Morality of Hobbes and Calvin in Lord of the Flies Essay

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What is the Purpose of Morality?Hobbes viewed morality as a form of social control, instituted by society to prevent every man from being against every man (p. 36). In other words, morality was a human construct. What Lord of the Flies shows is that nature represents two forces—two dynamics—two spirits: one seeks to be upright and to serve the common good; the other is self-centered and self-indulgent, obeying only the force and violence of impulse. These two forces have to work together if society wants to keep itself from tearing itself apart, so Pojman’s argument goes. Indeed, in Golding’s Lord of the Flies there is some struggle between the boys on the island, as the group splinters and a power play for authority commences. One boy—Ralph—tries to adhere to the old world morality embodied by civil society as it was known back home—he tries to instill order and good governance with the conch and the need to keep the fire going. Jack on the other hand represents a different kind of spirit or force or law—one that is more interested in serving the self, the whimsical desire for instant satisfaction—whether it is pulling a prank on Piggy or abandoning the fire to satisfy a sudden desire to hunt for meat. Jack represents an animalistic sort of nature, a fallen nature, a depraved nature that respects nothing but force. Jack is constantly challenging Ralph and is quick to use violence when he feels threatened, charging Jack at one point with a spear, and later trying to hunt him down with his own followers.

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In the novel, Ralph represents common sense but also the…

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…source in Beelzebub (Satan) but rather “only us,” i.e., humans have a dark nature—just like Calvin said (p. 33). And this is where Pojman connects the novel to Hobbes: Hobbes contended that human beings act out of self-interest, and the true state of nature is “insecurity” (p. 35). This insecurity is demonstrated by the boys on the island and “morality is [merely] a form of social control” (p. 36). Obviously, this reading supports the idea that Lord of the Flies is antithetical to The Coral Island and its view of morality and human nature. However, “where there is no power able to over-awe them all,” states Hobbes, men will find only grief (p. 42). The author of The Coral Island simply suggests there is a good power over all, while Golding suggests it is more likely a bad….....

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