Political Allegory in 'Lord of the Flies': Research Paper

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Political Allegory in ‘Lord of the Flies’: Research Paper

Lord of the Flies can be seen as a political allegory for different methods of leadership with Golding’s ideas on the subject being made clearer as the novel goes on. In the novel, there are two main opposing methods of leadership: one of democracy and one of dictatorship. However, Golding does not fully condemn nor fully praise either method for they both seem to have their own flaws in the novel. Instead, Golding’s view on leadership seems to be that it inevitably ends up depending on power and who really holds it.

In the beginning, power is organized democratically. Ralph, the novel’s representative figure for law and order, finds the conch, and with Piggy’s help, uses it to call the other boys on the island they are stranded on. Once they are all together, it becomes clear that someone needs to take charge. Initially, Jack, the head choirboy, stakes his claim that he ‘ought to be chief’ based on somewhat arbitrary values such as being able to ‘sing C sharp’. Obviously being an irrelevant skill in the boys’ new situation, Golding is making it clear to the reader that Jack believes he deserves power simply because he is used to having it. This absurd reasoning is juxtaposed by the modal verb ‘ought’ which shows Jack’s arrogance, but also implies a moral and automatic right to power. However, they decide to use the ‘toy of voting’ to pick the chief. Although the boys find this democratic approach more ‘pleasing’ (therefore showing they find comfort in a democracy), the use of the noun ‘toy’ used to describe it shows an insufficient understanding of its real value as more than just a ‘worthy play-thing’, which may foreshadow the downfall of this way of leadership and rule. As for the vote, while Jack was ‘the most obvious leader’, the other boys found that ‘most powerfully, there was the conch’. The conch in the novel represents the powerful values of civilization and democracy and is closely tied to the character of Ralph, which is what causes the other boys to elect him as chief. Ralph holds the power in the beginning, therefore his method of leadership is the one that is followed.

But as the novel progresses, we see the boys begin placing power into different things, beginning with Jack. In chapter 4, rather than follow Ralph’s direct order of keeping the fire lit, Jack and his choirboys choose to go against him in order to undertake hunting pigs, showing a disregard for Ralph’s power. This causes a clash between the two boys, and the others watch, now with a higher appreciation of Jack and his ‘brilliant world of hunting, tactics, fierce exhilaration, skill’ in comparison to Ralph’s ‘world of longing and baffled commonsense’. Here, Jack is described in terms of his adroitness, Ralph in terms of his shortcomings, and the ideals he represents are presented as less tangible or attractive. This shows the directly contrasting qualities and leadership styles of the two and signals a reason as to why the boys may be inclined to follow Jack over Ralph now instead. Golding also uses the adjective ‘baffled’ to suggest that the other boys still don’t understand the true value of democracy and order, since it is a complex idea, and this could possibly be another reason for the boys to place more power in Jack. As these boys gradually move away from order and good sense, they become more primitive and respect Jack’s version of leadership more.

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