Allegories In Lord Of The Flies

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In the allegorical novel Lord of the Flies written by William Golding, he uses character description, a great deal of literary devices, and allegories to impact his readers. Through indirect characterization, Golding influences the characters actions onto the readers by showing them the characters behavior. He uses multiple objects to symbolize ideas that he thinks are present in the real world. With the use of allegories, William Golding connects Sigmund Freud’s id, ego and superego using the characters, to emotionally influence his readers.
William Golding introduces the reader to the characters of the novel. A particular character, Roger, is described as a choir boy “who kept to himself with an inner intensity of avoidance and secrecy” …show more content…
William Golding uses multiple objects to symbolize human interaction with nature, a civilized society, and a change in behavior. At the beginning Golding describes the plane crash as a “long scar”(Golding 7). Since the island the boys land on is untouched by humans, Golding is saying how once man comes they automatically leave a mark. This is just like Adam and Eve. Once they sinned it was practically impossible for anyone else to be pure and innocent. Not long after the boys landed on the island they discovered the conch. The conch is a shell that gives a person power and authority. The conch is the boys’ symbol for civilization and law and order, just like first responders, it is their way to keep everybody in line. Furthermore, throughout the novel Golding regularly brings up the boy’s hair, particularly Ralph’s. “Ralph pushed the idiot hair out of his eyes and looked at Piggy”(Golding 140). When the boys first got to the island they were civilized. Their hair was not too long, they were decently clean, and had some sort of respect for others. As time passed, civilization started to fade away and their hair got longer. Golding uses the boys hair to show how over time, civility was eroding and savagery was taking over. Although Ralph does try to stay civilized and keep their law and order, his hair continues to grow making it harder and harder for him to stay innocent. On the other hand, Piggy was the only boy whose …show more content…
He believed that “human beings are completely controlled by their unconscious mind”(CommonLit Staff). Freud thought that humans are not the ones in control of their everyday decisions, rather the three sections of the unconscious mind are. These three parts are known as the id, ego and superego. The id is the selfish part of the mind. It is the part that only thinks about itself in the moment and does not think about the future. The ego is where all the common sense comes from. It is the rational part of the mind that contains the impulses the id may have and figures out a way to satisfy the id’s desires in a realistic manner. Lastly, the superego deals with the self conscious. This section knows what would be morally wrong, preventing someone from doing it. The superego is not something someone is born with. This moral sense develops at approximately five years old and is usually taught to by one’s guardian. When each of these components work against each other they create a perfect balance. If one becomes stronger than the other, an individual might become too self centered, too harmful, or too judgmental. Jack, Ralph, and Piggy exemplify these three components of Freud’s theory. From the start of the novel Lord of the Flies all the way through, all Jack can think about is hunting, and not putting his priorities in order.
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