Puting Together all of the Puzzle Pieces

Dear Book club, (Me [Hobbes] , Locke, Machiavelli, Jeremy Bentham, and Clark Griswald from National Lampoons Movies)

It is with my profound pleasure to say that I have completed the book Lord of the Flies.

Now that this book has come to a close, I find this time opportune to discuss our beliefs on these two essential understanding quotes.

1. The governed have a responsibility for their governance.

2. Philosophies of leadership are determined by beliefs about human nature.

First off, I will begin with the understanding that the governed have a responsibility for their governance. My opinions on this essential understanding are simple. I believe that the governed would only request one type of governing. The governing would be one neutral party responsible for managing and dispersing the goods/benefits evenly to the two feuding. This type of balance would keep utter chaos in check. In the novel, instead of modeling my proven method, the boys (Ralph and Jack) tried to use two contrasting governments.

The first, a democracy, did not successfully work because their was no rewards or punishments for good and bad actions. There was absolutely no structure in Ralph's attempted government and that is why it failed. "We have lots of assemblies... We decide things. But they don't get done."

The second, a totalitarian type government, was more successful than the first, and would have continued to work if they had not been rescued. The problem with Jack's government is that they had to destroy anything that opposed him. The point of government is to keep us from becoming savages and Jack's government did not work properly. "Don't you understand, you painted fools? Sam, Eric, Piggy, and me - we aren't enough [to form a proper tribe that will allow for our rescue]"


Finally I will end with the understanding that philosophies of leadership are determined by beliefs about human nature. I believe this understanding is completely true. For example, in the book the leaders are influenced by their own human nature so much that their beliefs/tasks seem unreasonable. To stop this feuding parties a third, neutral, party, or leader, must take charge of the island and implement ideas from both leaders in order for a successful society. So yes I do believe that understanding human nature will positively influence the qualities of a leader.

Ralph and Jack's leadership styles contradict one another. Ralph has a political leadership style, while Jack has a totalitarian leadership style. These two leaders remind me of Fidel Castro's
overthrow of the Cuban government. Much like the situation between Jack and Ralph, Fidel was upset with how Cuba was being run. Fidel decided to overthrow the pre-existing government, just like Jack did, "Who thinks Ralph oughtn't to be cheif?" At first Fidel failed, much like Jack, but he then regrouped himself and mounted a successful revolt against the government of Cuba. This situation mirrors Jack's overthrowing of Ralph. The only possible way both leaders could cope with one another would be if they appointed a third leader that was a neutral party. This would allow for equal styles of leadership and would minimize conflict between the two feuding parties.

There is only one way to have a successful government and it always involves at least three parties.


I just want to thank each book member for the wonderful discussion we have had through the past month. I think for our next book we should read A day in the life of Ivan Denisovich, The Lost Symbol, or Peace and War.

Simon The Interpreter

Dear Book club, (Me [Hobbes] , Locke, Machiavelli, Jeremy Bentham, and Clark Griswald from National Lampoons Movies)

Today we will be discussing the role that Simon played in chapters 8 and 9.

I, Thomas Hobbes, believe that chapters 8 and 9 are the most important in the book because Simon's hallucinations allow him to see clearly what the other boys on the isle can not. These chapters also show the true horror of human nature.

Simon was a conscientious and easy going human being. Simon never intentionally harmed anyone and was always a "Jesus" like figure. Simon portrayed little to none of my beliefs on human nature. In chapter 8, Simon witnesses the cruel and repulsive human nature of the hunters. He sees the brutal massacre of a mother pig and one of her many piglets. This saddens Simon because he can't understand why humans have such a cruel human nature.

