Lord Of The Flies Microcosm Analysis

In writing Lord of the Flies, author William Golding builds a dystopian microcosm entirely separated from the real world. Through his construction of the island dystopia, Golding provides insight into his perspective on human nature and the degree of humanity, or lack thereof, inherently possessed by man. Among the aspects of society criticized in the novel, democratic government and man’s right to such a system is one of the most prominent. Golding mirrors the actual creation and implementation of a democratic government in his island microcosm. Although the boys’ election, rule-making, and division of labor roughly mirror that of the outside world from which they are isolated—notably a society also in collapse—the children do not successfully …show more content…
Golding’s message regarding democratic government in Lord of the Flies appears to be that it is only effective and worthwhile when the concern of the leaders and people that compose it is for the greater good and the long term goals of society, characteristics that, in Golding’s opinion, the common man does not possess. While the initial imposition of order and rules on the island is mostly well-intentioned, the carelessness involved later proves the ineffectiveness of their democracy. The boys make the decision to elect Ralph as their leader and chief based on a single accomplishment, finding the conch, and his verisimilitude of responsibility. “They obeyed the summons of the conch, partly because Ralph blew it, and he was big enough …show more content…
He creates characters to serve as manifestations of each of the three parts of Sigmund Freud’s psychoanalytic personality theory. Ralph represents the ego, Simon and Piggy, the superego, and Jack and eventually the majority of the other boys, the id. It is because of the id’s great influence on man that Golding feels man does not deserve democracy. While there are people like Jack, who only concern themselves with short term goals and instincts, having political influence, a government will surely fall to war and obfuscated anarchy. Establishing his priorities, Jack says, "Listen all you. Me and my hunters, we 're living along the beach by a flat rock. We hunt and feast and have fun" (Golding 140). He openly states his priorities of hunt and fun, with no regard for safety, order, or escape, a purely id-driven personality. All of the boys on the island, excluding Simon, Piggy, and Ralph, gradually lose the morals of their ego and superego and become controlled by the id. It is this descent to animalism that Golding portrays as the heart of human existence, the unavoidable result of too much power. Golding illustrates Roger’s descent in the contrast between his actions at the beginning and the end of the novel; in the beginning, “There was a space round