Fear is a prominent theme in William Golding’s “Lord of the Flies.”
Fear drives the actions of the boys stranded on the island and manifests itself in their daily struggles.
Golding states this fear is not of the unknown or external threats but of the inherent darkness within each human being.
It symbolizes the dangerous repercussions of surrendering to irrational fear and the inherent evil that can surface when societal norms and controls are stripped away.
Lord of the Flies Quotes With Page Numbers
Lord of the Flies Fear Quotes With Page Numbers
“Ralph laughed, and the other boys laughed with him. The small boy twisted further into himself.
“Tell us about the snake-thing.”
“Now he says it was a beastie.”
“Beastie?”
“A snake-thing. Ever so big. He saw it.”
“Where?’
“In the woods.”
[…]
“He says the beastie came in the dark.
“Then he couldn’t see it!”
~William Golding, Lord of the Flies, about fear, (Ralph and a little boy), Chapter 2, Pages 35, 36
The boys looked at each other fearfully, unbelieving.
“―where is he now?”
Ralph muttered the reply as if in shame. “Perhaps he went back to the, the―” Beneath them, on the unfriendly side of the mountain, the drum-roll continued.”
~William Golding, Lord of the Flies, about fear (The narrator and Ralph), Chapter 2, Page 47
“You’ve noticed, haven’t you?”
Jack put down his spear and squatted.
“Noticed what?”
“Well. They’re frightened.”
“He rolled over and peered into Jack’s fierce, dirty face.
“I mean the way things are. They dream. You can hear ’em. Have you been awake at night?” Jack shook his head.
“They talk and scream. The littluns. Even some of the others. As if—”
“As if it wasn’t a good island.”
Astonished at the interruption, they looked up at Simon’s serious face.
“As if,” said Simon, “the beastie, the beastie or the snake-thing, was real. Remember?”
~William Golding, Lord of the Flies, about fear (Jack, Ralph, and Simon), Chapter 3, Page 52
“We’ve got to talk about this fear and decide there’s nothing in it.”
~William Golding, Lord of the Flies, about fear (Ralph), Chapter 5, Page 82
“He moved the conch gently, looking beyond them at nothing, remembering the beastie, the snake, the fire, the talk of fear.”
~William Golding, Lord of the Flies, about fear (The Narrator), Chapter 5, Page 82
“So this is a meeting to find out what’s what. I’ll tell you what’s what. You littluns started all this, with the fear talk. Beasts! Where from? Of course we’re frightened sometimes but we put up with being frightened. Only Ralph says you scream in the night. What does that mean but nightmares? Anyway, you don’t hunt or build or help―you’re a lot of crybabies and sissies. That’s what. And as for the fear―you’ll have to put up with that like the rest of us.”
~William Golding, Lord of the Flies, about fear (Jack), Chapter 5, Page 82
“…fear can’t hurt you any more than a dream. There aren’t any beasts to be afraid of on this island.” He looked along the row of whispering littluns. “Serve you right if something did get you, you useless lot of cry babies! But there is no animal―”
~William Golding, Lord of the Flies, about fear (Jack), Chapter 5, Pages 82, 83
“I’ve got the conch. I’m not talking about the fear. I’m talking about the beast. Be frightened if you like. But as for the beast―”
~William Golding, Lord of the Flies, about fear (Jack), Chapter 5, Page 83
“Life,” said Piggy expansively, “is is scientific, that’s what it is. In a year or two when the war is over they’ll be traveling to Mars and back. I know there isn’t no beast—not with claws and all that I mean—but I know there isn’t no fear either.”
Piggy paused.
“Unless we get frightened of people.”
~William Golding, Lord of the Flies, about fear (Piggy), Chapter 5, Page 84
“The derisive laughter that rose had fear in it and condemnation. Simon opened his mouth to speak but Ralph had the conch, so he backed to his seat.”
~William Golding, Lord of the Flies, about fear (The Narrator), Chapter 5, Page 86
“Maybe there is a beast… maybe it’s only us.”
~William Golding, Lord of the Flies, about fear (Simon), Chapter 5, Page 89
“It was furry. There was something moving behind its head—wings. The beast moved too—”
“That was awful. It kind of sat up—”
“The fire was bright―”
“We’d just made it up―”
“There were eyes—”
“Teeth—”
“Claws—”
“We ran as fast as we could—”
~William Golding, Lord of the Flies, about fear (Sam), Chapter 6, Page 100
“Ralph pointed fearfully at Eric’s face, which was striped with scars where the bushes had torn him.
“How did you do that?”
Eric felt his face.
“I’m all rough. Am I bleeding?”
The circle of boys shrank away in horror. Johnny, yawning still, burst into noisy tears and was slapped by Bill till he choked on them. The bright morning was full of threats and the circle began to change. It faced out, rather than in, and the spears of sharpened wood were like a fence. Jack called them back to the center.”
