MANKIND'S EGOTISTICAL GREED FOR POWER

Humans are structured with distinctive characteristics that set humanity apart from wilderness. Despite mankind’s many advantages over other species, certain elements of human nature are flawed. In William Golding’s novel, Lord of the Flies, Golding uses symbolic language and allegorical characters to depict mankind’s essential illness. He further presents the metaphorical sickness from biblical, psychological, and political perspectives. Although Golding depicts mankind’s essential illness from a couple different lenses, I personally perceive humanity’s central illness as largely political and philosophical.

Golding employs language and character scheme to present mankind’s essential illness from a biblical viewpoint. In Chapter 1 of the novel, he illustrates the island as a biblical allusion to the Garden of Eden with pink granite and mesmerizing scenery: “Beyond falls and cliffs there was a gash visible in the trees; there were the splintered trunks and then the drag, leaving only a fringe of palm between the scar and the sea” (Golding 25). Utilizing language, Golding portrays the savage streak “scar” that the boys physically and metaphorically impose upon the glorious “Garden of Eden.” Moreover, the boys represent the biblical sin that Golding believes resides in humanity, leading to immoral behavior. Furthermore, the character named Simon is depicted as a Christ-like figure, who demonstrates mankind’s initial goodness. In Chapter 5, when the boys become terrified of a “beast,” Simon claims, “‘What I mean is…maybe it’s only us’” (Golding 82). Simon is the only person who understands that the fearsome beast merely resides in the boys themselves. In addition, when Simon goes into the forest, he is able to communicate with the “Lord of the Flies,” comparing to Jesus’s confrontation with Satan. Still, Simon has foresight of the situation and realizes that the boys’ savagery would only lead to their own destruction. Later, Simon is sacrificed, similarly to Jesus, and exits life in a mystical and glorious manner. By using symbolic characters, such as Simon, Golding invites readers to view his novel through a biblical perspective, where man was born with sin and good (angels) battles evil (beast/violent instincts).

Throughout his novel, Golding also concurrently displays his message in a psychological manner. At the beginning of the novel, the boys possess some sense of order under protagonist, Ralph, who initially possessed mankind’s civilized instincts and moral guidelines for survival. However, the boys do not keep this mindset for very long; during a chaotic assembly a couple months later, Ralph spouts, ‘“I was talking about smoke! Don’t you want to be rescued? All you [Jack] talk about is pig, pig, pig!’ […] ‘But you like it […] You want to hunt!’” (Golding 49). Due to their inner savagery, the boys prefer to hunt and ruthlessly murder helpless animals rather than build a safe society and devise methods for rescue and survival. In addition, another character named Piggy reflects the human intellect that other powerful human forces, such as violence and savagery, later extinguish. Furthermore, antagonist Jack spurts, “‘Bollocks to the rules! We’re strong—we hunt!’” (Golding 84). Jack symbolizes the human id that inhibits violent impulses of primordial savagery. Later, when the boys reenact the murder of an innocent boar, they chant, ‘“Kill him! Kill him!’ All at once, Robert was screaming and struggling with the strength of frenzy” (Golding 106). The language applied in this scene depicts the fear and primitive savagery that is slowly controlling the minds of the young boys. As the boys gradually lose order and descend into savagery, Golding leads the reader into assuming a perspective of Freudian psychology. Psychologically, Jack represents the id, or core of the unconscious mind, and translates humanity’s needs into motivational forces. On the other hand, Ralph represents the ego that finds objects, such as civilization and order, to quench those forces. Lastly, Simon and Piggy both symbolize the socially constructed human superego that determines the suitability of objects and desires. The many descriptions of the island, such as pink granite “skin,” portray the island as a living organism, with the symbolic characters as features of its mind. From a Freudian perspective, Golding uses character scheme and precise language to present humanity’s defects in the conscious and unconscious mind (psychological).

In Golding’s general plot, he depicts mankind’s essential illness as an unnecessary struggle for power. Jack and Ralph initially are in conflict for title of chief of the island. Jack possesses an authoritarian, brutal means of dictatorship, while Jack portrays the democratic, parliamentarian aspect of government in society. When Jack hunts, “One piglet, with a demented shriek, rushed into the sea […] The sow gave a gasping squeal and staggered up, with two spears sticking in her fat flank” (Golding 124). Under the authority of Jack, the pigs screech and possess great fear and terror. Golding uses language such as “shriek” and “staggered” to demonstrate nature’s sense of fear within proximity of Jack. Moreover, the boys later embark on a hunt for the beast, where Jack mockingly asks Ralph, ‘“Frightened?’ ‘Course I’m frightened. Who wouldn’t be?”(Golding 93). At a couple instances in the plot, Jack uses his demeanor and terror to frighten and place the boys under his totalitarian control. Jack manipulates Ralph by making him seem vulnerable and incapable of leadership. By the end of the novel, Ralph’s authority begins to slip away as his civilized mindset begins to blind him from the ruthlessness of society. Later, Jack and his hunters attack Ralph’s camp and “Then there was a vicious snarling […] complication of snarls and crashed and flying limbs. Ralph hit out; then he and what seemed like a dozen others were rolling over and over, hitting, biting, scratching […]” (Golding 154). The language depicted in this scene graphically illustrates the savage and inhumane acts that the boys would commit to overpower and assert dominance over one another. In addition, Jack later attempts to burn Ralph alive in the forest, but Ralph finally awakens and struggles with the fact that savagery is truly in existence. The struggle for political power is a common theme for disagreement in human society.

