ambiguity of heroes and villains- lord of the flies
...ny discrepancies in the tale, which in most cases are merely products of alternate viewpoints, not of actual lies. An influential man by the name of Niel Bohr (1885 - 1962) once said, "The opposite of a correct statement is a false statement. But the opposite of a profound truth may well be another profound truth." However, through the technical use of repetition, the minor truthful bits that remain constant in each perception of the tale in the film manage to help lead the responder to finding their own belief, and in turn, their own hero. Additionally, the feature forefronts the concern that it has become habitual of civilisation to create heroes and villains for no reason. With the many troubles in contemporary society, members have begun to search for heroes as a source of hope and motivation. Similarly, they distract themselves from their faults with the maliciousness of the demonic villains fashioned. Through the use of dialogue emphasis is placed on this issue, as Serling’s authority says to him "he died in combat, he’s a hero. That’s all they want to know." To create dramatic impact, the director utilised close-ups as a technical tool when this line was being recited. ‘Lord of the Flies’ in turn has been cited due to the novel supporting my conclusion that there are no absolute heroes and villains. In relation to Aristotle’s justification of a tragic hero, that is one possessing heroic qualities although is deprived of the title due to one fatal flaw, we see there to be two potential ‘heroes’. The main character Ralph is depicted in a heroic light, Saint Jerome once proclaimed "the face is the mirror of the mind, and the eyes with out speaking confess the secrets of the heart." Golding took this literally and in using symbolism avowed, "There was a mildness about his mouth and eyes that proclaimed no devil." However, through repetition Golding creates ambiguity over the matter by endowing Ralph with a fatal flaw in that he can not connect to commoners on an emotional level. Ralph declares that their fears are invaluable by repeatedly affirming "but there is no beastie." Golding used techniques efficiently so that the responder would identify his characters in the light in which he meant for them to be received. For instance, stereotypes were used so as to overshadow Jack with doom, "inside the floating cloak he was tall, thin and bony." The stereotype used here is one referencing the Grim Reaper, or the angel of death, and hence bringing an element of foreboding. Martin Luther King gave an address in Washington in 1963, and in his speech supported the notion that there are no heroes. Whilst many see Luther King as a hero in himself, upon close study to his deliverance it is seen that this is false. Luther King does not speak of his own actions in his lecture, but instead also through repetition includes a...