Savagery In Lord Of The Flies Research Paper

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“There is a savage beast in every man and when you hand that man a sword or spear and send him forth to war, the beast stirs” (Martin 271). In William Golding’s Lord of the Flies, Golding conveys savagery as a horrific but natural instinct that can be a necessity for human survival when situated in life-threatening circumstances. Liberated from adult constraint, the boys are motivated by their savage urges converting them into a primitive/animalistic beast which simultaneously is a threat and yet inevitable for their survival. The British society on the island slowly distances itself from civilization to savagery guided by fear, power and human nature. All of the boys’ fear of the beast leads them into savagery. Their fears naturally create…show more content…
He tries to convince himself and the others that there is nothing to be afraid of and that there does not need to be anymore “silly talk about the beast” (92). The discussions of fear create distress for the littluns and release Jacks desires to hunt. As Jack moves towards violence as an answer for everything, he creates his own group and society separated from Ralph’s: “There was the brilliant world of hunting, tactics, fierce exhilaration, skill; and there was the world of longing and baffled common-sense” (75). The boys are reeled in slowly as they fear the things they do not understand, like the beast, hoping for comfort and security in the group. This distance and separation between Ralph and Jack, allows Jack and his group to truly become savages; unmanageable, insanely careless and barbaric people; always having a desire to kill. For example, when Jack and his group set out to kill a pig for the feast they torture it before they kill it: “Roger found a lodgement for his point and began to push till he was leaning with his whole weight. The spear moved forward inch by inch and the terrified squealing became a high pitched scream” (149). They find that the torture of the pig screaming was entertaining and satisfying,

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