Fear in the Lord of the Flies by William Golding
The concept of fear was highly elaborated in the novel Lord of the Flies by William Golding. In the previous post, fear is an emotion that rises because of the feeling or belief that something is dangerous or threatening. This particular emotion that we all possess is used by William Golding and turn it into something that pushes the inner monster that every human being have inside themselves. Golding took advantage of the fact that we all fear of death, fear of losing a part of you, fear of humiliation, etc. while trying to point out that it pushes people to do something that is traumatizing.
In the novel, the group of boys had a discussion about the presence of a monster-like creature that they call 'Beastie'. They are oblivious about whether or not the 'Beastie' is really on the same island as them. Golding used this scene to portray some hidden messages about human nature. He used the fact that the boys are ignorant about surviving on an island where adults are no where to be found. With the ignorance that the boys are facing, they have no proof that the presence of a 'Beastie' is really true. The boys just made it up since they are basically still boys and imaginations still run wild. Why a 'Beastie'? Why can't it be something else?
Another aspect is that Golding used fear to indicate that we all evil in within ourselves. With the acknowledgement of fear, it really is the main factor that made the boys of the island do whatever it takes to survive on the island. Even if it away the innocence of the boys' minds. In the novel, the belief of a 'Beastie' led to a character's uprising to use it as his own benefit. Fear is a mere tool to help him achieve what he desired. But, who is the character? What did he do with the concept of fear?
As the novel progresses, the concept of fear developed into a very unique way of portraying the dark truth about human nature.
Photo source:
Rappe, Kelsey. "The Beast... Without the Beauty: Lord of the Flies Edition" Words From Rappe - Word Press. Apr 23, 2015. Web Sep 11, 2018.
In the novel, the group of boys had a discussion about the presence of a monster-like creature that they call 'Beastie'. They are oblivious about whether or not the 'Beastie' is really on the same island as them. Golding used this scene to portray some hidden messages about human nature. He used the fact that the boys are ignorant about surviving on an island where adults are no where to be found. With the ignorance that the boys are facing, they have no proof that the presence of a 'Beastie' is really true. The boys just made it up since they are basically still boys and imaginations still run wild. Why a 'Beastie'? Why can't it be something else?
Another aspect is that Golding used fear to indicate that we all evil in within ourselves. With the acknowledgement of fear, it really is the main factor that made the boys of the island do whatever it takes to survive on the island. Even if it away the innocence of the boys' minds. In the novel, the belief of a 'Beastie' led to a character's uprising to use it as his own benefit. Fear is a mere tool to help him achieve what he desired. But, who is the character? What did he do with the concept of fear?
As the novel progresses, the concept of fear developed into a very unique way of portraying the dark truth about human nature.
Photo source:
Rappe, Kelsey. "The Beast... Without the Beauty: Lord of the Flies Edition" Words From Rappe - Word Press. Apr 23, 2015. Web Sep 11, 2018.
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