Jealousy Ascending

Sometimes people get jealous and we turn into some kind of unpleasant beast when we don’t get something we want. It is a fact of life that this happens to everyone, no matter who you are or what you do. William Golding’s “Lord of the Flies” and Nick Jonas’s “Jealous” have this similar theme in common. Although they are directed toward different people or ideas, it’s the same concept. In “Lord of the Flies” Jack is constantly thirsty for power and attention. He does anything to take it away from Ralph and have it for himself. In “Jealous”, Jonas talks about his jealousy toward other men interacting with his girlfriend. In both, “Lord of the Flies,” and “Jealous,” we learn that in life, people change their attitude, motives or actions because of jealousy and their fear of not having or being something.

In the beginning of “Lord of the Flies,” Ralph gets chosen to be chief because the group was drawn to “his size, and attractive appearance”. In the book, Jack was described as - “His face was crumpled and freckled, and ugly without silliness.” Jack might be insecure about his appearance because Ralph is more attractive and, therefore, has a better chance of being admired in the group. It’s true that people tend to listen to people who are attractive to them. In “Jealous,” some of the lyrics “‘Cause you’re too sexy, beautiful, and everybody wants a taste, that’s why, I still get jealous” Jonas is referring to his feelings toward his girlfriend, this may be the complete opposite context to “Lord of the Flies” but they are similar in the cause for their jealousy. Because Ralph is more attractive, more people have the urge to listen to him which makes Jack jealous and a bit insecure about himself. He fears that the group won’t listen to him because of his appearance so instead he uses fear to help himself come to power.

In the middle, Jack’s jealousy grows more and he tries to get the boys under his power through fear. “Slowly the red drained from Jack’s cheeks, then came back with a painful rush. He licked his lips and turned his face at an angle so that his gaze avoided the embarrassment of linking with another's eyes.” This quote comes from when Jack decided to leave the group and is asking if anyone wants to join him. The quote states that the red from his cheeks drained, then came back. This is significant because it shows that he was afraid to voice his opinion to the thought of what the others reaction would be, after all, he’s only human. The “painful rush” came back because he realised that no one wanted to follow him. He was ashamed of himself that he proposed something and no one agreed.

Some people might argue that it was Jack’s fault for being cruel which is why no one wanted to join him. But what the author is trying to say is that maybe the people who are cruel or not nice is because they are misunderstood and want attention. It doesn’t always mean they were bad to begin with. He wasn’t always jealous, which means he wasn’t always a savage. He just feels left out. After being a bit ignored for a while, he starts to become more vicious. In “Jealous,” Nick Jonas felt as though he was getting ignored as well because all the attention was on his girlfriend. “I’m puffing my chest, I’m getting red in the face,” This shows what both Nick Jonas and Jack felt with no attention on them. They both wanted to seem like an alpha male so that people would listen to them so when Ralph is chief, Jack wants to seem more powerful and more like the ‘rightful’, tough leader that the group deserves.

In the end, Jack’s Jealousy gets out of control and he becomes a corrupt savage. Over the course of the story, he has gotten fed up with being misunderstood and the extra leader that he goes crazy and becomes barbaric. His jealousy made him so insane to a point where he is homicidal and wants Ralph dead. He went from an innocent little choir boy, wanting some attention, to a savage boy seeking revenge. Some of the lyrics in Nick Jonas’s “Jealous” - “It’s my right to be hellish, I still get jealous,” This is significant because it uses the word ‘right’. Is it really a right to be hellish? Jack was a bit under appreciated to begin with so maybe being jealous was okay. But turning that jealousy into something monstrous and hellish was a bit overdramatic. Jack wanted more and more. He wanted more attention than what he already had. Jealousy can spiral into something out of control if it is not dealt with.

In “Lord of the Flies” Jacks insecurity turns into jealousy and hatred toward Ralph throughout the book. His inability to capture everyone's attention changed him into a selfish, bloodthirsty beast. In addition, “Jealous,” also describes the narrator or singer (Nick Jonas) turning into something ‘hellish’ because of his jealousy. Both character/singer’s jealousy sprouted from their fear of not having something they desperately desired. It just proves that sometimes humans can go to extremes when they care or want something they can’t have.