How Demonic Figures Affect Behaviors

In younger children it is very common for beastly things such as monsters to influence their behaviors. As a child being afraid of monsters could drive them to be afraid of their own room or having to sleep with their parents. But what happens when adults believe in certain monsters? Adults aren’t afraid of the same type of monsters as children, instead they’re afraid of demonic figures that they have been exposed to through their own personal beliefs. In both children and adults beastly figures can make them act a certain way. How do figures like a beast or Satan effect how people live their lives and their actions? People who believe in demonic figures are afraid of them because they see them as the embodiment of evil. As a result, they are cautions about their interactions with those figures.

In William Golding’s “Lord of the Flies” a group of choir boys get stuck on a island with no adults. While being on the island they have to learn how to survive and live without the things they once had when they were not stranded. On the island there are a range of ages. The boys always calm that there is a beast on the island. But the leader Ralph does not really believe. Eric and Sam are twins on the island who admit that they have seen the beast. At a meeting called on the meeting they explained their interactions and said “‘We ran as fast as we could’--’Bashed into things’--’The beast followed us’--’I saw it slinking behind the trees’--’’(101). Eric and Sam were so frightened of the thought of coming in contact with the beast they recklessly ran away. The boy were so afraid of what would have happened if the beast caught them. This scene from the book is a prime example of how people are cautious of interaction with the things that they are afraid of. If the boys were not afraid of the beast they would not have ran away or even brought up the event at the meeting.

In the novel Ralph, the leader is somewhat in disbelieve that there is actually a beast on the island. Being the leader he feels like he has to prove to the rest of the boys on the island that do believe that there is a beast that it is nothing. Although he doesn't believe that there is a beast on the island entirely he still has his doubts. He is thinking to himself as him and a couple other boy decide to go looking for the beast he says “If there was no beast ---in this case, well and good; but if there was something waiting on the top of the mountain --what was the use of three of them, handicapped by the darkness and carrying only sticks”(120). It is obvious that Ralph is very unsure if there is actually a beast but he is still tentative about what will happen if they do see the beast. In this scene it proves that in some circumstances even when people don't believe in the beastly figures they still worry about how the interaction will go.  

In the real world everyone has different beliefs. There are many different religions that have different beliefs about how the world is and what type of things are in the world. The devil/satan is someone Christians believe in. Christians are taught not to sin. Sinning would result in not being accepted into Heaven and result in going to Hell. Hell is where the devil resides and a figure that no one should want to come into contact with. In Christians belief they are taught that the Devil is evil is bad. Christians are mindful of how they act and treat others so they can get accepted into Heaven and will not have to face the Devil in Hell. Christianity is one of the three major religions in the world. So there are many people try to stay away from sinning and activities that will keep them from getting into Heaven. Acknowledging the fact that Christians all over the world believe that the devil is somebody that they should avoid, proves that people everywhere are cautious about interactions with figures that they are scared of.

The Kukeri Festival happens in Pernik Bulgaria. The festival happens January 27- 28. At this festival people dress up in costumes and go through the streets of Pernik. The purpose of this festival is to perform rituals that will keep the evil spirits and demons away. Bulgarians do rituals at Kukeri to avoid having to deal with evil spirits that they are afraid of. Unlike in the novel Bulgarians do not run away from the evil figures they take part in different rituals to make sure that the figures they fear do not come into their safe places they call home. Although this happens in the real world it stills demonstrates how people are cautious of their actions and behaviors when it is in connection with a demonic figure or in this case evil spirits. Everyone reacts differently when they are dealing with frightening things.  The costumes they dress in during the festival protect who they really are from the evil spirits. The costumes protect them from the evil spirits and keeps who they are secret.

The novel “Lord of the Flies” just shows some cases when people are cautious about their behaviors. The novel demonstrates how younger children react to when they are afraid. But it doesn’t just affect children it affects all people old and young. Looking closer to why people act the way they do. This is another explanation to why certain behaviors come up. The way figures are viewed or come off will play a huge role on how people react to them.  Also the situation that people are in. In the novel the boys were stuck on the island so their imagination ran wild. But in other cases like mentioned in previous paragraphs it could simply be how people are raised. If people believe certain figures are evil they will be cautious and mindful of their actions and behaviors.