LOTF essay

*THIS MIGHT NOT MAKE SENSE, BUT TRYING TO GET IDEAS DOWN*

Jack Merridew is seen as the reason behind the collapse of civilization in lord of the flies. Lord of the flies, written by Nobel – Prize-winning author William Golding, is a British novel that addresses Golding’s theory of our human nature when stranded on an island. Jack is a prominent character in Lord of the flies, and he represents Sigmund Freud’s id part of the personality. Jack does things without thinking them through, or follows his initial idea or instinct. This relates him to the id. Throughout the novel, Jacks actions also lead us to believe that he is a very determined young boy because he will do anything to get his way. Jack is also revealed as a savage, because of his selfish actions, and his increasing want to hunt.

Sigmund Freud’s theory of psychoanalysis is often used in context to explain human nature. In lord of the flies, Jack represents the id part of Freud’s theory. The id is the part of our personality that caters for our instinct. An example of another person who relates to the id part of the personality is Ferris from the movie Ferris Bueller’s day off. In Ferris Bueller’s day off, Ferris is into whatever his instinct tells him to do, as long as it is fun. It is interesting that Ferris is seen as the hero of the film, and that Jack is seen as the bad guy in lord of the flies because they both portray the personality of Id. You can argue that they are actually not that alike because jack killed people and Ferris just got a day off school. However, if you flip your perspective around, it is easy to see Ferris as the bad guy, and even see Jack as just the scared lost little boy who just wants to stay alive. In chapter 5 Ralph is holding a meeting and it seems like he has finally got a hold of power until Jack says:  “Bollocks to the rules! We’re strong – we hunt! If there’s a beast, we’ll hunt it down! We’ll close in and beat and beat and beat – !” He then proceeds to lead almost all the boys running and chanting down the beach in an un-orderly fashion. I believe this shows his id personality very clearly. In this example, he didn’t think, he just shouted over the top of Ralph and ran off in all his excitement and glory.

“I went on. I thought, by myself—” The madness came into his eyes again.”I thought I might kill.” It is obvious by the way that Jack has spoken here that he is disappointed. When Jack first went out to try and hunt a pig with the other boys, he failed. His original reaction was a disappointment. Jack really really wanted to kill the pig, and that shows his intense determination. When Jack failed a second time to kill the pig he sounded so hurt. One way that Jack is revealed as determined is when he has an idea, and he wants to do it, he pushes through until he gets the idea done. He wants his own way and because he is determined he is able to get it. Even though Jack is seen as the bad guy in the book, and his leadership style is not the kindest way to lead because he rules by protecting people’s fears even though he too is so scared, Jack’s determination makes him a good leader. Jack is a little bit like a baby when they learn to talk or walk. A baby will keep trying to stand up and take their first steps. They will fail a lot, but finally, their walking develops in how we walk and they can take their own steps into their life. This is because babies have very intense determination and concentration. In lord of the flies, Jack’s determination was mainly focused on hunting a pig. By the end of the novel, Jack’s hunting technique was so refined that he could just go out and kill a pig in a few hours. Jacks determination lead him to be an excellent hunter. His determination brushed off on the other boys, and by the end of the novel, all of the big boys in his tribe had the skills to help hunt a pig.

The definition of a savage is a brutal or vicious person or a fierce violent uncontrolled person. In lord of the flies, Golding used Jack to portray the idea of savagery. Golding studied the behavior of the students that he taught, this leads him to believe that it would be human nature for all boys to turn out like Jack eventually if they were stuck on a desert island. In the novel, Jack is revealed to you as a bloodthirsty boy who has a weird obsession for killing pigs, and painting his face ‘hunting style’. One of the reasons I see Jack as a savage is because throughout lord of the flies he became increasingly reckless with the littluns. “…fear can’t hurt you any more than a dream. There aren’t any beasts to be afraid of on this island . . . Serve you right if something did get you, you useless lot of cry-babies!” The littluns were still at the age where their parents did most things for them, and they weren’t used to worrying about their survival, or anything for that matter. When Jack said this quote to littluns, it showed that they were like a piece of gum on his shoe, that he just wanted to scrape off. He was mad because he thought they were a waste of time, and that they were useless. jack was very brutal and blunt every time he spoke to the littluns, and even though his actions weren’t always violent towards the littluns, I believe that Jacks words showed his brutality instead of his actions. Jack’s savage side was definitely shown when he spoke brutally to the littluns, and his bloodthirsty, spear throwing pig killing actions certainly defined his as a savage.

In conclusion Jack was revealed quite clearly as the bad guy in Lord of the Flies. His savage side, his determination and how he relates to sigmund freud’s id was revealed as the novel went on. Because Jack acts purely on instinct, he has no time to think which makes him want to follow his instinct and succeed with his ideas. Jack is so determined that the ideas he had by instinct lead him towards savage behaviour because he doesn’t have time to process these. By the end of the novel we understand how important Jack is to the novel because he portrays the idea of savagery and the id.