Ralph asks Jack why he hates him. This question comes when
they are discussing the pig-run that Jack had found when exploring this section of the
island before. Jack tells him it goes all the way to the mountain, and Ralph decides
they will smash through the jungle until they find it. There is tension between he and
Jack over the shifting claim leadership, and it builds as they discuss the
pig-run:
Ralph
sighed, sensing the rising antagonism, understanding that this was how Jack felt as soon
as he ceased to lead...
"I don't mind going," Jack said hotly. "I'll go
when we get there. Won't you? Would you rather go back to the shelters and tell
Piggy?"
Now it was Ralph's turn to flush but he spoke
despairingly, out of the new understanding that Piggy had given
him.
"Why do you hate me?"
The
boys stirred uneasily. as though something indecent had been said. The silence
lengthened.
Jack challenges
Ralph's authority continually in this chapter. Here, he doubts Ralph's courage and calls
his leadership into question, essentially telling Ralph to go wait at the shelters with
the weak. Ralph is embarrassed, but he speaks the truth in asking Jack why he hates him.
This brings to light all the animosity that has been brewing beneath the surface of
their fragile friendship, & foreshadows the violence and cruelty that will
overtake their society on the island.
No comments:
Post a Comment