ShmoopTube

Where Monty Python meets your 10th grade teacher.

Search Thousands of Shmoop Videos


Fear Videos 20 videos

A Separate Peace
27818 Views

Have you ever pretended to be super happy for your BFF when they win an award when, really, you just wanted to rip it out of their undeserving, ung...

Atlas Shrugged
2485 Views

Ayn (rhymes with "mine," ironically enough) Rand penned this cult classic over 50 years ago, but it still resonates with today's audiences. Our que...

Catch-22
11167 Views

This video discusses the major ideas of the satirical American war novel Catch-22 by Joseph Heller. The horror of war meets…absurdity and humor?...

See All

Lord of the Flies 103799 Views


Share It!


Description:

Are humans civilized, or are we just savages waiting to come out? William Golding's novel Lord of the Flies tackles that question.

Language:
English Language

Transcript

00:07

Lord Of The Flies, a la Shmoop. Watch for falling rocks.

00:13

Gather your comrades round, for the devil is inside each and every one of us.

00:19

Or is it? Just as the boys struggled to find out whether

00:23

they were 'civilized' or 'savage'...

00:25

...do we still struggle with the same question? We can be 'savages.' That's for sure.

00:37

We can still exhibit the same Jack-like bloodlust and betrayal.

00:43

Just like in the book, when the 'savages' betray one another and kill for the first

00:47

time. Isn't it human nature?

00:52

Aren't we just being competitive? It's a jungle out there...be it real or the

01:01

working world. It's survival of the fittest.

01:08

On the other hand, we can be 'civilized', too. Right?

01:14

Just like Ralph's side, we debate... ...we discuss...

01:18

...and we can usually get along without killing each other.

01:21

Unless it's over the remote control. So are we 'savages' or are we 'civilized'?

01:31

Maybe a little of both. We learn that leaning too far toward either

01:37

extreme... ...can be polarizing and divisive.

01:43

There's often a choice to be made. Sometimes it's not as black and white as it

01:48

seems. The savage side resides in all of us.

01:55

But, then again, so does the civilized side. We still need to make the decision though:

02:05

Which side wins out... ...and when?

02:17

Shmoop Amongst Yourselves.

Related Videos

Utopias Becoming Dystopias
29768 Views

This video defines utopias and dystopias, and investigates how a utopia might become a dystopia. Can a seemingly perfect world actually be a dystop...

The Importance of Being Earnest Summary
123038 Views

They say that honesty is the best policy, but Jack lies about his identity and still gets the girl. Does that mean we should all lie to get what we...

The Giver Summary
105893 Views

Ever wish you could remember everything that you ever studied? How about everything that everyone has ever studied? Yeah, pretty sure our brains ju...

Invisible Man (Ellison)
1818 Views

Ralph Ellison's Invisible Man is an American classic. Hope you're not expecting any exciting shower scenes though. It's not that kind of book.

Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night
1256 Views

Do not go gentle into that good night. In fact, if it's past your curfew, don't go at all into that good night. You just stay in your good bed and...