Loss of innocence And Coming of Age
All of the boys came in the island with all of their innocence in tacked. The evil of island took their innocence right away from them. They were on the island with no one but themselves. There were no parents or authorities. They had to grow up on their own. The were consumed by all of the evil and the dangers of the island. Even before the boys entered the island, there was already evil inside of them. For instance, when the Lord of the Flies was talking to Simon, it explains, " 'You knew, didn't you? I'm part of you? Close, close, close! I'm the reason why it's no go? Why things are what they are?' " (128). They had two choices, good and evil. The boys that chose evil completely lost innocence and the ones who stood with the good kept for as long as they could. Eventually the ones who chose good died before that could be consumed by the evil of the island. Piggy, Simon, and the twins would not let the evil take them over. Ralph was the only survivor that chose good. Even Ralph lost his innocence in the end. All of the boys were now immune to the numb to the evil and what is has done to their innocence.
Morals vs. desires
The novel, Lord of the Flies, by William Golding is very closely related to Sigmund Freud's theory on psychology and a person's personality. This theory consisted of the id, the ego, and the superego. The id is based on one's desires and impulses. One who acts on this id is someone who only acts on his/her desires or impulses. An example of this in the modern world would be a kid getting up out of his seat and running off to the bathroom before asking his teacher. This style of thinking is much like a cave man and there are many other styles we use instead. The superego is based on one's morals. One who acts on this superego does only what is morally correct, even if the other choice is clearly better in the long run. The ego is the perfect balance between the id and superego. One who uses their ego considers both his morals and his needs/desires before making a decision. In the novel Lord of the Flies, each of these are represented by a character. The the id is Jack, the ego is Ralph, and the superego is Piggy. Jack is the id because he consistently makes choices that have only a short term benefit, such as hunting and killing. While this satisfies his want for meat, it does not allow his superego to grow. Golding portrays the id overcoming most of the kids when he writes, "He was a chief now in truth; and he made stabbing motions with his spear. From his left hand dangled Piggy's broken glasses" (151). The spear symbolizes savagery and the glasses represent order and intellect. The imagery of the spear above the glasses represents the power of the id or savagery over the superego.
Important Symbolism:
Conch: The conch is a key symbol in Lord of the Flies because it represents structure and order on the island as well their link to civilization. When Roger destroys the conch, he destroys the last bit of order on the island and lets all the boys fall into savagery.
Fire: The fire symbolizes hope because the smoke is the only way for the boys to be rescued; however, Jack only sees the fire as a way of preparing food. Golding utilizes Ralph's and Jack's contrasting views on the utilization of fire to show how different teens react to a chaotic situation.
Spear and glasses: The spear and glasses are symbolic for the struggle between listening to one's id versus their superego. The spear symbolizes savagery whereas Piggy's glasses symbolize intellect and reason. When Jack hoists the spear over the glasses, Golding displays how the teens have fallen into temptation and forgot society.
Fair hair: The fair hair is a symbol of innocence. Ralph came on the island completely innocent and oblivious of the dangers of the world. Slowly and slowly his hair stared to get darker and longer. His exposure to the dangers of the island made him start to lose his initial purity and innocence.
Pig head (Lord of the Flies): The pig head embodies all the evil that occurs in the world. The Lord of the Flies signifies the temptation that all the boys feel because the evil is inside all of them before they are even on the island. The true testament to whether the person is truly good or evil is whether they let the evil overcome them and control their actions when given the opportunity on the island.
Scar: The scar can be the symbol of the damage that island has done to the boys. The scar can show the innocence of the boys is now cut and the innocence is seeping out. After a while there is no innocence left. The scar cannot be fixed just like the boys cannot take away what they already saw and experienced. The damage was done and there is no going back.
Fire: The fire symbolizes hope because the smoke is the only way for the boys to be rescued; however, Jack only sees the fire as a way of preparing food. Golding utilizes Ralph's and Jack's contrasting views on the utilization of fire to show how different teens react to a chaotic situation.
Spear and glasses: The spear and glasses are symbolic for the struggle between listening to one's id versus their superego. The spear symbolizes savagery whereas Piggy's glasses symbolize intellect and reason. When Jack hoists the spear over the glasses, Golding displays how the teens have fallen into temptation and forgot society.
Fair hair: The fair hair is a symbol of innocence. Ralph came on the island completely innocent and oblivious of the dangers of the world. Slowly and slowly his hair stared to get darker and longer. His exposure to the dangers of the island made him start to lose his initial purity and innocence.
Pig head (Lord of the Flies): The pig head embodies all the evil that occurs in the world. The Lord of the Flies signifies the temptation that all the boys feel because the evil is inside all of them before they are even on the island. The true testament to whether the person is truly good or evil is whether they let the evil overcome them and control their actions when given the opportunity on the island.
Scar: The scar can be the symbol of the damage that island has done to the boys. The scar can show the innocence of the boys is now cut and the innocence is seeping out. After a while there is no innocence left. The scar cannot be fixed just like the boys cannot take away what they already saw and experienced. The damage was done and there is no going back.