“Lord of the
Flies” has this engaging storyline that made me feel multitudes of emotions
simultaneously. Needless to say, I have no intention of making this sound like
an actual review of the movie; rather, I will simply jot down my emotions –
what I felt and what I still feel regarding the film that I saw.
On the first few
minutes of the movie, I really began to have this sense of curiosity. I was
then pondering, what would happen to these pitiful children stuck in a barren island? I instantaneously had this sort
of admiration towards Ralph. I was utterly amazed at how he handled the whole
dilemma, seemingly unaffected by the future horrors of their current situation.
It hit me that it was pretty rare to meet a boy like him these days. On the
surface, it appeared that the relationship of these boys was in perfect
harmony; there being a leader, cooperation, and all that. But like most of my
assumptions, I was mistaken, which I realized later on.
Of course, there
was always an underlying enemy, a person who opposed our ways, in almost every
day that we encounter new people; or more plainly stated, in a particular
circle or group, there was always this one person who would dislike us. I
wondered why that was the case. And quite accordingly, soon enough, it was
shown that Jack had another side, that he had other motives. It was depressing
that way: why would the people we regarded as friends inevitably turn their
backs against us? When the separation of the boys took place, I thought about
friendship, about our relationships with people. The symbolism in that aspect
mirrored the reality.
I saw Ralph as
this seemingly enigmatic kid, cool and placid on the surface and with a
potential leadership. But Jack was the exact opposite. Why was he acting in
such a disagreeable manner? We can only assume. But reading between the lines,
there must be a reason. There was always a reason behind our behavior, so I’ve
heard. But this should not be an excuse to act in a certain way we do,
especially if it’s not right. The way our mindset translates into behavior
still depends on us. On a deeper note, I have read, and I agree, that Jack’s attitude embodied the most terrible
aspects of human nature “when unrepressed or untempered by society.” [1]
When some of the
kids caught a glimpse of a distant helicopter looming into view, even I, a mere
onlooker, felt a spark of hope ascending inside me. Before I realized what I
was doing, I was ramming my fingers incessantly on the wooden desk in sheer
suspense. But the helicopter never listened to Ralph’s desperate calls. Events
such as those are the kind that always leave us dejected, and worse, render us
wholly hopeless. Even pessimism has its roots.
Soon enough, it
became a battle of survival, quite synonymous in some aspects to Darwin’s
natural selection or the “survival of the fittest.” It emerged in a subtle way,
though, nothing but child’s play with just a few ounces of provocations and the
likes. But I couldn’t quite believe my eyes when I found myself staring in
Simon’s corpse, at the bloody remnants of his little body. What were those kids
even thinking of? How could they kill a defenseless victim? Albeit it was just
a stupid blunder, it was still murder. I couldn’t formulate the image of
children ruthlessly piercing spears through Simon’s body with devilish fervor.
And to think that Simon only wanted to say the truth, to shed some light on a
misconception, on a ridiculous lie. The voice of truth was cut off by the
harshness of human nature, of the beast that was slowly consuming the hearts of
the other boys. Simon's death represents the loss of truth, innocence, and common sense. [2] I knew that even if
the boy dared to speak out in his small voice, it would be futile. His death
would continue. Boys committing murder. I knew then that that was the demise of
child’s play.
I felt
tremendously desolate when the boys left gradually to transfer to the other
group, in the end leaving only Ralph and Piggy. Maybe those kids didn’t
actually want to go to Jack’s group, but they did for survival and
practicality, despite the fact that it was against their will. They had to do
it; they knew that the other group was getting more and more powerful, that
their chances of survival there were better. I guess that was a part of human
nature for some people – doing things that we didn’t really believe in, making
decisions although it was wrong, because we thought it could help us; or even
worse, because we didn’t have a choice.
And things did get
worse. The attitudes of those kids reached the extreme. The first death being
an accident, you’d think that they had already learned their lessons and were
sorry for the crime they had committed. But no; Piggy was heartlessly murdered.
What was even going on in Roger’s mind (the killer) to be able to perform such
an atrocious and abominable act? To have witnessed the death of his comrade, I
could feel the fury of Ralph emanating. It must have taken most of his
willpower not to saunter forward the group and initiate revenge. That must be
very strenuous, to try stopping your emotions from overwhelming you.
Ralph was
undeniably a very strong character. As I have mentioned, I really admired him,
but I also felt a tinge of remorse because mature as he might seem, he was
still nothing but a mere child. No one should have the misfortune of carrying
tremendously heavy burdens and witnessing unsightly things at such a young age.
If ever I see people like those, I’d have this urge at the back of my mind to
help them in any possible way that I can.
Then there came
this scene when Ralph was being hunted down. The twins were put to test. I was
utterly terrified when the other boys began chasing Ralph. Although it was only
a movie, my heart was hammering violently against my chest in fear. I thought
it was his end already. But there was an officer waiting near the shore. The
boys couldn’t proceed with their murderous intent. It seemed that up to that
encounter with an older man, the boys had been living in their own world, with
their own rules. But when they finally saw the man in military outfit, it was
as though the reality once again assaulted their faces. It made them realized
what they really were. They were children about to perform their third kill.
And in the real world, children don’t normally go around murdering someone for
fun.
References:
2."Lord of the Flies: Analysis of Major
Characters". Literature
Study Guides. SparkNotes. Retrieved 2 February 2010.
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