Ethical Criticism In William Golding's Lord Of The Flies

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Society Rules
Society Rules

Ethical Criticism is a tactic used to better understanding morals, through characters actions and thoughts. In modern literature the characters act differently given the circumstances. In the novel Lord of the Flies written by William Golding a group of young boys are left on island due to a plane crash. There is no else to seen. As they try to survive characters morals are tested, with no structure or societal laws to follow. When society seizes to exist the nature of man is revealed. In the beginning of the book Ralph was chosen to be chief by winning a majority of the votes. He wanted to be chief because he thought he was the most fit to help the group survive. Ralph notices that Jack was not happy that he did not win, “Ralph looked at him, eager to offer something (23).” He did this out of the goodness of his heart; his moral was to make sure that everyone was satisfied. In the middle of the book there was some talk about a ghost. Ralph tried to keep calm when the children would not listen to him. He grew very angry that he was not getting the attention he wanted. “He wrestled the conch from someone and sat down breathlessly (90).” Ralph let his true character, of needing to be the center of attention, show when others were not giving him devotion. Without the people in society there to give Ralph the attention he wants, his true character were shown and his morals became useless.
Motivation is a key factor in reveling ones true morals, nothing can get in the way of them getting what they desire. This hunger can be influenced by other characters thoughts and actions. When Jack did not receive the position of chief, he tried to show that he is strong by not fighting back or crying. Instead he takes advantage of the choir given to him, “’Jack stood up.’ ‘All right, choir. Take off your togs (23)’”. Jack shows that he is a mentally strong person; he also shows that he is physically strong as well once he decides that the choir will be hunters. Once Jack began to lead the hunters into the woods to find some food he felt extremely confident. They spotted a small pig and Jack was the one that was supposed to kill it. “Jack’s face was white under the freckles. He noticed that he still held the knife aloft and brought his arm down (31).” He could have killed the pig, but instead he went into shock and could not bear the thought of killing animals. Jack did not care for other all he worried about was what was best for him. He has a strong force of motivation because he lost to Ralph in the election for chief. He pretended to be a strong and determined person, but without society there to help protect the other he is truly selfish.
A lot of conflict arises in the novel between, Jack and Ralph fought over being chief many times and the conch caused a lot of uproar. Jack disregards the rules the Ralph, as chief made up, “The rules!” shouted Ralph. “Your breaking the rules!” “Who cares” (91). Without society to care for him, Jack only focuses on himself. Jack does not care about others all he cares about is himself. Conflicts can also arise because of elements like the conch. The conch was created to make peace and order within the group, the person with the conch was given the power to talk. The group thought it was a good idea at first but they soon grew tired of it and ignored it completely. “I got the conch!” said Piggy indignantly. “Ralph-they ought to shut up, oughtn’t they? (83). Piggy was given the right to speak but the others did not want to follow the rules anymore. Without society there to put things in order the kids are all out of control. The novel has many key moments that illustrate difficult
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