The human mind is made up of two instincts that are constantly in conflict: the instinct to live by society's rules and the instinct to live by one's own rules. Our civilized will has been to live morally according to law and order, and our savage will has been to act on our selfish needs. Each of us chooses to live by one or the other depending on what we believe is the correct way to live. In this allegorical novel, William Golding represents the transformation from civilization to savagery in the conflict between two of the main characters: Ralph who represents law and order and Jack who represents savagery and violence. Lord of the Flies has remained a highly controversial novel to this day with its startling, brutal and truthful picture of human nature. Early on, human influence was beginning to impact this uninhabited “Garden of Eden.” Ralph, the charismatic and newly elected leader of the young boys' parliament, is absolutely devoted to civility and morality and is determined to ensure that the boys survive and are saved. At first everyone is excited to live on such a fantastic island, full of flowers, fruit and swimming pools. It is evident that Ralph loves the island when, "... [he] laughed again in delight and stood on his head" (4). However, he had to make sure everyone stayed on task. To stay in touch with civilization, they decide to build shelters, make a Smith 2 "bath", and use coconuts for drinking. At first, Jack, the first altar boy, is excited to create a government that declares, “We'll have rules! Lots of rules!” and he has not yet abandoned the familiarity of civilization to which he was accustomed (25). With a smoke signal, shelter and food collected, the boys should not have any jobs... middle of paper... others around them. Their stark differences in order and violence ended up changing hearts and destroying lives. All the boys realize at the end of Lord of the Flies that they will never be the same now that their innocence is gone and they believe that evil is in the heart of every man. Ralph's vulnerability appears again for the first time in a long time when he "cried for the end of innocence, for the darkness of man's heart, and for the fall in the air of the true and wise friend called Piggy" (182 ). However, he will never be the same after this terrifying and life-changing experience. In the end, the battle between civilization and savagery never has a winner. The conflict between civilization and wilderness is endless; the presence of ferocity will always lurk in all human beings, even when civilization is at its highest point. Works Cited Lord of the Flies