Personally, I perceive mankind’s essential illness as revolving around political and psychological struggles. Throughout human history, civil wars, world wars, and overall demolition have centrally occurred due to the struggle for power between individuals. In James Keating’s “Interview with William Golding,” Golding states, “It’s not a question with me as to whether democracy is the right way so much, as to whether democracy can survive and remain what it is. Every time democracy pulls itself together and says, ‘Well, now I’m being threatened by a totalitarian regime’” (190). Due to the human greed for power, democracy is often threatened and is unable to have lasting results. In Lord of the Flies, the conflicts between Ralph and Jack depict the constant struggle between totalitarian dictatorship and parliamentarian democracy. Moreover, corruption and destruction often come from the lust for power, as portrayed in the allegorical story, Animal Farm: the intellectually adept pigs take totalitarian rule by igniting fear over the ignorant animals, likewise to Jack stirring up the young boys’ fear of the Beast. I agree that equality in government is difficult to achieve due to the human hunger for power. In addition, in J.T.C. Golding’s article, “A World of Violence and Small Boys,” “he noticed the tendency of small boys to gang up against the weak or those with a mannerism that put them out of step” (226). In Golding’s novel, Jack formed the group of hunters who ganged up on the civilized camp of Ralph in an attempt to take total control. Additionally, the larger and more capable boys often bully the younger and less capable ones to portray their dominance. For instance, Jack often ridicules and insults Piggy, while Roger purposely throws rocks at Simon to miss. The human greed for power over other individuals is responsible for sparking savage instincts of violence towards others.

Mankind’s essential illness is often dictated by unconscious desires and behaviors of the human mind as well. In James Keating’s “Interview with William Golding,” Golding answers, “Yes, I think, quite simple, that they don’t understand what beasts there are in the human psyche which have to be curbed. They’re too young to look ahead and really put the curbs on their own nature and implement them, because giving way to these beasts is always a pleasure, in some ways, and so their society breaks down” (190). Due to humanity’s levels of the psychological mind, with the ego, superego, and the id at work, humans are often influenced by their inner thoughts and voices. Although I agree that the id is of a beast-like manner and strives towards irrational impulses, I do not agree that giving way to these beasts is always a pleasure. I feel that, despite their young age, the boys would still suffer a struggle with their inner beasts, as portrayed by Ralph, who cannot understand his circumstances and rare impulses. These individuals allow their inner beasts to control them because they fail to comprehend their struggles with the unconscious mind. Observing young infants, they often break objects and spill food impulsively because they have not yet been filtered through a civilized perspective. Humans possess unconscious desires and forces that dictate and control certain behaviors, leading to mankind’s essential illness. Political corruption and proclivities for power are consequences of mismanagement in control of the human mind. I also somewhat believe in religious forces that contribute towards humanity’s central illness. In Claire Rosenfield’s article, “Men of a Smaller Growth,” she states that “Consistent clutters of imagery imply that one boy is godlike, the other satanic—thus making a symbolic level of meaning by transforming narrative events into an allegorical struggle between the forces of Good and those of Evil” (202). In many aspects, humans often struggle between the forces of Good and Evil. However, these forces are caused by political motivations and failure to conquer and manipulate the id. Unlike Golding’s biblical perspective, I do not believe that mankind was born with sin, but that external influences impose the illnesses upon humanity. The human mind constitutes motivational desires that waver from positive to negative, depending on personal manipulation.

William Golding discusses mankind’s essential illness from biblical, psychological, and political perspectives. Through the use of allegorical characters and powerful language, Golding is able to sway the audience towards perceiving mankind’s essential illness from multiple different lenses. My theory on the human conflict is that mankind is put under the influence of external struggles, such as political authority, which causes the loss of control of the id. When humanity loses control of the id, chaos and disorder begin to occur and humanity gradually descends towards savagery and primitive life once again. The boys on the island demonstrate mankind's essential illness when they shatter the conch, and savagery portrays authority over civilization. Ultimately, humans possess the ability to complete tasks that wild creatures cannot, centrally due to the abilities of our developed minds. Mankind’s essential illness becomes prominent when power and egotistical desires distract our morality and allow our inner beasts to assert total domination.