In the book I believe Simon is comparable to Jesus, a christian martyr. For example in the book, he saw images that shed light on the complexity of life on the isle. He was also influenced by a source that could not speak. This is similar to Jesus because like Simon, Jesus fasted for forty days in the desert. Jesus saw images that could positively influence man kind, much like Simon did. Simon was also the name of an apostle of Jesus. While Simon was talking to the pig, he learned that the beast was just a part of his imagination. After this epiphany, Simon realizes that there is no beast on the island. To test his new found realization, he decides to hike up to the mountain where the so called beast was last seen. After reaching the pinnacle of the Mountain of Fire, he can clearly see the beast. Instead of some dreaded monster, there lies the carcass of a man who parachuted onto the island. The beast was merely a dead human being with a parachute attached to him. This confirms Simon's conversation with the Lord of the Flies. Simon was elated by this news and decided to run down the mountain to tell his fellow tribes members the good news.

While running down the mountain the weather starts to make a turn for the worst. The sky crackles with thunder and is illuminated by the flashes of lightning. Once Simon reaches his tribes members, he crawls through the creepers and into an irie voodoo scene. Suddenly the tribes members start to attack Simon with their spears, nails, and teeth yelling "Kill the beast, cut his throat, spill his blood." Simon tries to tell them to stop hitting him and also tries to tell them the news, but sadly this does not stop the torture he is enduring. With a few frantic steps Simon falls off the ledge to the beach, where he is promptly killed by his pursuers. Then the sky opens up with rain. This scene reminds me of Jesus's crucifixion because after he was killed the skies opened up. This scene also shows the true terror of human nature and how drastically unpredictable it is.

The importance of the Lord of the Flies is to symbolize our own thoughts. In our minds a continuous battle of right versus wrong rages each hour of every day. The pig is, in a sense, our common sense telling us the blunt truth, "You knew, didn't you? I'm part of you? Close, close, close. I'm the reason why it's no go? Why things are what they are?" This quote symbolizes that the pig is Simon's thoughts tell him what is and what is no. We sometimes ignore our common sense out of ignorance, which usually results in our own faulty actions.

Simon's death was a brutal massacre scene that was masterminded by a few toddlers. As I have already pointed out, Simon's death was very similar to Jesus's crucifixion. People who knew of Jesus thought he was a beast and that he must be vanquished. In the book Simon, seen by the boys while crawling out of the woods, was thought to have been the beast. The boys brash actions resulted in the death of Simon, the interpreter. In the bible, after the death of Jesus, the sky's opened up and turned black. This was similar to Simon's death because the very same events transpired. "Now a great wind blew the rain sideways, cascading the water from the forest trees." This scene shows the similarities between the interpreters from both tribes.

Book Group

Dear Book club, (Me [Hobbes] , Locke, Machiavelli, Jeremy Bentham, and Clark Griswald from National Lampoons Movies)

Regarding the current book we are reading, I find this time opportune to discuss our thoughts and opinions.

I feel as if all the humans that inhabit the island have exhibited traits of selfishness and cruelness. The island I believe is a symbolization for what man acted like at the dawn of time and I can clearly see why human nature is classified as cruel, selfish and unjust.

I have two human examples from the book.

In chapter four, Jack had killed a pig for meat instead of maintaining the fire.This decision subsequently led to the fire burning out. Piggy then scolded Jack about letting the fire burn out, "' You didn't ought to have let that fire out. You sad you'd keep the smoke going-' ... [Jack] took a step, and able at last to hit someone, stuck his fist into Piggy's stomach." This section shows Jack becoming outraged that this inferior boy was lecturing him on the do's an don'ts. This built up rage lead to Jack lashing out and punching Piggy in the stomach. Piggy fell over from this powerful blow and his glasses fell off his head and one lens shattered against the cold earth. This section in the book clearly shows how fragile humans are and how quickly, in times embarrassment and scrutiny, people return to their cruel human nature.