~William Golding, Lord of the Flies, about fear (Ralph, Eric, Bill, and Johnny), Chapter 6, Page 100
“Simon, walking in front of Ralph, felt a flicker of incredulity—a beast with claws that scratched, that sat on a mountain-top, that left no tracks and yet was not fast enough to catch Samneric. However Simon thought of the beast, there rose before his inward sight the picture of a human, at once heroic and sick. ”
~William Golding, Lord of the Flies, about fear (The Narrator about Simon), Chapter 6, Page 103
“They set off again, the hunters bunched a little by fear of the mentioned beast, while Jack quested ahead.”
~William Golding, Lord of the Flies, about fear (The Narrator), Chapter 7, Page 112
“Someone’s got to go across the island and tell Piggy we’ll be back after dark.”
Bill spoke, unbelieving.
“Through the forest by himself? Now?”
“We can’t spare more than one.”
Simon pushed his way to Ralph’s elbow.”
“I’ll go if you like. I don’t mind, honestly.”
~William Golding, Lord of the Flies, about fear (Bill and Simon), Chapter 7, Page 117
“Ralph heard the mockery and hated Jack. The sting of ashes in his eyes, tiredness, fear, enraged him.
“Go on then! We’ll wait here.”
There was silence.
“Why don’t you go? Are you frightened?” A stain in the darkness, a stain that was Jack, detached itself and began to draw away.
~William Golding, Lord of the Flies, about fear (Ralph and Jack), Chapter 7, Page 121
“In front of them, only three or four yards away, was a rock-like hump where no rock should be. Ralph could hear a tiny chattering noise coming from somewhere—perhaps his own mouth. He bound himself together with his will, fused his fear and loathing into a hatred, and stood up. He took two leaden steps forward.”
~William Golding, Lord of the Flies, about fear (The Narrator), Chapter 7, Page 123
“This head is for the beast. It’s a gift.”
The silence accepted the gift and awed them. The head remained there, dim-eyed, grinning faintly, blood blackening between the teeth. All at once they were running away, as fast as they could, through the forest toward the open beach. ”
~William Golding, Lord of the Flies, about fear (Jack), Chapter 8, Page 137
“I expect the beast disguised himself.”
“Perhaps […]. We’d better keep on the right side of him, anyhow. You can’t tell what he might do.”
The tribe considered this; and then were shaken, as if by a flow of wind. The chief saw the effect of his words and stood abruptly.”
~William Golding, Lord of the Flies, about fear (Jack), Chapter 10, Page 161
“From the darkness of the further end of the shelter came a dreadful moaning and they shattered the leaves in their fear.”
~William Golding, Lord of the Flies, about fear (The Narrator), Chapter 10, Page 165
“The skull regarded Ralph like one who knows all the answers and won’t tell. A sick fear and rage swept him. Fiercely he hit out at the filthy thing in front of him that bobbed like a toy and came back, still grinning into his face, so that he lashed and cried out in loathing. Then he was licking his bruised knuckles and looking at the bare stick, while the skull lay in two pieces, its grin now six feet across. He wrenched the quivering stick from the crack and held it as a spear between him and the white pieces. Then he backed away, keeping his face to the skull that lay grinning at the sky.”
~William Golding, Lord of the Flies, about fear (The Narrator), Chapter 12, Page 185
“They were savages it was true; but they were human, and the ambushing fears of the deep night were coming on.”
~William Golding, Lord of the Flies, about fear (The Narrator), Chapter 12, Page 185-86
“He could not bring himself to be specific at first; but then fear and loneliness goaded him.”
~William Golding, Lord of the Flies, about fear (The Narrator about Ralph), Chapter 12, Page 189
“There was a shout from beyond the thicket and then Ralph was running with the swiftness of fear through the undergrowth.”
~William Golding, Lord of the Flies, about fear (The Narrator), Chapter 12, Page 195
“He forgot his wounds, his hunger and thirst, and became fear; hopeless fear on flying feet, rushing through the forest toward the open beach.”
~William Golding, Lord of the Flies, about fear (The Narrator), Chapter 12, Page 200
How does Jack use fear to control his tribe?
Jack uses fear as a manipulation tool to control his tribe by spreading terror among the boys, making it governable, an act that insinuates his cunning yet tyrant leadership style. He’s also known to lie to his tribe or use physical punishment, such as when he beats Wilfred to maintain control.
This fear-mongering approach coerces the inhabitants to stay with Jack, not out of their free will, but for their own lives.
What is the fear of the beast in Lord of the Flies?
The fear of the beast in “Lord of the Flies” reflects the boys’ fear of the unknown and the inherent darkness within each of them. As suggested by Simon in Chapter 3, their fear is not unfounded but rather self-generated, rooted in their inherent evil.
Ralph’s question in Chapter 5 encapsulates their collective anxiety and uncertainty regarding a potential threat, whether it be a ghost, a beast, or their inherent darkness.
Sources
- researchedworks.com/lord-of-the-flies-quotes
- majortests.com/essay/Jack-In-Lord-Of-The-Flies-Quotes
- literarydevices.net/lord-of-the-flies-quotes/
- classicliterature.fandom.com/wiki/Sam_and_Eric
- cliffsnotes.com/literature/l/lord-of-the-flies/critical-essays/concept-identity-and-manifestations-of-the-beast
- hero.fandom.com/wiki/Ralph_(Lord_of_the_Flies)
- villains.fandom.com/wiki/Jack_Merridew