert their personalities. In the book, one of the main characteristic differences between Ralph and Jack is their personality. Ralph and his group are civilized, while Jack and his group are savage. Members of Ralph’s team follow rules, regulations, and laws, which shows signs of being civilized. It also goes back to idealism vs realism. Ralph and his team try everything to get rescued, although it is not sure when. However, in Jack’s team, everyone is being savage, and everyone is following what others are doing, basically following the trend. They also try to hunt animals for food, fight to kill the beast, and try to make sure to stay alive, coming back to the realism. Since kids don’t like being civilized and forced to follow rules, they have to learn how to control themselves. Being civilized gives one more power, especially when one believes in leadership and fairness. However, when one becomes savage, they no longer care about any rules, and they no longer try to do anything that is against what they want. It completely changes one’s personality and who they are. Civilization and barbarism have major differences, although they are mainly based on one’s personality and how they behave, even though idealism and realism also plays a role.
Inner evilness can make someone change who they are, and can also majorly affect how they react to themselves. Inner evilness can cause someone to turn against themselves, especially when they are absorbed inside the negativity. In the book, inner evilness came from multiple sources, like violence and killing. Roger, who is quiet in the beginning, started becoming violent in the end. Jack and his group also killed a mother pig who was feeding its babies, at its most vulnerable time. This also shows the darkness of human nature where there is a beast inside of everyone. There is also negligence of civilization when the boys turned wild and began hunting. Sometimes, like during a war, people might get the excuse to kill, since everyone is killing everyone else. This also emphasizes the beast is a part of everybody. Inner evilness can not only affect that person, but also other round that person. It can make them savage, and also cause others around to become like so. Everyone has a beast inside them, and it is also common for one to have a dark side of their human nature, which contains their inner evilness. It is also not uncommon for one to desire power, only it isn’t always a good thing when the power is used in the wrong way or abused. It can cause others to follow the negative trend and use their inner evilness. Inner evilness can contain many negative thoughts and actions, like hatred and resentment towards someone, causing changes in their mind.
Idealism vs realism, civilization vs barbarism, and survival instinct vs inner evilness are all essential lessons that come from the novel “Lord of the Flies” by William Golding. This also shows the darkness of human nature where there is a beast inside of everyone. There is also negligence of civilization when the boys turned wild and began hunting. This also emphasizes the beast is a part of everybody. Human nature can also get one to be stimulated, or motivated in a certain situation. Inner evilness is also a trait that exists in everyone that can make them not only unpleasant, but also dangerous. As the Lord of the Flies (the pig’s head) says, “The beast is part of everyone”. This shows the unpleasant side of human nature that can cause one to get carries away or persuaded to do something harsh. Also, there is using the excuse of survival to realize the dark side of human nature, which some people are so in need of survival that they don’t even care if they are doing something harmful. They can be so obsessed with making sure they survive, like hunting and making shelter, that they don’t realize the actual impact of doing so, like the killing,
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