What do Lord of the Flies and The Stanford Prison Experiment reveal about what lies at the core of basic human nature?

The Stanford Prison Experiment took 24 volunteer male college students and randomly divided them into prisoners and guards to see what would happen to their psyche in these two different roles. The "prisoners" were arrested, humiliated, uniformed, and put into cells and the 'guards' were given power over the prisoners. The novel Lord of the Flies also places young boys in a survival situation, stranded without adults on a desert island, and examines what happens to their psyche. Some of the boys, Jack and Ralph, for example, are natural leaders, and for a short time life seems to be idyllic on the island. However, the evil side of human nature takes over and the boys separate into two groups. The group of 'savages' even kills one of the boys.

When the 'prisoners' in the Stanford Prison Experiment were put into uniform smocks, they felt humiliated and emasculated. Some of them carried themselves differently, less confidently, as a result. The guards were also dressed in uniforms, along with mirrored sunglasses, and given power to make their own rules and use whatever means they felt necessary to protect themselves and control the prisoners. The guards used their power to make the prisoners do push-ups in punishment for breaking rules. In Lord of the Flies, the boys in the choir have uniform choir robes, and these are the boys who behave like savages. Maybe these examples show that the way people dress can affect the way they see themselves and behave.

In the Stanford Prison Experiment, the prisoners rebelled on the second day in their 'prison.' In Lord of the Flies, the choir and their leader, Jack, rebel against Ralph, even though Ralph has been voted and appointed as leader. These examples show that humans are, at their core, rebellious and do not submit to leadership easily.

When the prisoners rebelled in the Stanford Prison Experiment, the guards reacted with violence. Similarly, in Lord of the Flies, Jack's choir and the rest of his followers react to Simon and Piggy, two outcasts, with violence. These examples show that the core of human nature is violent and filled with hatred.

In the Stanford Prison Experiment, the guards then gave some of the prisoners, the ones who were least involved in the rebellion, special privileges, including being allowed to eat while the other prisoners were not. The privileges were meant to break down solidarity among the prisoners, because the group of guards was smaller than the group of prisoners and the guards knew the prisoners had strength in numbers. In Lord of the Flies, Jack and his followers have a feast while Ralph and his small group try to get a fire going to attract rescue. Ralph's group represents solidarity while Jack's group represents selfishness. Jack's group would rather hunt and feast than contribute to rescue efforts. These examples show that the core of human nature is selfish and self-serving. 

Find out more about Lord of the Flies  and more details about the Stanford Prison Experiment .