Lord of the Flies

Does the mask truly “liberate” Jack? If Jack wears the mask because of shame, how does shame relate to violence? Discuss the connection between shame and violence throughout the novel.

This quote is from chapter 4 describing Jack the first time he paints his face.  When we wear a mask, we are usually trying to be someone or something we are not such as when we dress up in costume for Halloween.  Jack's face painting, which is his mask, allows him to become what he really is - a savage.  Golding believed that all people were savage inside and that society's rules kept us civil.  The story shows what happens to a group of boys when they no longer have rules.  Jack becomes the leader of these boys because he is the first to show his savage nature in such an obvious way.  With his face painted, Jack no longer was compelled to follow society's rules; he felt free to become the savage individual that he felt inside.  In chapter 1, he failed to kill a piglet when he encountered one.  He didn't kill it because his civility kept him from drawing blood and he was ashamed of himself.  He felt he would be stronger and better if he'd been more savage and if he'd killed the pig. Now that he wears the face paint, he feels completely free of those rules that kept him from killing the pig earlier.  When people are anonymous, they are more likely to be honest because they aren't self-conscious, and masks create anonymity. Jack's mask frees him from self-consciousness.

Jack, as leader of the choirboys, represents order, civility and decency at the beginning of the novel. Jack commands their respect and loyalty in the vote. Even as early as Chapter 1 there is a connection between shame and violence emerging. Jack hesitates and is unable to kill the first pig. This is shameful in that he has been designated leader of the hunters by Ralph. He vows to overcome his weakness and his violence escalates well beyond killing for food.

Jack uses another 'mask' beyond the camouflage: that of civility, to avoid working on the huts. He argues that the need to find meat for the group is a greater responsibility for his hunters. He uses an argument in favour of the common good when in fact he is driven by the urge to prove himself as hunter and give in to the primitive urge to kill. He is driven by shame and violence, beneath the mask of civility.

The boys are collectively ashamed to respect Piggy's theories of leadership and survival. He is not the image of a strong leader with his glasses and poor physical condition. As Piggy's frustrations rise at being ignored when trying to support the survival of the group, so does the embarrasssment surrounding the truth in the words of such an unsuitable leader. The shame felt by the boys at rejecting and taunting Piggy despite his logic propels them directly to violence, and Piggy's killing. 

One key to understanding this quotation is to look at the text in the passage of Chapter 4. When Jack first "plans his face" he uses the often symbolic colors white, red and black. White indicates purity and humanity; red, bloodthirstiness; and black, death. The white and red are mentioned first, indicating Jack's humanity if still in the forefront of his personality, Then Jack looks in a pool of water where he can see the reflection of his entire body. He's not satisfied with his appearance and rubs that face off. He paints a new mask on his face and looks at his appearance in a coconut shell. The difference in the view between the pool and the shell is that when looking into the shell, he cannot see his heart. The colors are now listed as red, white, and black. The white, representing purity and humanity, is now being squeezed between the red, or bloodthirstiness and the black, death. Thus the mask allows Jack to hide his human heart, squeeze out his humanity and replace it with bloodthirstiness and death. He has liberated himself from the normal actions and reactions of human beings.