Lord Of The Flies And The Withered

Arm Comparison Essay, Research Paper

I have chosen ?The Lord of the Flies? and

?The Withered Arm? because they are similar even though they were written

in different time periods. Lord of the Flies was written in the 20th century

and the Withered arm was written in the 19th century.

Lord of the flies by William Golding

The title signifies Death, devil (Beelzebub).

The Withered arm by Thomas Hardy

The title signifies decay or decline.

Settings:

The withered arm is set in the 19th century

on a farm. This is in Anglebury .The story starts of on Mr Lodges farm

and finishes on the farm. Gertrude lodge lives in a mud built cottage.

The lord of the flies is set on a fictitious

remote island in the 20th century. The story starts of in the jungle. They

later move onto the beaches. They then move to other locations on the island

such as the fort and the mountain.

Differences and similarities between settings

Both of the settings are isolated. Lord

of the Flies, is on an island so they cant get off but in the Withered

Arm there is not much transport so wherever you went you would have to

walk or get a horse.

The settings are different because they

are set in different periods.

Themes:

Lord of the flies:

Good and evil, good and evil is a fairly

large theme in the story. Early in the novel good is represented by the

conch this is a symbol of decency and order. The two tribes Represent good

and evil in the best way. However, there are other things such as the beast

and the ship. The beast frightens them because they think it is an evil

sign. The ship is a good sign but they do not manage to flag it down, because

Jack had not looked after the fire. This springs an almost air of hatred

between Ralph and Jack.

Law and order, plays a big role in the

story. It comes into play at the very beginning with the conch. Ralph and

Piggy find the shell and Ralph blows it, this draws all the children onto

the beech. The conch later becomes an element of law and order, because

the boys are only aloud to talk during meetings if they have the conch.

Fear, fear is probably the biggest theme

in the story there is a big list of elements of fear such as the fear of

the beast, the isolation of the island, the war outside of the island,

the fear of not being rescued, the fear of Jacks group (savages) and the

fear of fear itself.

The Withered arm:

The withered arm shares the same themes

of the lord of the flies Good and evil, this is symbolised when Gertrude

lodge turns up to Rhoda brook and says about her bad arm. This is in conjunction

to when Rhoda has a dream about Gertrude and her having a bad arm.

Order, order plays an important part in

The Withered Arm, there is order between the social classes. Farmer lodge

will not acknowledge anyone he sees on the road or any place else. He shows

this when the boy is walking past the carriage of Farmer Lodge.

Characters:

Lord of the Flies:

Ralph, he is portrayed as a typical British

boy, he has led a life that illustrates a perfect British boyhood. Ralph?s

father is a commander in the Royal Navy. This may endorse his image of

law and order when he is voted leader. Ralph demonstrates a quiet authority

which the boys appreciate and favour compared to jacks more harsh and aggressive

approach.

He is practical, strong-minded, athletic,

kind and a middle-class boy.

Piggy, his unattractive appearance and

remoteness from the group prevent him from making an involvement to life

on the island. He is the most intelligent boy on the island. He moans a

lot and is put to manual labour by the other boy?s.

He is Intelligent, asthmatic, overweight

and his father is dead.

Jack Merridew, Jack is the character in

the story that you are supposed to despise. He bases his stand on him being

leader by, ?I can sing C sharp?. His key involvement to the survival of

the boys is the fact that he leads the savages (hunters) They provide the

meat by tracking the pigs. The whole experience of the island to Jack,

is one big game. He is leader of the choir, red hair, aggressive and dominant,

arrogant, envious, chief of savages.

Simon, he is described on several occasions

as ?funny?, ?queer?, ?batty? and ?crackers? He is courageous because he

climbed the mountain to face the beast. He has a different insight to all

the going on?s around the island. Simon is the only boy who tries to explain

the notion of evil.

He is courageous, shy, kind, thoughtful,

sensitive, strange, intelligent and observant.

Sam and Eric, these are twins that are

known as one person ?Sam n Eric?. Like many twins, they have their own

private language and finish each others sentences. Sam also brings up another

theme of, good and evil he says ?I got mixed up with myself? meaning he

had good and evil fighting inside him. They act as one person

The boy with the birth mark, throughout

the novel, the minor characters remain unknown, but this minor character

is purposely given a physical characteristic, which makes him memorable.

Consequently, when he is missing after the fire it is obvious that he has

disappeared and the boys are made strongly aware of the consequences of

their actions.

He has a deliberate physical feature so

he can be remembered.

The parachutist, having asked for a sign

from the outside world, the dead airman is what they get. They see him

as a representation of death, decay and decline. He is the boys worst fear

in the form of ?the beast?.

The Withered arm:

Rhoda Brooke, she lives in a cottage with

mud walls, she is working class. She works on Mr Lodges farm as a milkmaid.

Rhoda has a son whose name is not given in the story. Rhoda is very quiet

and keeps herself to herself. She had a love affair with Mr Lodge but it

is over and, no one knows.

Gertrude lodge, Gertrude is Mr Lodges new

lady, she is very pretty ?Her face too fresh in colour, but it was of totally

different quality ? soft and evanescent, like the light under a heap of

rose petals? She is young ?her hair is lightish, and her face as comely

as a live doll?s.

Farmer Lodge, Farmer Lodge is the farther

of Rhoda?s son. He owns the farm that Rhoda works on

Boy is the son of Rhoda he loves his mum

and would do anything for her. Rhoda sends her son out to spy on Farmer

Lodges new lady (Gertrude).