Lord Of The Flies Essays (1171 words) - English-language Films

Lord Of The Flies The Shattering of Reason within a Society William Golding in his novel Lord of the Flies symbolically describes the degeneration of a civilized society in three stages. Embedded within this story of a group of young boys struggling to survive alone on a deserted island are insights to the capacity of evil within the human soul and how it can completely destroy society. After a plane crash that results in their inhabitation of the island, the boys establish a democratic society that thrives on order, necessity, and unity. Slowly, however, the peaceful society that they create shatters through a path of hatred, disrespect, murder, and the release of the true human soul. Upon a desolate tropical island, the lost boys begin to organize themselves to gain a sense of stability, order, and brotherhood. They elect Ralph, the oldest boy at twelve years of age, as leader and use a conch found in the lagoon as a symbol of democracy and respect. Two other children, Jack, the head of a choir group, and Simon, a small but intellectual boy, accompany Ralph on an expedition to determine whether the land is truly an island. They find that it is indeed true, and compose a plan to light a fire on the beach to create smoke; their only hope of rescue. After they obtain the glasses of an intelligent and rather fat child called Piggy, they make a fire using the sunlight and glass lenses. However, the fire spreads to the forest quickly and destroys the group's supply of firewood. The boys shrug this off as an accident and Ralph and Simon commence work on shelters. They begin to build a society that contains rules and government. 'I agree with Ralph,' states Jack. 'We've got to have rules and obey them. After all, we're not savages' (40). The boys establish bonds of friendship and work together to help one another, but soon forget what is truly most important to their survival ? civilized living. One morning, Ralph sees a ship on the horizon and realizes that the new fire they had built is no longer burning because of the negligence of the boys assigned to be watching it. He is furious, yet Jack and his choir group ignore Ralph's complaints and begin hunting for a wild pig, setting out with dreams of chase, glory, and slayings. The difference between common sense and minds influenced and dulled by eagerness grasps the majority of the boys and begins to disintegrate the peace within their society. Ralph talks to the boys about their carelessness and how it is detrimental to the entire island. Their respect for one another is wearing away slowly. They looked at each other baffled, in love and hate. All the warm salt water of the bathing pool and the shouting and splashing and laughing were only just sufficient enough to bring them together again (50). The true problem, however, is the beast. A small child sees a beastie on the mountain and the entire group begins to talk about the subject with fear and intent of killing it, whatever it may be. After the fire is rekindled by Ralph's orders, Sam and Eric, two young twins, are on duty watching and they spot a lumpy figure huddled on the forest floor several yards away. They run to the camp and tell the others about what they have seen. Jack, Ralph, and Roger decide to climb the mountain and search for the creature. They see the figure also and are able to make out its head, eyes, and teeth, and becoming frightened, run away. Once they return to the shelters, Jack calls a meeting to discuss the beast. In the meeting, Ralph takes control over the discussion and Jack becomes angry and yells about Ralph being chief. He calls an election for a new leader, yet Ralph wins again, and because of this, Jack storms off down the beach yelling that he can live on his own. Shortly after this, Piggy and Ralph discover that they cannot find several boys in their camp. They realize that they have gone to live with Jack and that life on the island will never be the same again. Simon climbs to the top of the mountain, and finds the beast, but examines it

Gourds and Their Uses essays

Gourds and Their Uses essays Gourds have been useful to civilization for years. The gourd, a family member of squash, cucumbers and pumpkins, have been used for centuries even including B.C.. Natives found the gourd most useful for ritual, and everyday uses. There are many different kinds of gourds that have been used for different purposes, and many different places where wild gourds can be found. Just the color of a gourd can determine the power it has in a religious purpose, and the shape also can determine what purposes the gourd will serve. A gourd, also called a Cucurbitaceae because of its family, is most popular for the use of everyday uses. For example, gourds have been used for storage, canteens, utensils, and even ornaments. When the gourd is painted, waxed, and carved it is known as the sacred or sprit keeper, according to ancient beliefs. In the past when gourds where first founded in the wild, the Woodlands Indian Nations used gourds for daily routines. Later into the years, the early settlers discovered the true value of gourds such as using them for Used as floats by the Africans, gourds have helped people from traveling to surviving. When used as utensils, the gourd would be cut precisely with a arrangement of sharp tips at the end to stab the item they were trying to kill or eat. The tips were usually jagged, because the supplies these people had to cut the gourd were insufficient. The thinner the gourd, the easier the shell is to break while carving. On the other hand, the thicker the gourd, the harder it is to carve, which also causes breaking. Gourds have also been used for spiritual reasons. The common name for these gourds are called Spirit Herd Gourds, and are carved and painted with the symbols of sacred horses. Inspired by the Cherokee heritage, these gourds represent their guardians and ancient spirits. When black horses are painted on the gourd, this represents the ...