The decline of Jack Luizangel Walle, Jacob Shelton William Golding’s demonstrates his belief that all humans will revert to savage nature without the presence of rules or laws in his novel “Lord of the Flies.” Through symbolic characters such as Jack, Golding illustrates that there is savagery within every human being. Jack arrived on the island with his men in two single file lines showing that he has a sense of order and control by agreeing with Ralph that they need rules on the island. The first step in Jack’s descent into savagery begins with a pig caught in vines squealing for it’s life. Almost without thought “Jack drew his knife...The pause [in the air] was only long enough to understand the enormity the downward stroke would be” (23). To Jack’s disappointment the pig gets away but not without revealing that Jack is ready and willing to take the life of another organism, a trait that Golding believes is inside every human being no matter how trained by civilization. This is a major change in Jack’s character as he begins to obsess over killing a pig to satisfy his thirst for blood rather than feeding the group. Jack’s obsession with his kill leads him to devise a tactic that triggers the moral downfall of his character. In order to hunt the pig he needs camouflage. To create a camouflage he used clay’s found on the island to create a mask of paint. “...the mask was a thing on its own, behind which Jack hid, liberated from shame and self-consciousness” (53). Jack no longer feels like his former self but instead he feels like a new man who is exempt from rules and given power. When Samneric were about to check on the fire they were forced to follow Jack hunt the pig because “...the masked compelled them” (53). Another great change has come over Jack’s character when he finally gets a taste of power within the hierarchy of the island. A power that Jack wants more of. By hunting instead of keeping the fire lit, Jack costs the group a chance at being rescued which angers Ralph. Unable to hit Ralph, Jack “...stuck his fist into Piggy’s stomach” (60), declaring a war in the islands microcosmic society. By harming Piggy and his glasses Jack established that he is a form of authority that the the others should fear. This Major change in Jack sparks many changes in the miscellaneous characters on the island such as Roger who now feels that it is okay to break the rules of the society he has lived in his whole life. Jack’s sense of authority gets the better of him when the boys get into an argument over the proper leadership of their group on the island. He attempts to persuade the boys to impeach Ralph but to no avail. Crestfallen, Jack says “...I’m not going to play any longer...” (113) and leaves to start his own group on the other side of the island at Castle Rock. By leaving the group, Jack has set himself apart from the small amount of civilization that exists and officially becomes savage. He is a gateway for more boys to renounce order and join his group as well. Jack, now controlling an army of savage boys, has created a unilateralist society where the many follow him out of fear rather than helping him in making major decisions on what to do while they are on the island. Ralph is the only boy left with a sense of order and is warned by Samneric when they say “You’ve got to go now Ralph” (171) and that Roger has “...sharpened a stick at both ends...” (171), meaning that the boys intend to kill Ralph. Jack wishes to eliminate any trace of the previous society on the island and only recognize his own. Jack has transformed from a subordinate of Ralph to a dictator that has declared war on civilization.
All criteria was met, 9/9. Chase Guthrie, Dmitry Smith and James Thomas
Luizangel Walle, Jacob Shelton
William Golding’s demonstrates his belief that all humans will revert to savage nature without the presence of rules or laws in his novel “Lord of the Flies.” Through symbolic characters such as Jack, Golding illustrates that there is savagery within every human being. Jack arrived on the island with his men in two single file lines showing that he has a sense of order and control by agreeing with Ralph that they need rules on the island. The first step in Jack’s descent into savagery begins with a pig caught in vines squealing for it’s life. Almost without thought “Jack drew his knife...The pause [in the air] was only long enough to understand the enormity the downward stroke would be” (23). To Jack’s disappointment the pig gets away but not without revealing that Jack is ready and willing to take the life of another organism, a trait that Golding believes is inside every human being no matter how trained by civilization. This is a major change in Jack’s character as he begins to obsess over killing a pig to satisfy his thirst for blood rather than feeding the group.
Jack’s obsession with his kill leads him to devise a tactic that triggers the moral downfall of his character. In order to hunt the pig he needs camouflage. To create a camouflage he used clay’s found on the island to create a mask of paint. “...the mask was a thing on its own, behind which Jack hid, liberated from shame and self-consciousness” (53). Jack no longer feels like his former self but instead he feels like a new man who is exempt from rules and given power. When Samneric were about to check on the fire they were forced to follow Jack hunt the pig because “...the masked compelled them” (53). Another great change has come over Jack’s character when he finally gets a taste of power within the hierarchy of the island. A power that Jack wants more of.
By hunting instead of keeping the fire lit, Jack costs the group a chance at being rescued which angers Ralph. Unable to hit Ralph, Jack “...stuck his fist into Piggy’s stomach” (60), declaring a war in the islands microcosmic society. By harming Piggy and his glasses Jack established that he is a form of authority that the the others should fear. This Major change in Jack sparks many changes in the miscellaneous characters on the island such as Roger who now feels that it is okay to break the rules of the society he has lived in his whole life.
Jack’s sense of authority gets the better of him when the boys get into an argument over the proper leadership of their group on the island. He attempts to persuade the boys to impeach Ralph but to no avail. Crestfallen, Jack says “...I’m not going to play any longer...” (113) and leaves to start his own group on the other side of the island at Castle Rock. By leaving the group, Jack has set himself apart from the small amount of civilization that exists and officially becomes savage. He is a gateway for more boys to renounce order and join his group as well.
Jack, now controlling an army of savage boys, has created a unilateralist society where the many follow him out of fear rather than helping him in making major decisions on what to do while they are on the island. Ralph is the only boy left with a sense of order and is warned by Samneric when they say “You’ve got to go now Ralph” (171) and that Roger has “...sharpened a stick at both ends...” (171), meaning that the boys intend to kill Ralph. Jack wishes to eliminate any trace of the previous society on the island and only recognize his own. Jack has transformed from a subordinate of Ralph to a dictator that has declared war on civilization.
All criteria was met, 9/9.
Chase Guthrie, Dmitry Smith and James Thomas