Humans will do almost anything in order to achieve happiness. From ancient Mesopotamian civilizations to Nazi Germany in the mid 20th Century, striving for a utopian society,has been a common thread throughout the course of history, Yet the lingering question in the back of everyone's mind is how to achieve this happiness and if it is actually fulfilling. With the drive behind human actions in mind, it is no wonder that disarray and chaos are prominent wherever people are present: selfishness reigns as king on the throne of mankind's heart. Seeking to tackle questions involving human nature and societal structures,
William Golding and George Orwell exhort the same themes in their novels Lord of the Flies and Animal Farm respectively. Both …show more content…
At the beginning of Lord of the Flies, when the boys are first stranded on the island, their idea of utopia is an endless game, exemplified in how they relish acts such as pushing rocks down cliffs simply because they can (Golding 28). Limitless in the lack of adult enforced-rules, the magnitude of the boys’ situation is unbeknownst to them and survival is the least of their concerns. Instead they prioritize formalities, such as establishing an English based, egalitarian system of government, out of the luxury of habit. “This toy of voting” has no logical basis to it when the boys choose a chief, for “what intelligence had been shown was traceable to Piggy while the most obvious leader was Jack,” yet Ralph is chosen as leader due to his possession of the conch, their great unifier (Golding 22). After voting Ralph as chief and determining the conch as the source of power in their micro-civilization, assignments such as keeping the fire, hunting and building huts are administered to the boys and the vision of utopia begins to splinter based on group-oriented and self-oriented mindsets. Equality, once held in high esteem in that each boy was granted a vote towards chief, fades when the boys realize fairness for everyone jeopardizes personal gain and so begins the downward spiral away from sanity. Utopia is inherently flawed because humans, the creators and sustainers of utopia, are flawed themselves. Often associated with perfection, utopia is an unfeasible goal because perfection is tailored to the individual, and one’s inner savage cannot bear to have another be equally satisfied; therefore, with every victory comes a defeat for another. Jack challenges Ralph’s authority because it endangers his personal quest for utopia, a primitive hunting
William Golding and George Orwell exhort the same themes in their novels Lord of the Flies and Animal Farm respectively. Both …show more content…
At the beginning of Lord of the Flies, when the boys are first stranded on the island, their idea of utopia is an endless game, exemplified in how they relish acts such as pushing rocks down cliffs simply because they can (Golding 28). Limitless in the lack of adult enforced-rules, the magnitude of the boys’ situation is unbeknownst to them and survival is the least of their concerns. Instead they prioritize formalities, such as establishing an English based, egalitarian system of government, out of the luxury of habit. “This toy of voting” has no logical basis to it when the boys choose a chief, for “what intelligence had been shown was traceable to Piggy while the most obvious leader was Jack,” yet Ralph is chosen as leader due to his possession of the conch, their great unifier (Golding 22). After voting Ralph as chief and determining the conch as the source of power in their micro-civilization, assignments such as keeping the fire, hunting and building huts are administered to the boys and the vision of utopia begins to splinter based on group-oriented and self-oriented mindsets. Equality, once held in high esteem in that each boy was granted a vote towards chief, fades when the boys realize fairness for everyone jeopardizes personal gain and so begins the downward spiral away from sanity. Utopia is inherently flawed because humans, the creators and sustainers of utopia, are flawed themselves. Often associated with perfection, utopia is an unfeasible goal because perfection is tailored to the individual, and one’s inner savage cannot bear to have another be equally satisfied; therefore, with every victory comes a defeat for another. Jack challenges Ralph’s authority because it endangers his personal quest for utopia, a primitive hunting