Psychology of Lord of the Flies - Cinco Delgado | Library

Lord of the Flies & Psychology
It is some people's worst nightmare: a group of boys are left on a stranded island to fend for themselves in William Golding's Lord of the Flies. But why is this such a scary thought? If we have knowledge of psychology, we know that humans will act differently in a situation where their basic needs are not met. In this video, we're going to explore some popular psychological theories and how they relate to Lord of the Flies.

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Which of the following psychological theories is NOT discussed?

Sigmund Freud's Personality Theory
Many scholars believe that the characters in the novel represent Sigmund Freud's theory of personality. They believe that Jack represents the id, or the part of our personality concerned with meeting our primal needs. They believe that Ralph represents the ego, or the part of the personality concerned with satisfying the needs of the id while still adhering to societal norms. Finally, many believe that Simon and Piggy represent the superego, or that part of the personality associated with moral judgement.

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Which of the following characters in Lord of the Flies is most closely associated with the id in Sigmund Freud's Personality Theory?

Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs
Abraham Maslow sought to understand what motivates people to behave the way they do. He proposed a theory in 1943 called the Hierarchy of Needs. In this theory, Maslow believed that people can't focus on other needs until the lower needs are met. He believed that if people could not meet the basic physiological and safety needs that they would not achieve the need of love and belonging. Can you see how this theory could relate to the boys in Lord of the Flies?
It seems that Jack and his followers want to delay the children from achieving the self-actualization need, or the complete fulfillment of happiness and potential. They're responsible for the deaths of two children who are in the process of achieving or have achieved the need of self-actualization.
Simon achieves self-actualization in his travels to the top of the mountain. All of Simon's basic needs have been met because he has befriended Ralph's group of boys and has esteem in the way he treats the younger boys. Simon hikes to the top of the mountain and engages in a ''discussion'' with a pig's head, the ''Lord of the Flies,'' where he learns that the monster is the evil hiding in the boys' minds, not a physical entity.
He finds more proof when he reaches the top of the mountain and finds that the ''beast'' is actually a dead parachuter hanging from a tree. ''The beast was harmless and horrible; and the news must reach the others as soon as possible.'' When he returns to the camp, Jack and his followers murder Simon in a ritualistic and frightening manner. Simon has achieved self-actualization but is murdered before he can enlighten the others.
Piggy's needs are met by his loyalty to Ralph. Ralph assists Piggy in providing shelter and food at his camp and provides Piggy with a sense of safety. This allows Piggy to achieve love and belonging with Ralph. We can even argue that he meets his esteem needs with Ralph and starts to feel like his voice is being heard by his friend.
When he begins to start to achieve self-actualization, where he can focus on problem-solving, Jack and his followers steal his glasses and murder him. Piggy states, ''I just take the conch to say this. I can't see no more and I got to get my glasses back. Awful things has been done on this island. I voted for you for chief. He's the only one who ever got anything done. So now you speak, Ralph.'' Piggy and Ralph are the only children interested in the rescue of the boys. When Jack's group steals Piggy's glasses, it seems that they are trying to ensure that the basic needs of the boys are not met so that they can't self-actualize and leave the island.

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Which of the following best describes the way in which Jack and his followers try to prevent the boys from achieving self-actualization in Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs?

The Bystander Effect
The Bystander Effect is a theory that people won't come to the aid of another person if there are others present. Bibb Latane and John Darley made this concept popular in 1964. There are several explanations for this. Many believe that people look to the behaviors of others and behave in that manner.
To tie this in with other theories, we can look to the previous theory by Sigmund Freud; the ego wins out in the moral dilemma. The person may feel that he or she does not have a good standing in society and that taking action in this situation would impact his or her safety. Think of the television show, What Would You Do? The producers of the show set up situations where an injustice is happening and see if someone steps in to help the victim. The people that do step in would be the opposite of someone adhering to the Bystander Effect.
So where do we see the Bystander Effect in Lord of the Flies? We see it many times, but for the purpose of this short lesson, let's focus on Piggy's death and the pursuit of Ralph. After Roger has pushed a boulder on Piggy, it's seen as a warning to the others and they start to attack Ralph. The twins, Sam and Eric, have been protected by Ralph throughout the novel. It's here that we see the Bystander Effect: ''The twins lay hidden behind the tribe and the anonymous devils' faces swarmed across the neck.'' The twins don't speak up and tell Jack that he is wrong, which illustrates the Bystander Effect being at work. Instead, they hide and watch the events occurring. One can see how this can be a dangerous psychological phenomenon.

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Which of the following best describes the Bystander Effect as it is depicted in Lord of the Flies?

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What does the Bystander Effect theory propose about why people may not come to the aid of another person in the presence of others? How is this theory exemplified in the novel Lord of the Flies through the actions of Sam and Eric and their failure to intervene in the pursuit and potential harm of Ralph by Jack and his followers?

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