How does the character ‘Jack’
change in Golding’s ‘Lord of the
Flies’ ?
“I was just waiting for a moment to
decide where to stab him.”
• Jack is seen here as still being ruled by
civilisation. He is unable to kill ‘because of the
enormity of the knife descending… The
unbearable blood.’
• What change takes place after his first
successful hunt?
“it’s like in a book”
• The reference to children’s books illustrate the
adventure and excitement of fiction at the
time. Golding uses the experiences of the boys
to show how unrealistic these adventure
stories were.
Being British
• Many writers from the early 20c tended to
promote qualities seen as being
characteristically ‘British’.
• Honesty, bravery, stiff upper lip, adventurous
• Golding shows how easily these virtues turn to
savagery.
• Remember that in normal life back in England
Jack Merridew would have represented order
and all that was ‘best of British virtue’.
“I agree to do the right things”
• Compare Jack’s beliefs here with his behaviour
later in the novel.
• Jack denies Piggy the right to speak, in contrast,
Ralph supports Piggy’s claim because he has the
conch.
• Is Jack showing signs of wishing to be a dictator?
Does Ralph believe in democracy?
• Does Jack say one thing then do another?
• Does Jack’s character worsen as the novel
progresses, or was he in fact not very noble to
start with?
• After the first hunt, Jack proudly tells the others
that he cut the pigs throat, and yet he ‘twitched
as he said it’. What does this indicate about him?
What effect would the hunter’s chanting have
upon them? (think of a football crowd)
• At this moment, Jack and Ralph are worlds apart
in both experience and emotion. Jack is jubilant
after his first hunt success, Ralph is despairing
because of the lost chance of rescue. How
important is rescue to Jack?
“Piggy’s glasses flew off and tinkled on
the rocks”.
• Piggy’s glasses symbolise understanding and
reason (he sees things clearly)
• The success of the hunt releases Jack from
civilisation, he allows himself to give in to his
aggressive tendencies. Both Piggy and Ralph
accuse him of being irresponsible but he only hits
Piggy. What does the breaking of one lens
signify? One possible interpretation is that it
symbolises the beginning of the loss of
reasonable behaviour on the island.
Is Jack an atavist?
• This is someone who reverts to the behaviour
and attitude of their distant ancestors.
• Do the other boys also become atavists when
they see Jack as the more powerful leader and
provider?
• What evidence is there that tells you this?
Atavism – the process of degeneration back to the behaviour and attitudes of
distant ancestors. (hunters / survival of the strongest/ animalistic savagery)
Skim and find quotes
• You need to track the changes in Jack’s
behaviour in the novel. Find quotes to support
what you are saying about him. Make your
explanations detailed but don’t go overboard
with just simple comments (D grade). Make
your comments work for you and tease out as
much meaning as possible. Look for the
symbolism and deeper implications. Try to
explain what Golding is saying about the
veneer of civilisation.
Veneer – a thin layer of high quality material covering a much larger, harsher, more basic
material.