Analysis of The Portrayal of The Major Characters in Robert Michael Ballantyne's 'The Coral Island' and William Golding's 'Lord of The Flies'.

(1)

ii

Maranatha Christian University

ABSTRACT

Tugas Akhir ini membahas penokohan novel yang berjudul The Coral

Island karya Robert Michael Ballantyne dan Lord of the Flies karya William

Golding. Saya memilih kedua novel ini karena keduanya mengangkat topik seputar human nature: apakah manusia terlahir baik atau jahat.

The Coral Island dan Lord of the Flies sama-sama menceritakan tentang

beberapa orang anak yang terdampar di sebuah pulau tidak berpenghuni setelah mengalami kecelakaan. Mereka mencoba untuk bertahan hidup dengan melewati berbagai rintangan. Pandangan kedua pengarang mengenai human nature dituangkan dengan jelas melalui karakteristik yang terdapat pada tiap-tiap tokoh utama dalam kedua novel tersebut. Ballantyne berpendapat bahwa pada dasarnya manusia itu tidak jahat sehingga ia menggambarkan para tokoh sebagai anak-anak yang baik, rela berkorban, dan tidak memiliki kejahatan dalam diri mereka, sedangkan Golding beranggapan sebaliknya dan para tokoh digambarkan sebagai anak-anak yang jahat, kejam, dan liar. Dengan membaca kedua novel tersebut pembaca diajak untuk berpikir lebih luas mengenai pandangan penulis terhadap

(2)

i

APPENDICES

Summary of The Coral Island

The Coral island is a story about three young boys, Ralph Rover, Jack

Martin, and Peterkin Gay. They are friends and the sole survivors of a shipwreck on the coral reef of an uninhabited Polynesian island. It is possible for them to live on this island as it has plenty of fruit, fish, and wild pigs. During their time on the island, they happen to meet people on three different occasions.

The first occasion is several months after the boys come ashore. They observe two large canoes which land on the beach and see two groups of people fighting. The boys decide to help and defeat the attacking party, earning the gratitude of the chief, Taroro. Then, the Polynesians leave the island.

The second one is when pirates come to the island. Ralph is taken prisoner, while Jack and Peterkin hide in the cave. On his journey, he becomes friends with one of the pirates, named Bloody Bill. On one occasion there is a conflict between the pirates and the inhabitants. Ralph successfully escapes and sails back to the Coral Island, where his friends are waiting.

(4)

37

Christianity. They come to this island to rescue Avatea. They manage to rescue her, but the boys are taken prisoners. A month later, the arrival of another missionary sets them free. The missionary then manages to convert the rest of the inhabitants to Christianity. After these three occurrences, they set sail for home with many valuable experiences.

Summary of Lord of the Flies

Lord of the Flies is a story about a group of British boys whose plane

crashes on a deserted island in the Pacific Ocean during a war. The boys are scattered at first, but finally they are able to assemble, and then they decide that they should govern themselves. They have an election and Ralph, one of the older boys, becomes “chief”. Jack, another older boy, is jealous of Ralph’s power and starts to hate him.

Later on, a dead man attached to a parachute is blown to the island, causing chaos between the boys. They mistake him for a beast. Only a boy named Simon doubts the identity of the so-called beast, and he then separates himself from the group.

As times goes on, Jack, who has different ideals, decides to separate from Ralph and invites other boys to go with him. In the end, they split into two groups: Jack and his followers; and Ralph, only with Piggy, his loyal friend.

(5)

38

the others about it, Simon is brutally killed by Jack and his group, being mistaken as the beast.

Later on, when Ralph and Piggy want to talk calmly to Jack and his group, who have turned into savages, Roger, one of Jack’s boys, pushes a huge boulder off a cliff and kills Piggy. Knowing this fact, Ralph runs for his life. The day after, Jack’s party begins to hunt for Ralph. Being hunted, Ralph runs to the shore and he stumbles across an officer of the British Navy there. In this way, the boys are eventually rescued.

Biography of Robert Michael Ballantyne

Robert Michael Ballantyne was born in Edinburgh, on April 24, 1825. His father, Alexander Ballantyne, was brother and junior partner of John and James Ballantyne, the printers of Sir Walter Scott’s works. His mother was Anne Randall Scott Grant. Ballantyne attended the Edinburgh Academy for some time before his father apprenticed him as a clerk in 1841 because of a financial crisis.

