Introducing 

Prezi AI.

Your new presentation assistant.

Refine, enhance, and tailor your content, source relevant images, and edit visuals quicker than ever before.

Loading…
Transcript

Main Characters Civilization vs. Savagery

Ralph

  • Represented the civil side of humans
  • Closest link to civilization to the other boys. "They obeyed the summons of the conch, partly because Ralph blew it, and he was big enough to be a link with the adult world of authority" c.4
  • Leadership fell as savagery amongst the group grew.

Jack

  • Represented the savagery of human nature
  • Use fear and influence of savagery to secure influence
  • Leadership and power grew as savagery amongst the group grew.

Important Quotes

"Kill the pig! Cut her throat! Spill the blood!" c.4

Representation of Good vs. Evil

After being assigned the role of being the head hunter, Jack had always faltered when it came to killing the pig. In chapter four he made his resolve and abandoned his civil side and turned to savagery in order to kill the pig. Jack's loss of innocence was one of the first steps of the downward spiral from civilization into savagery.

"Fancy thinking the Beast was something you could hunt and kill!... 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 the way they are?" c.8

Ralph and Jack represent the conflict between good and evil. The instinct of civilization is related to good and the instinct of savagery with evil. The once civilized, moral, and disciplined behavior of the young English boys begins to turn wild, brutal, and barbaric. Golding suggests in this novel that people naturally revert back to savagery and cruelty.

The Lord of the Flies reveals to Simon that the Beast they had feared was in fact within themselves. The Beast the boys feared was the savage and evil aspect of human nature that was slowly becoming more and more apparent.

Lord of the Flies

Civilization vs. Savagery

Symbols Relating to Civilization vs. Savagery

Conclusion

The Conch Shell

The conch shell represented the order of their society. At the start the conch was respected and obeyed, but its authority slowly declined along with the state of their society. An example of the decline is when Jack says "Conch! Conch! We don’t need the conch any more. We know who ought to say things." (c.6) When the conch was destroyed it symbolized the final collapse of their society which in turn meant the rise of savagery.

By: Jonah Leroux

The Lord of Flies

Within the novel Lord of the Flies one of the main themes was the fragile line between civilization and savagery. Shown throughout the novel, we see the slow decline of civilized society as the boys focus more on survival and turn towards their instincts. Just as when it seemed all signs of civilization had been replaced with savagery, the boys revert back to reason once the naval officer appeared before them. Lord of the Flies does a great job of showing the brittleness of the barrier that keeps civilization and savagery apart. We often tend to forget how savagery is more apparent in the natural nature of humans than the civilized side that keeps it in check.

The Lord of the Flies represents the savage nature of humans. The Lord of the Flies is the title for Beelzebub, one of the seven princes of hell which could refer to how the natural instincts of mankind were dark and evil. Chatting with the Lord of the Flies Simon was told about the evils of the human heart. As savagery is considered an evil against civilization, we can assume that the evils mentioned were the savagery within all of us.

Piggy's Glasses

Piggy was the voice of reason within the boys on the island. As Piggy had bad eyesight he needed the glasses to be able to see. In relation to civilized society collapsed on the island the lens on Piggy's glasses broke, symbolizing how the boys were losing their voice of reason and slowly turning to savagery. When Jack stole the glasses and blinding Piggy in turn, it symbolized the dethroning of the civil state and the rise of a savage one. The complete breakdown of civilization was represented with Piggy's death, showing how savagery had taken over.

Prevalence of Civilization vs. Savagery within Lord of the Flies

As one of the main themes of the novel, the idea of how thin a line separates civilization from savagery is seen throughout the story from start to finish.

In the beginning, the stranded boys organized themselves in a civilized manner creating a society in an attempt of seeking salvation.

As they spent more and more time on the island, conflict brewed and eventually destabilized the society

Learn more about creating dynamic, engaging presentations with Prezi