The Hangmans Horror Roger, Sadism, and Psychopathy in...

With an understanding of the inherent darkness in all men and first-hand experience with savagery and violence in World War II, William Golding used Lord of the Flies as not only a historical allegory and a pulpit from which to address the darkness in all men, but also as a metaphor and a example that no one is exempt from human nature. Golding’s characters in Lord of the Flies reflect this idea greatly, but none more so than Roger. Throughout Lord of the Flies, Golding uses the character of Roger to show the follies of mankind and the ability of all people to turn to savagery, as well as the inherent nature of man and society’s internalized acceptance of violence, stemming from Golding’s own experiences with the subject. Golding created†¦show more content†¦His physical appearance has changed and his long, grown out black hair â€Å"seemed to suit his gloomy face and made what seemed at first an unsociable remoteness into something forbidding,† ( Golding 55), creating a much more intimidating figure than he had already been, his unkempt appearance adding to his unapproachability and furtive personality. However, this chapter also shows that he is fully â€Å"aware of the lingering social conditioning† (Koopmans) of his life before the boys were stranded on the island; â€Å"Roger stooped, picked up a stone, aimed, and threw it at Henry – threw it to miss. The stone, that token of preposterous time, bounced five yards to Henry’s right and fell in the water. 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. Round the squatting child was the protection of parents and school and policemen and the law. Roger’s arm was conditioned by a civilization that knew nothing of him and was in ruins† (Golding 56). Roger throws the rocks at Henry aiming to miss, unable to bring himself yet to actually throw the stones at Henry to deliberately hurt him, a