Introduction
Universally, humanity
is always reaching for the unreachable, but never achieves that task because of
the condition of being human. Keeping a society on the brink of destruction in
terms of Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, allows those in power to manipulate the
population who are incapable of thinking beyond their basic needs. If a human
being does not attain the necessary needs, it seems impossible that they will
ever achieve their unique potential as an individual. In Orwell’s Animal
Farm and in Golding’s Lord of the Flies, Napoleon and Jack become
dictators as a result of their environment. This affects everyone in their
community.
Body 1
The lack of feeling
loved or belonging to a group makes people feel anxious and tense. The horse
named Boxer from Animal Farm is driven to work harder. He worked
extremely hard to impress Napoleon and showed others that hard work can make
things better. He felt valued by the members of his community by working hard. “...the
other animals found more inspiration in Boxer’s strength and his never-failing
cry of ‘I will work harder.’” Orwell, p.49. Even under the rough and unrelenting
conditions of the farm, everyone still found heart and appreciated one another.
Maslow’s basic need for belonging was stronger than that of food for the
animals.
Body 2
According to Maslow’s
Hierarchy of Needs, ones physiological needs are most important. These needs
include food, shelter and sleep. In Animal Farm, Napoleon uses food as
one way to control the other animals. The animals’ hunger motivates them to do
absolutely anything, which is why Napoleon uses this tactic. People in power
can create social order which forces other members of society to obey them. In Lord
of the Flies, the basic need of adequate shelter was a significant issue as
was food. These two basic needs help to divide the boys into two opposing
groups.
Body 3
People and animals must
have a strong sense of self to overcome diversity. Unfortunately, all the
animals in Animal Farm lacked courage and knowledge to take down the
pigs. They did not realize the power the pigs were accumulating. Only Benjamin,
the donkey, understood the gravity of the situation but he was too old to act
out. The pigs’ strong sense of self allowed them a privileged position on the
farm. Maurice and Roger from Lord of the Flies had an inflated sense of
themselves. They controlled the littluns through fear and pain. This act of
bullying strips the younger boys of their power and diminishes their sense of
self. The stage of losing your innocence involves transitions like confronting
your fears or possible obstacles. “And as for the fear- you’ll have to put up
with that like the rest of us.” Golding, p.88. This is said by Jack who is
trying to teach the boys a lesson to make them stronger willed.
Conclusion
It has been illustrated
in both the Lord of the Flies by William Golding and Animal Farm
by George Orwell that communities can be manipulated by bullies. The ones in
charge merely need to take one or more of the human basic needs as stated by
Maslow, to upset people’s sense of self. Without a strong sense of self, an
individual is compromised and so is the community in which that individual
lives.
