1976. The conflict created when the will of an individual opposes the will of the majority is the recurring theme of many novels, plays, and essays. Select the work of an essayist who is in opposition to his or her society; or from a work of recognized literary merit, select a fictional character who is in opposition to his or her society. In a critical essay, analyze the conflict and discuss the moral and ethical implications for both the individual and the society. Do not summarize the plot or action of the work you choose.
Often times in Literature, a character must be in opposition to society in order to do what is right. In Lord of the Flies, Ralph is a character of innocence that has to face the harshes of society that his opponent Jack creates on the island.
When the boys land on the island alone, they create a unity amongst each other and agree to cooperate in order to be rescued. When Jack steps up to claim power, the boys blindly follow in his footsteps and do as they are told. However, Ralph is in a conflict with the way Jack runs the island with his morals and guidelines. Jack acts like a savage; he believes that hunting pigs, doing dances around a fire and talking to dead creatures will allow them to be rescued. Ralph is startled by Jack’s immaturity and refuses to listen to his orders.
Ralph wants order. He wants people to be assigned a specific job and work together equally amongst each other. However, Jack wants to show that his clan is the best, and that the hunters should have more respect due to the fact that they provide food to the other boys. When the boys go hunting, Jack kills a pig. This act of killing leads him to believe that he is powerful and has the right to kill anyone who is in opposition to him. Each character slowly but surely loses their innocence except Ralph and his friend Piggy who can truly see the beast that is manifested within everyone.
Ralph’s rebellion towards the rest of the uncivilized society on the island shows how he morally makes right decisions and turns away from immature actions. His morality and faith come into question when Jack challenges him to become savage-like. Although Ralph is tempted, he turns away and continues to control the beast that lives within him as he slowly watches his peers become corrupted.
I think this essay needs to include less plot summary and more analysis of Ralph's character. Your thesis presents a contradiction with the rest of your essay because you say that Ralph is "a character of innocence" but then go on to describe the horrors that Ralph has seen and the maturity with which he handles his situation. I would write a new thesis that pertains more to the rest of your essay and how Ralph responds to the situation on the island.
ReplyDeleteI think you should elaborate on Ralph's character as well, I felt that I got more information about Jack than I did about Ralph. I think your main idea was good and could be better by elaborating and adding more into your thesis.
ReplyDeleteThis really is too much plot summary. The goals were to show the nature of the conflict--you spend most of your essay doing this--and then to show the effects that a character's resistance has on the society and the individual and how that supports them. These parts you didn't really get to.
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