scientist=naive?

As Golding said, scientists are very naive in some ways. The world and society as a whole are extremely complex levels and it is simply impossible to accurately predict the far future. People are constantly changing and doing things unexpectedly. Most scientists want to believe that there is a formula and a strict order in which things are happening. However, as we know there cannot be a scientific and mathematical formula used to explain why everything in the world happens and why everything happens whether it be good or bad. There is more that goes into things than just numbers and variables. Treating the world as if there is no complexity in it is simply an act of naiveness. It shows that they are either oblivious to this or chose to block it out of their heads that sometimes, whether the situation be good or bad, things happen that the scientific and mathematical worlds cannot come up with a precise reasoning for. This does not mean that the events are illogical; it just means that they are on such a complex level of life that it is impossible for humans to wrap their minds around why things happen or sometimes even how. There are still phenomenons that happen in our everyday life that i believe humans will never fully understand.

-Ellie*

Good vs. Good?

The Lord of the Flies so far has been a story about innate evil and its contrast to good. Simon and Ralph represent the good of humanity, but in two different ways. As we go through the story, I get the sense that their good doings stem from different places. Ralph's goodness stems from a learned behavior rather than an innate instinct. Like the other boys, he is susceptible to the darkness of humanity. He too participates in the hunting dance that ended in Simon's death. At one point, he even had the urge to kill something by himself. Simon, though, seems to be good from the heart rather than by the rules that have been previously placed upon him. He lives by the "rules" because they are natural to his temperament. He thrives in nature and seems to be at peace with himself. Does a difference in the stem of goodness affect the quality of the goodness? Does the stem affect the way good intentions are carried out? Well, Ralph understands the evil side because he has acted upon it. I think his ability so see the world from another view point helps him to see how wrong the other side actually was. This makes him a good leader. Simon, however, has a different fate altogether. He was killed essentially because the goodness in his heart wanted the boys to realize the truth about the beast and to make them not fearful. This is another great parallel in the story to our society. Usually the people trying to do the most good are the ones getting burned in the end. The ones that have the less-good urges are the ones who get all the glory. Why is that? Is it because people don't want to see the truth in their mistakes? What kind of goodness is the good kind?

---Linzey Rice

Girls are Fun

Maybe it's just me, and maybe I'm a little biased, but it seems that every time I read books that have terrible not happy endings, such as The Lord of the Flies, the main characters always seem to have a Y chromosome. It makes me wonder, what if girls had been stranded on that little island? In my opinion, if there had been a little more estrogen present on the island, "society" wouldn't have met its match quite so easily. This isn't true for all of the female human population, but in general, most girls are a little more level headed and don't jump strait to violence as soon as they can. Once the boys reached the island in Golding's book, they immediately fight and end up in a giant power struggle. As a member of the "girls' team" myself, I know that the first thing I would have done on the island is get organized, much in the way Piggy tried to do. Girls don't care about power until after all other, more immediate, worries are taken care of. It's in our very nature to make sure that all the small children are accounted for and fed, all the older ones have jobs making shelters and finding food for the group, and to make sure the environment in general is made stable and livable. I haven't ever been in a situation as extreme as the one in the book, but I just can't imagine ever giving up my morals, even if I could do whatever I like with impunity. Girls pay close attention to our consciences and we feel guilty about the littlest things. In light of all the differences between the chicks and the fellas, I believe that society and rational thought wouldn't have been so easily forgotten if the boys left on the island were actually girls. Throughout history, women are said to be the mild ones; the ones with the level heads and the even tempers. Sometimes this is a little demeaning, but not having the constant craving for power can be seen as a strength. Having a the strong will not to resort to violence and to resist chaos is a leading quality that comes out in females, especially when normalcy is scarce. So girls, here's our chance to show those boys what's up. Would you be able to kill another human who is completely innocent? Would you be able to kill someone who wasn't? Would you be able to kill a pig with your bare hands, even if it was just for meat? You have other options. There's plenty of fruit on the island. The boys didn't think about any of these things. They just went out and acted on instinct and the result was gruesome and ugly. I don't think girls would do that, even in the worst of circumstances.

---Taylor

Politics and Beyond

Golding: "It seems to be the dilemma we are faced with that, on the whole, the politician is likely to be a Jack, and, at best, a Ralph--never a Simon."

Do you agree with this quote? Evaluate the leadership qualities of these characters and/or compare/contrast them with past or current political figures.

Piggy and Science

Golding: "Piggy understand society less than almost anyone there. He's a scientist. He is naive, short-sighted, and rationalist, like most scientists."

Think about Piggy's death and how much he valued the conch. How might it illustrate this quote?

There are many ethical issues in science facing us today where "naive" or "short-sighted" decisions could have serious consequences. Your thoughts?

In your opinion, have there been time in the past when scientific advancements, inventions, and technology should have been prevented?

Why is everyone losing their minds?!

As we all know, Jack and his hunters have lost all sense of humanity. I believe this happened because they are all little boys, and their knowledge of history is very basic. The point of learning history is so we can't repeat our mistakes. As we see, Jack turns into this communistic, controlling person who only cares about hunting and power. I see a great parallel with Jack and Adolph Hitler. Jack believes that only important people should have a voice, and he tries to silence the littluns. This is similar to Hitler and the Jews. Hitler believed that the Jews weren't important, so he completely silenced them. I believe that history and knowledge is very important. If the boys knew the importance of this, they wouldn't face such savegry. Age also plays a big role in why the boys revolt. In conclusion, if the boys were older and smarter they would be okay. I think Golding may be trying to point out the importance of knowledge. Without knowledge, we're basically savages, and thats what happened with most of the boys.
-Miranda Rickard (:

At a certain point in the book, Jack and his hunter's chant changes from "Kill the pig! Cut her throat! Bash her in!" to "Kill the pig! Cut his throat! Kill the pig! Bash him in!" At first they were referring to it as a female which is usually done to address an animal. I'm not saying that this chant is ok or normal in anyway but the fact that they're referring to it as an animal is better than changing it to a male, which can be taken to the fact that if it were a human they'd do the same because using "his" and "him" seems as if they're referring to any living thing, such as a human. This just shows the boys savagary even more as they don't care for killing humans which is proven even further by the death of Simon and Piggy.
-Nathan Knodel