9-13-2010

Question: What would be different about The Lord of the Flies if there were females on the island?

The first two things I can think of: boys and girls against each other, sexist ideas taking root in the minds of both genders, and least likely a higher chance that order could have been established.

If you think about it, at the age the children are at they probably might not cooperate cross genders every well yet. Granted some of kids might, but it is always a possibility. What I envision happening, is that the boys will want to survive one way(savagery), and the girls may want to live on their own.

The second possibility I see, is boys thinking of girls as "weak" and "inferior" and in their opinion the people they should shove all the boring tasks on. Everyone likes to have fun, and one of the largest sources of "fun" stems from hunting and violence. I can see characters like Jack and Roger, leaving the care of the fire, the littluns, and shelter building to the girls while they go off hunting. As sad as it is, how often do you see women in the military even today?

The final thing I came up with, was the possibility that order may have been established. The boys would probably have been a little more reluctant to dance like fools in front of a dead pig while girls are watching, and they might have watched their manners a little better. I read this article one time about the differences between male and female mind, and both generally process information and think differently. By combining these two types of minds, they children may have come to a better solution and made better choices that could have led to a better life for everyone, and fulfilled Ralph's promise that "having fun" was important.