Lord of the Flies

In Lord of the Flies, the beast is a presence throughout the entire book. First seen by a littleun when he is frightened in the dark, the beast is seen everywhere by the boys, but only when they are afraid. Towards the end of the book, the boys begin to become more savage. They still believe the beast is a real being that is to be feared, but the reader begins to see that the true beast is not a physical being at all, but a side of the boys themselves. Many people would argue that the beast is an actual presence on the island, but we believe there is more to it and that the beast is the boys’ fear and the darker, savage side of human nature coming out.

The first time we see the beast is in the beginning of the story. They say it is the littleuns’ fear that started it. Jack says at a meeting, “’You littleuns started all this, with the fear talk. Beasts!’”(82) Eventually, Jack and Ralph convince the boys to some extent that the beast is only their imaginations running wild. Jack also describes how he believes fear plays a major role. He says, “’Be frightened, because you’re like that—but there is no beast in the forest’” (83). By saying this, Jack shows how he sees that the

. . .
Since the Lord of the Flies is only in Simon’s head, this shows how he, too, is tempted to believe in salvation through savagery; however, he does not live long enough for it to be shown whether or not he would have become a beast, too. The grownup world would have been cautioning the boys against giving in to their evil sides, although the irony is clear since the grownups themselves had not followed that advice. If this truly was a sign, it was most likely a warning. There was a sudden bright explosion and corkscrew trail across the sky; then darkness again and stars”(95).

When the savages kill the pig and leave its head for the beast, their actions show how their darker, more primitive sides have caused them to become something other than what they originally were. In this case, though, it was not the boys’ but the outside world’s savage instincts that caused the problem. And if so, if we were left to our own devices would we too become beasts?. This shows that Simon knows the truth about what the beast is, and also what the other boys had become.

When the boys kill Simon, they think that he is the beast, when they are in fact acting as the beast themselves. Their chant further shows what they, in their fear, had become. That the true beast was the natural instincts of the boys was clearly shown throughout the book, and is most clearly summed up when the Lord of the Flies tells Simon, “’You knew, didn’t you? I’m part of you?’” (143) Simon was the only one who knew the true nature of the beast. It is ironic, however, that the gift for the beast was the thing that told Simon what the true beast was, but also a product of the beast in the boys. This is supported when Golding writes, “…a sign came down from the world of grownups, though at the time there was no child awake to read it.

Common topics in this essay:
Lord Flies, Flies Simons, Jack Ralph, lord flies, true beast, beast boys, lord flies tells, human nature, beasts themselves, flies tells, human nature coming, savage human nature, effect beasts themselves, beast lord flies, beast beast, nature beast, believe beast, pigs head,

Approximate Word count = 1088
Approximate Pages = 4 (250 words per page double spaced)

Already a member? Click here