"firstly, have any of you read the book "The Lord of the Flies"? if so, do you know of any GOOD things that come out? or what 'optimistic' views that may be applied to socity?"

The central theme of that book (and the outstanding first movie translation) is inherently pessimistic. that is, that without imposed order, people (especially men) are likely to revert to savage pecking orders. This raises the question of whether or not civilization is better, or simply a bit less murderous. The optimistic view would be that indeed, imposed order and law (as symbolized by the absent adults in the book) are better than anarchy. Think of the final scene ... the boy who is trying to escape the mob that wants to kill him looks up to see a man whom the reader knows will rescue him and the other boys. This is reasonbly interpreted to say that our hopes for being somewhat "better" than wild animals lies in the fact that we are capable of ordering our societies and relying on law to provide guidelines and punishment for violations.

The psychoanalytical/existential interpretation would be more personal. The absent adults symbolize the superego, that aspect of the psyche that knows right from wrong and affects judgement or the assessment of one's actions and responsibility for them. The optimistic view in this light is similar to the social view ... that it's specifically the gift of higher intelligence that potentially makes people better than wild animals. The "catch" is that the individual must make decisions that balance individual desires with the greater social good.

It's just not an inherently optimistic book, but neither is it totally pessimistic. The fact that the themes of this book are relevant to all stages of human history are what make it a classic. It doesn't hurt that it's well-written and has memorable characters, most significantly "Piggy."

Message edited on: 02/03/2005 14:09