Roger, also in chapter four, exhibited traits of cruelty and made unjustified actions towards an innocent bi standard. Roger and Maurice, after being relieved from their fire watching and maintaining duties, headed down towards the beach for a swim. Once the two reached the beach, they went about kicking and destroying the littleuns sandcastles. The three little ones watching their masterpieces being destroyed left in anguish. Henry the biggest of the three decided to go wading in the ocean to let the time pass. Roger decided to hide behind a tree and watch Henry's actions. Henry, while wading in the ocean, does nothing out of the usual for his age. Suddenly, Roger decides to start throwing stones at Henry, but not too close to avoid hitting him, "Roger gathered a handful of stones and began to throw them. Yet there was a space round Henry, perhaps six yards in diameter, into which he dare not throw. Here, invisible yet strong, was the taboo of the old life." This passage shows that Roger wants to be able to throw the stones directly at Henry, but his old life morals won't let him, yet. Roger's intentions were obviously cruel, but I don't fear these, rather I fear his future intentions and the other boys future intentions as well. Human nature is pure evil. Morals guard off your inner being, but one false spark may lead to an outbreak of a roaring wildfire that is no longer controllable.


I have one major symbol from the book I would like to discuss.

The major symbol in the book, which I believe to be the most important, is the conch. The conch symbolizes a restraint that holds back utter chaos. Without the conch I have no doubt that the island would run amok. This restraint, similar to morals, is the only device that separates us from civilized human beings and our ancestors who walked the earth two hundred millenniums ago. The person who possesses the conch is the possessor of the key that opens the gates to hell. He, only, can determine weather or not to keep sanity. With this title, Ralph, is under enormous pressure not only to keep a civilized tribe, but also to find a way to be rescued.

I would now like to discuss the beast.

The beast is the only fear that all the boys on the island unanimously fear. This unified fear compels all of the boys on the island to come together and form one tribe. This band of brothers has an unwritten but implied code to protect each other and find an escape rout off the dreaded island. Sadly, a few members of this group are selfish and want more than to just be a band of brothers trying to hide from this mystical beast. The egoistic nature of these few individuals shatter and tear apart the tribe. This turmoil may lead to the demise of the once promising group of innocent children. The beast symbolizes fear in the world. People cope with fear differently, but the world is filled with fear and no one can escape it.

Response to Clark Griswald's post

Clark Griswald your understanding of the boys actions have been misinterpreted by yourself. The boys actions have not be propelled by love an compassion, but on the contrary, they were compelled by fear and anger. For example when Jack punched piggy, he wasn't propelled by love and compassion but was propelled by fear of his failure and his anger. The boys on the island, I believe are more afraid of the island than they are excited. I understand they thought the island was like coral reef, but with the recent events, the island has been transformed into a tropical nightmare.

Inside The Mind Of Thomas Hobbes

Hello, my name is Thomas Hobbes. I believe the world is a cruel and an unfair place, where only the strongest individuals can survive. Humans are selfish, fiendish, and are incapable of truly loving. The only reason why humans function is because they need to fulfill their basic needs. The reasons that governments should be involved in individual's lives are if two feuding parties both desire one item (s). In this case the two parties should let a third party control the item (s) and let the controlling party dispense the item (s) out to the two parties evenly so no riot would occur. Mans basic needs are acquired by stabbing others in the back to further improve their well being.

To support my bleak beliefs, I would like you to watch this video on African war.Savage rebels in Africa pillage villages leaving no person alive because of their selfish and cruel nature. These sad events clearly show why humans are cruel. This ties in to my believes that humans are selfish and cruel with no humanitarian beliefs.

In the United States of America thousands of selfish and greedy people inhabit the land of the free, even rich multimillion and billionaires have been accused of being overly selfish. For example, Bernie Madoff, a successful fund manager, was caught implementing a pyramid scheme. This scheme harmed not only rich investors but thousands of middle class U.S. civilians too. Once again this selfish nature that Bernie Madoff possesses clearly shows how flawed human nature is.

During the great depression the will power and the physical stature of countless individuals were tested. Only the fittest individuals were able to overcome the severe lack of nutrition and proper health care. This unloving world was unable to yield any sort of help to those who perished. Only the fittest individuals will continue to live and breathe on this earth. This ties in to my belief that only the survival of the fittest will triumph.

The world is cruel and unloving and in the game of life every one loses.