Ballantyne began writing when he was at Seven Islands for a few months in 1846. Several years later, the manuscript was printed. In 1848, Hudson’s Bay;

or Life in the Wilds of North America was published by Blackwoods. It was a

great success and the press praised it.

The Young Fur-Traders was the first storybook of Ballantyne and was

(6)

39

In 1866 Ballantyne married Miss Jack Dickson Grant, daughter of the minister of the parish of Cavers, Roxburghshire. He had three sons and three daughters. Ballantyne continued to live in Edinburgh until 1873 and settled down at Harrow-on-the-hill in 1878, where he remained until the end of his life. He died in Rome on February 8, 1894 and was buried in the English cemetery in Rome. Source: “BALLANTYNE, ROBERT MICHAEL”

Biography of William Gerald Golding

William Gerald Golding was born in Cornwall, England, on September 19, 1911. His father was Alec, and his mother’s name was Mildred (Curnoe). Golding went to Brasenose College at Oxford University in 1930. In 1934, he published his first work, a book of poetry entitled Poems. A year later, he graduated from Oxford with a Bachelor of Arts in English and a Diploma in Education.

From 1935 to 1939, Golding worked as a writer, actor, and producer with a small theater in London. In 1939, Golding began teaching English and philosophy at Bishop Wordsworth’s School in Salisbury. Golding married Ann Brookfield and they had two children, David and Judith.

Golding joined the Royal Navy and fought in World War II. He spent six years in the Navy. In 1945, the world war ended and Golding went back to teaching and writing until 1961.

Golding was best known for his work Lord of the Flies, which was published in 1954. His other works were, among others, The Inheritors (1955),

Pincher Martin (1956), Free Fall (1959), and The Spire (1964). In 1955 Golding

(7)

40

was awarded the 1983 Nobel Prize for Literature. Golding was mainly a novelist, but his works also include poetry, plays, essays, and short stories.

Golding spent the last few years of his life living with his wife at their house near Cornwall and died on June 19, 1993 because of a heart attack.

(8)

1

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

Background of the Study

According to Merriam-Webster Dictionary, human nature means “the nature of humans; especially the fundamental disposition and traits of humans” (“Human Nature”). There are many opinions regarding human nature and society, about whether it is good or evil and how society affects it. “For thousands of years, philosophers have debated whether we have a basically good nature that is corrupted by society, or a basically bad nature that is kept in check by society” (Stafford).There is one neutral view about human nature.

Human nature is not one thing, neither ‘good nor ‘bad’ overall. People in general have been genetically endowed by evolution with a wide variety of tendencies and capacities that respond to – but are not necessarily

(9)

2

Maranatha Christian University individual and cultural behaviors, providing evidence to defend virtually any assertions about ‘human nature’. (Atlee)

Robert Michael Ballantyne and William Gerard Golding are two writers who discuss human nature through the novels they wrote. The novels which represent their different perspectives regarding human nature are Ballantyne’s The Coral

Island and Golding’s Lord of the Flies, which I have chosen to analyse.

To show the basic human nature, Ballantyne and Golding wrote their books in typical Robinsonade. Robinsonade is “a fictitious narrative of often fantastic adventures in real or imaginary distant places; especially a story of the adventures of a person marooned on a desert island” (“Robinsonade”). The term Robinsonade was made after the success of Daniel Defoe’s novel, Robinson

Crusoe, published in 1719. Any novel written in imitation of it that deals with the

problem of the castaway’s survival on a desert island is included as Robinsonade (“Robinsonade”). Robinsonade book is “moderately common in literary criticism as a description of works in which a hero is snatched without warning from the comforts of civilisation and must attempt to survive in difficult circumstances through his wits and personal qualities” (Quinion). I believe the reason Ballantyne and Golding use this genre is to show the readers the basic human nature according to their perspective because the basic nature of human will shows up once they no longer bound by society.

(10)

3

Island is what most people remember him about, and this book has not been out of

print since it was first published in 1857. It was adapted into children’s television drama in the years of 1980 and 2000. The story is about three British teenagers who are drifted ashore after a shipwreck and they keep sticking together to make sure they survive. As the story continues, the teenagers experience many things, from intervening in a battle between the natives to being kidnapped by the natives. In the end, all of the experiences make their bond stronger and they become more mature when they go back home.

