What Does Jack Symbolize In Lord Of The Flies

Victor Hugo, a french author, once stated, “The mountains, the forest and the sea render men savage; they develop the fierce, but yet do not destroy the human.” In William Golding's Lord of the Flies, a group of boys crash land on an island and are left to a structureless society. The boys, at first, are capable of managing a just form of government, however, due to the fact that there are absolutely no adults on the island, they quickly stray from justice and overall peace. Jack is the origin of most of the conflicts on the island that lead to fear and death. He has absolutely no control over his obsessions and desires for blood and power. William golding uses Jack’s character as a symbol to convey the theme that when an individual strays away from what is known to be their civilized self and becomes an entirely different and savage human being, they tend to sacrifice innocence, morality and sanity

Jacks evolution from an innocent and accomplished school boy to a bloodthirsty tyrant progresses at an incredible rate over the course of his

Jack feels the need to alter his appearance simply to please his developing savage tendencies. This demonstrates Jack’s willingness to kill on account of the fact that he feels inclined to become a new person, just to kill an animal. Consequently, this shows his loss of innocence because he is simply no longer just a choir boy. He is a cutthroat hunter and future leader of the tribe of children. Furthermore, Jack has changed so much, both physically and personality wise, that Ralph, a kid who he has gotten to know on the island, can barely recognize him: “A little boy who wore the remains of an extraordinary black cap on his red hair, who carried the remains of a pair of spectacles at his waist…” (80). This further emphasizes Jack’s change in appearance, which also alludes to his loss of innocence. Jack has now started to fully