Lord of the Flies
Conflict (civilization vs. savagery or person vs. self or person vs. person) and loss of innocence are two major themes present throughout William Golding's Lord of the Flies.
From the first chapter, The Sound of the Shell, what evidence have you found that shows these two themes exist?
3 Replies
Jack had an inner conflict when he wouldn't kill the piglet-thing. (to kill it or not to kill it)
& he would've lost innocence had he killed it? I think.
I think Jack lost a portion of his innocence from the experience anyhow, as it confronted him with a power/choice that would never seek him in his previous life. The feeling swept over him, apparently paralyzing the arm which held the knife high, letting the pig get away. But consequently, the humiliation infuriates Jack into a sort of obsession to re-grasp that opportunity of power.
I think it was also a conflict between civilization and savagery when Jack almost killed the piglet. As a civilized choir boy he would never have dealt with killing animals, however his instinct in the situation was to try to kill it for meat. He then faced the person conflict of actually taking a life, and I agree that he lost some innocence in the process.
KarolinaK
Oct 22, 2009 at 7:37 PM