Sir William Gerald Golding CBE, known as William Golding, is a 20th century British writer and he has a great influence on the world of literature. Lord

of the Flies, which is written as the counterpart of Ballantyne’s The Coral Island,

is considered his greatest work; he received many awards and recognition in the world of literature for this work. He was awarded the Booker Prize in 1980 and was given a Nobel Prize in Literature in 1983. Aside from his literary awards, Golding also received many other awards, such as the CBE (Commander of the British Empire) in 1966 and being knighted by The Queen in 1988. His Lord of

the Flies was so popular that it was made into films twice, one directed by Peter

Brook in 1963 and the other by Harry Hook in 1990. William Golding’s Lord of

the Flies tells about a group of British boys stranded on an island during a war. As

the boys experience many incidents on the island they gradually lose their morality and most of them begin to act like savage men.

The Coral Island and Lord of the Flies are clearly seen as novels which

(11)

4

Maranatha Christian University tempts once innocent people” (“Lord of The Flies Themes: Human Nature, Society, Fear”). In Lord of the Flies, “Golding suggests that civilization can alleviate but never eradicate the innate evil that dwells in mankind. Under the proper circumstances, the innate evil can come out and transform the person into a brand new individual. This is how savagery lies within each boy, representing the evil that lives inside humanity” (Pomoni).

The two authors have different perspectives regarding human nature and they show them through the characters in each book. Thus, I would like to analyze the portrayal of the major characters. According to Oxford Advanced Learner’s

Dictionary, portrayal is “the act of showing or describing somebody/something in

a picture, play, book, etc” (“Portrayal”).

Statement of the Problem

The problems that I am going to discuss are:

1. How are the major characters portrayed in The Coral Island and Lord of

the Flies?

2. What are the authors’ purposes in creating such characters?

Purpose of the Study

Based on the above problems, the purposes of this study are:

1. To show how the major characters are portrayed in The Coral Island and

Lord of the Flies.

(12)

5

Method of Research

The method of research that I use is library research. I begin the research by reading R.M. Ballantyne’s The Coral Island and William Golding’s Lord of

the Flies. After this, I analyze each primary text by using some information and

materials from the Internet that can support my analysis and can help me write a good thesis. Lastly, I draw some conclusions based on what has been discussed.

Organization of the Thesis

This thesis consists of four chapters, preceded by the Acknowledgements, the Table of Contents and the Abstract. Chapter One is the Introduction, which consists of the Background of the Study, the Statement of the Problem, the Purpose of the Study, the Method of Research, and the Organization of the Thesis. In Chapter Two, I analyze the portrayal of the major characters in Ballantyne’s

The Coral Island in accordance with the purpose of the author. In Chapter Three, I

(13)

29

CHAPTER FOUR

CONCLUSION

After analyzing Ballantyne’s The Coral Island and Golding’s Lord of the

Flies I conclude that both authors share quite similar ideas for their novels. They

have some similarities and differences. The first similarity is that Ballantyne and Golding use children as their characters. They believe that children are still pure and innocent at heart and can be a good example to show the true nature of human. The second one is the situation of the boys who are stranded on an uninhabited island. The boys are just by themselves on a deserted island without the presence of adults. And the most important similarity is the purpose of the two novels as a means to show the respective authors’ perspectives on human nature.

Though the author in the two novels use children as the characters, their characteristics are very different. Both Jacks are leaders, but Jack in Lord of the

Flies experiences humanity degeneration as the story continues, which is also

(14)

30

Maranatha Christian University they go back to England, and the bonds between them are very strong. The ending of Ballantyne’s novel is a good and happy one, but Golding’s ending is more serious. The perspective of human nature by both authors is also different. Ballantyne believes that humans are born good at heart, and evil is just an external force that tempts innocent people; on the other hand, Golding believes that every human has evil inside them. Golding once says, "Look out, the evil is in us all" (Lambert).

(15)

31

Maranatha Christian University prudent, humane, and bold. He is good at heart, and the only thing that makes him furious is the influence from an outer source, in this case, Taroro. Another character is Ralph. Ralph is described as true. He is true to his friends, Jack and Peterkin. Even in a dangerous situation that can cost his life he chooses to be true to them, just like when he is being threatened by the pirates to tell his comrade’s location. In Lord of the Flies, Golding makes the characters show many negative traits compared to The Coral Island. I agree with the article titled “Perceptiveness on Civilization and Savagery of Human Nature Reflected from William Golding’s

Lord of the Flies” that the reason is because “The time gap between the two books

is about 100 years, but the numerous disasters and crises the Western society had undergone made the story of Coral Island shallow and hypocritical, sensitive intellectuals were thrown into deep disillusionment, and Golding was one of them.” In the novel, Jack and Ralph are standing against each other. Jack is cruel, proud, and violent. He likes to bully Piggy, is not happy if people criticize him, then he turns violent and eventually kills his friend. Ralph, though he is organized and responsible, also has a violent side. He wants everything in order and does his job properly, but the other part of him is also happy to live a violent life. It is proven when he excitedly takes part in the ‘game’ that ends up taking his friend’s life.

