The Evolution of Children and Greed

Jessica Guarino

English 2

April 6, 2016

The Evolution of Children

Children disobeying their parents is normal until a certain age, but let’s just say that the average age is about 5-6 years. During this period in their lives, children tend to be very irrational and they lack the knowledge to think before the speak or do. Children often act more savage than adults because they lack authoritative figures.

In the book Lord of the Flies by William Golding, Jack, the leader of the choir boys, and his tribe come to Ralph’s, the leader of the other group of boys, camp, and they start attacking the shelter. Piggy is convinced that they are there to take the conch, but instead they were there to take Piggy’s broken glasses. Ralph, Piggy, Sam and Eric try and start the fire again, but without the broken glasses, they are unable to ignite the fire. Ralph calls an assembly of his tribe and together they come up with a plan of how they were going to get Piggy’s glasses back. At this point in time, the most important thing that is needed is the fire. With that Ralph, Sam and Eric recommend charging to Castle Rock to retrieve Piggy’s glasses. As the boys arrive at the beach, Ralph blows the conch, which attracts the attention of Jack and his tribe. Ralph and Jack argue, which then turns into a full-fledged fight to the point where spears were being thrown. “Then the sea breathed again in a long, slow sigh, the water boiled white and pink over the rock; and when it went, sucking back again, the body of Piggy was gone. This time the silence was complete. Ralph’s lips formed a word but no sound came. Suddenly Jack bounded out from the tribe and began screaming wildly. ‘See? See? That’s what you’ll get! I meant that! There isn’t a tribe for you anymore! The conch is gone-’” (Pg. 181) From the beginning of the book to now, Jack has definitely changed and become more aggressive and savage towards his tribe mates and just the other choir boys in general. For the fact that he thinks he should be the chief, he will do whatever it takes to regain the control of the choir boys.

A few weeks ago, there were high school students, teens in general, hanging around 15th street after school. Police had found out the reason why the teens were hanging around was because The Gallery, which is a mall, was closed for renovations and was the top hangout spot for high school students. There were gatherings of 600 kids one day, which had been caused by the good weather. According to billypenn.com, officers had set up cameras around 15th street and Market and Chestnut streets to observe the situation. Officers report that they have seen the violence, vandalism and even robberies. They can even get very detailed descriptions of the kids clothing because of the school uniform and the school administrators. This connects back to the book because they are both example of how children, in this case teens, can be more savage than adults. Children aren’t really given a born responsibility, which is where the want tends to come into play. Age is definitely a big factor in these examples and also how they grew up in society. Without proper authority, violence, vandalism and robberies are what the children are led to do, like they did at 15th and Market. The way that society is, with all this violence, is shaping the children of today’s society to act this way, especially at younger ages.

Most of the articles on the subject of this event were written from the point of view from adults, but this article really embodied the view of the adults. According to phillyvoice.com, “SEPTA Police Chief Thomas Nestel, who was in Center City on Wednesday, said on Twitter the city’s youths were ‘off the hook subsequently clarifying that a small number were ‘out of control’ and making other young people look bad. ‘As with everything, a small group makes everyone look bad. Kids enjoying the weather downtown smeared by the behavior of the few,’” said Chief Nestel on Twitter. The adults have perspective of a small group, which can supposedly affect a larger group because of their thoughts on the fact that the small group can represent the larger group.

Piggy is slowly being washed away by the sea, as it continues to roll in and out. Ralph, Sam and Eric are shocked by the situation that just happened before their eyes, while Jack, on the other hand, has a different reaction. He uses the current situation to regain his role as leader, this time of both of the tribes, which he thinks that he should have from the beginning. “‘I’m chief!’ Viciously, with full intention, he hurled his spear at Ralph. The point tore the skin and flesh over Ralph’s ribs, then sheared off and fell in the water. Ralph stumbled, feeling not pain but panic, and the tribe, screaming now like the chief, began to advance. Another spear, a bent one that would not fly straight, went past his face and one fell from on high where Roger was. The twins lay hidden behind the tribe and the anonymous devil’s faces swarmed across the neck. Ralph turned and ran. A great noise as of seagulls rose behind him.” (Pg. 181) This quote demonstrates Jack evolution into a more corrupt being than he started off as. Kids often have a natural tendency to want things, especially at young ages. As they get older, that want turns into greed, which has a greater effect on them and society. Now, society is filled with greed because of that want people had when they were children. If children are raised with having no control over that want, they can end up with having that greed in the adult lives.

Conclusion: Even though adults are usually the ones that are greedy, children can be just as greedy as the adults in society. If the children of today’s society are brought up in such a way that when they get older, they become part of violence, vandalism and robberies, they will continue that way of life in their later years. Children natural tendency to want things at a young age can affect their greed for power and other things in their adult years. Without authoritative figures in the young children’s lives of today’s society, they will eventually grow into having savage lives.