Lord of the flies - Write a couple of paragraphs describing how Jack is changing from an ordinary schoolboy into a savage and a beast.

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Write a couple of paragraphs describing how Jack is changing from an ordinary schoolboy into a savage and a beast.

(English – Lord Of The Flies)

At the beginning of the novel, Jack is introduced to us as part of a highly organised choir, almost regimented in style. Jack is in fact “the boy who controlled them”, and his “cap badge was golden”, whereas the rest of the boys’ were silver. This suggests Jack’s superiority, possibly assuming that he is more organised and disciplined than the other boys, which allows him authority over them. Golding subtely introduces Jack as though he is giving us a forewarning about his personality. In fact, Jack is first introduced to us as Merridew, which is his surname. He is called “Merridew” by all the boys. This reminds us of the public school system, where boys are called by their surnames, further suggesting a hierarchical public school ethos, with Jack at the top.

        In the first chapter, Jack is generally very orderly, and he thinks practically “about being rescued”. However, there is a childish side to him, when he boasts “with simple arrogance” that he should be chief, the justification he gives is: “because I’m chapster chorister and head boy. I can sing C sharp.” The fact that he is head boy again suggests that he is a responsible character, and the way he speaks in arrogance hints a boy of stubborn determination who displays an off-handed authority, not willing to be persuaded or commanded himself. However, he is very stiff in his own authoritarian attitude towards others.

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        As the story develops, Jack turns from being a quite ordinary school boy to a savage. In the second chapter of the novel, Jack’s character develops quite quickly. Before this, Jack, Ralph and Simon go to explore the island, and while doing so, they encounter a pig. They are about to knife it, but they pause. The pig then escapes. In chapter two, we sense that Jack regrets not having killed the pig, and he feels that he has failed in proving his masculinity and strength to the other boys. He interrupts Ralph at a “meeting” to announce that “an ...

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