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Ralph And Jack Conflict

Decent Essays

In the novel, “Lord of the Flies,” the author William Golding develops the theme of conflict between having a civilized society and humans savage instincts. This is shown through, the conflicts between Jack and Ralph, the destruction of the conch shell and the murder of murder of Piggy. Jack and Ralph's’ conflict is driven by their different beliefs. Jack believes that hunting is most important to survive, while Ralph believes creating a camp and a signal fire is most important. Throughout the book, their clashing beliefs are tested, such as when Jack's group of hunters leave the signal fire unattended to go hunt the beast. When they left, the signal fire went out, and they return with …show more content…

This argument of whether the boys should hunt or create a signal continued throughout the novel. The savage boys hunted while Ralph and Piggy tried to keep a fire going, however, the savage boys eventually overcame the civilized, leaving Ralph sprinting for his life. Another conflict between Jack and Ralph was Jack's obsession with the pig. After finally killing the pig, “His mind was crowded with memories; memories of the knowledge that had come to them when they closed in on the struggling pig, knowledge that they had outwitted a living thing, imposed their will upon it, taken away its life like a long satisfying drink” (Golding 59). After killing the pig, Jack felt a power that he had been waiting for since Ralph was nominated tribe leader in the beginning of the novel. This only made him more power hungry, chaotic and savage. Once realizing this shift of thought from civilized to chaos, Ralph blew in the conch to signal a tribe meeting. He attempted to restore order and regain control, but it did not work, for the boys savage behavior became more apparent after the murder of the pig and the savage boys no longer obeyed Ralphs …show more content…

Piggy, who was interpreted as the intellectual and understanding character, continually attempted to reason with the savage boys and help them understand why they must work together in a civilized manner. Even near his death, he shouted to the boys, “Which is better- to have rules and agree, or to hunt and kill?”(Golding 162). He was trying to convince the boys why they must become more civilized if they wish to survive long enough to be saved. As Piggy yells this, the savage boys continue to throw rocks at him and make loud noises. Their clashing viewpoints of rules and hunting pulled their tribe into two, and the savage has overcome. Piggy continued to yell over their distractions, but eventually, the savage boys murdered

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