Brutalism in Lord of the Flies and The Second Coming Essay

Humans are innately brutish and evil; their animalistic disposition concealed by a false front of civility. The pieces Lord of the Flies and The Second Coming illustrate that when there is an absence of order, mankind erodes to savagery and barbarianism. While William Golding and William Yeats both place emphasis on the consequences suffered with the absence of an authority figure, similarities are discovered between the two pieces of work. These works highlight how the loss of the ability to communicate constructively, the loss of hope and the influence of fear lead to humanity reverting back to its primitive state. Lawlessness causes violence to flourish, and a strife amongst people that want to rule and gain authority. Golding and Yeats prove that without law and order, there is no civilization.

Humanity's action or inaction is reliant upon the perception of events and those involved. Poor communication causes the downfall of a society inevitably, for intentions and opinions often become misconstrued. For instance, when the boys hold a meeting to discuss what to do about the beast, Jack displays no regard for the authority of the conch or the rules produced in their society, and as a result of his conduct, the meeting is disrupted in a chaotic manner resembling anarchy. Jack comments, And you shut up! ... Just giving orders that dont make any sense (5.98). At a time when civilization has not yet been re-established, Jack cannot help but resort to instinctive and primitive behaviors that lack coherent communication, and in turn provokes the other boys to begin on a path of uncivil demeanor. Similarly, in The Second Coming, during a time of havoc and disorder, communication is obscured and the social order is crumbling accordingly. Yeats writes, The falcon cannot hear the falconer (Yeats, 2). The fact that the falcon cannot hear the falconer means that the followers cannot or do not want to follow and obey the leader anymore. When individuals are unwilling to communicate, or hold the opinion that they have no reason to co-operate, societal stability is diminished.

Civilization, and moreso the act of civility, cannot exist without the action of the people and their interest in possessing it. Hope is the driving inspiration for construction and development, and without it, society cannot progress past unbridled savagery. For example, after Jack forms his own tribe and abandons Ralph along with several other boys, negativity and despair ensues, affecting the boys incentive to leave the island. Ralph states, We can't keep one fire going. And they don't care. And what's more I don't sometimes (8.153). The boys have lost hope which compromises their desire to return to civilization, confining them to re-occurring violent altercations and perpetual animalism. Correspondingly, in The Second Coming, brought on by the contributing factor of hopelessness, anarchy and savagery are loosed upon the world. Yeats communicates, Surely some revelation is at hand (9). The certainty of an apocalypse indicates that any faith that mankind may have had is diminished, for all that is demonstrated is a fatalistic outlook. Faith in a greater power brings human beings together to coexist in a peaceful and civil manner, but without hope, only primordial, brutish behavior is present.

Fear is the primitive emotion for a survival response when one is in harms way; however, this instinct can over-power the most basic of logic. Fear is a figment of the imagination that can manifest itself and trigger vicious primordial savage-like behavior, eliminating structure, rules, and any existing civility. At one point, Simon had separated from the assembly, and upon his abrupt return, he was brutally murdered by the other boys as a result of their own irrepressible fear. Golding writes, There were no words, and no movements but the tearing of teeth and claws. (9.169). The boys reacted based on mammalian instincts that subdued their rationale and civil way of interacting, the end result being the death of an innocent child, a significant action for such a trivial reason. During The Second Coming, the fear of this problem that is arising causes the belief to be created that civilization and order will not return. Yeats writes, And what rough beast, its hour come round at last,/ Slouches towards Bethlehem to be born? (21-22). It is suggested that fear, especially fear of the unknown, is so pervasive in mankind that only civilization is strong enough to save people from themselves. Fear triggers savagery and leads to the diminishing of order, rules and civilization.

The pieces Lord of the Flies and The Second Coming clearly prove that only the constraints of society keep people from exhibiting full savagery. As a result, Golding and Yeats are able to suggest that the theme conveyed in both of these pieces identifies the actions necessary to bring about the destruction and corruption of a society. The contributing factors to a civilizations assimilation into barbarianism are miscommunication, fear, and the absence of hope. By the very nature of these works, it has been proven that those who succumb to their true human nature will ultimately be met with anarchy and an uproar of chaos. With the imperfection of human nature, integration among mankind can only be achieved through submission to a common figure of authority.