(16)

32

Maranatha Christian University Being friends with the savages and seeing them live that way, children are more likely going to adapt themselves to the same way and end up like the savages. Yet, in this novel, things are going smoothly and the entire adventure mostly gives them positive experiences. Lord of the Flies, though darker, is more realistic. The same situation happens to the children, but with the addition that they are in the middle of a war. It is highly possible for some children to turn violent when they are confronted with such a situation. The survival of the fittest contest applies. In the deserted island just by themselves, they need to adjust quickly to stay alive. Without parents who feed them, they must eat any resources available. If the children live under such circumstances for quite a long time, then it would not be strange if they become violent as they need to do anything to survive.

(17)

33

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Primary Texts

Ballantyne, Robert Michael. The Coral Island. London: Puffin Classics, 1994. Print.

Golding, William. Lord of the Flies. London: Cox&Wyman Ltd., 1987. Print.

References

Atlee, Tom. "Does Evolution Say We Are Basically Good or Basically Bad?" Evolutionary Life. N.p., n.d. Web. 8 Dec. 2013.

“Bold.” Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary. 8th ed. 2010. Print.

Burris, Skylar Hamilton. “’What makes things break up like they do?’ Alternatives Explanations For the Societal Breakdown in William Golding’s Lord of the Flies”. Lord of the Flies Literary Criticism. N.p., n.d. Web. 27 Apr. 2014.

“Cruel.” Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary. Merriam-Webster Online, 2013. Web. 20 Oct. 2013.

(18)

34

Maranatha Christian University "Human Nature." Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary. Merriam-Webster Online,

2013. Web. 1 May 2013.

“Imprudent.” Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary. 8th ed. 2010. Print.

Lambert, Bruce. "William Golding Is Dead at 81; The Author of 'Lord of the Flies'." New York Times. The New York Times Company, 20 June 1993. Web. 27 Oct. 2013.

“Lord Of The Flies Themes: Human Nature, Society, Fear.” Lord Of The Flies

Themes: Human Nature, Society, Fear. N.p., n.d. Web. 1 May 2013.

“Loyal.” Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary. 8th ed. 2010. Print.

“Organized.” Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary. Merriam-Webster Online, 2013. Web. 20 Oct. 2013.

Peel, Bruce. "BALLANTYNE, ROBERT MICHAEL." Biography – BALLANTYNE, ROBERT MICHAEL – Volume XII (1891-1900) –

Dictionary of Canadian Biography. University of Toronto/Université

Laval, 1990. Web. 14 July 2014.

"Perceptiveness on Civilization and Savagery of Human Nature Reflected from William Golding's Lord of the Flies" WriteWork.com. WriteWork.com, 18 August, 2005. Web. 9 May. 2014.

Pomoni, Christina. "Literary Analysis: How Is William Golding's Lord of the Flies an Allegory."Yahoo Voices. Yahoo Inc., 31 Mar. 2010. Web. 27 Oct. 2013.

“Portrayal.” Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary. 8th ed. 2010. Print.

(19)

35

Maranatha Christian University "Prudent." Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary. 8th ed. 2010. Print.

Quinion, Michael. "Robinsonade." World Wide Words. Michael Quinion, 24 Feb. 2007. Web. 21 Sep. 2013.

“Religious.” Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary. 8th ed. 2010. Print.

“Responsible.” Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary. Merriam-Webster Online, 2013. Web. 20 Oct. 2013.

"Robinsonade." Global.britannica.com. Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., n.d. Web. 28 Sep. 2013.

“Robinsonade.” Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary. Merriam-Webster Online, 2013. Web. 9 Jun. 2013.

Ross, Jeremy. A. Kimball, December 8, 2006, and A. Kissel, ed. "Lord of the Flies Background". GradeSaver, 18 August 2007 Web. 9 May 2014. "Sir William Golding." The Biography Channel website. 2013. Web. 15 Apr.

2013.

Stafford, Tom. “Are We Naturally Good or Bad?” BBC. BBC, 14 Jan. 2013. Web. 8 Dec. 2013.