jack

• Jack


  Charismatic leader, direct rival to Ralph, gives in to primal and animalistic instincts, abandons rules, controls the island in an evil nature, like a tyrant
• Jack (at first)


  • Authoritative over the choir, tries to establish himself as the leader, arrogant, bossy, rude to other boys
  • Believes singing C sharp determines he should be leader
• Jack and Ralph


  • Direct contrast, rivalry forms (Savagery vs civilisation)
  • Clash over things like shelters and fire
  • Jack is about hunting and fun, Ralph is about survival and law and order
• Jack


  • Tendency to violence shown early
  • Treats Piggy in a mean way
  • Hypocritical about rules - wants them to punish others
  • Becoming increasingly animalistic, drifting away from civilised values
• Jack (when wearing a mask)

  • Feels liberated from shame and self-consciousness
  • Mask acts like the animalistic instincts inside of him, controlling how he acts
  • Acts like an animal when hunting, portrays savage instincts
• Jack (as a tyrant)

  • Rules his tribe, dehumanises them to obey him
  • Sits on a throne, expects others to carry out things for him
  • Boys' full drift away from democracy and society's norms
• Jack and the boys encourage the chant "kill the pig. cut her throat. spill her blood" - shows their complete shift away from any life they had before and descent into savagery
• Jack aims to kill Ralph, showing his savage thirst for blood and killing- ‘Viciously, with full intention, he hurled his spear at Ralph.’
• Jack and Ralph at the end

  • Jack does not present himself as leader, showing Ralph is the true leader
  • Jack is ashamed of his leadership qualities, possibly recognises they don't fit into society
  • Jack is referred to as a 'little' boy, taking away any power he thought he had
• Jack and Ralph


  Represent good and evil, polar opposites, direct rivals
• Through the character of Jack, Golding warns of the "darkness in man's heart", the fact that everyone contains evil inside them naturally that comes out when there are no laws or norms of society
• 'there was the indefinable connection between himself and Jack, who therefore would never let him alone; never.'- This shows how Jack and Ralph both represent good and evil and are polar opposites of each other, The connection that they share is one of direct rivalry. 
• jack, painted and garlanded, sat there like an idol.’-
• “Bollocks to the rules! We're strong - we hunt!”- Shows his disrespect to civilisation and the rules which he initially came up with. He’d rather have ‘fun’ on the island than obey rules- shows how he gives into to his primal instincts. 
• “We'll have rules!".. "lots of rules! Then when anyone breaks 'em”- Shows hypocrisy as he will be the one to break the rules. He only wants the rules so he can punish whoever breaks them and he enjoys doing that. 
• ‘Jack... became less a hunter than a furtive thing, ape-like among the tangle of trees.’ Foreshadows how Jack is becoming increasingly animalistic and doesn't act like a human when he is hunting. He is slowly drifting away from his civilised values. 
• -Appearance: Black cloak and red hair- suggesting his fiery temper and the cloak showing his dark and sinister nature. ‘tall, thin, and bony’ .‘red hair beneath a black cap’.