Brutal Boys and Malicious Men

               In my opinion, Timon of Athens creates a more condemning, and depressing, view on human sociality as compared to Lord of the Flies. The fact of the matter is that in both stories, humans are portrayed in a very unattractive light, but there is one distinct difference; Lord of the Flies is not necessarily condemning of the human race as a whole. In the discussion at the production of Lord of the Flies, a very valid point was brought up that the group demonstrated in the play was a very small part of the population as a whole: a group of boys ranging an age span only from young children to mid teenage boys.

                The group in Timon reveal a much larger representation of the population, spanning class, gender, and age ranges across the unsavory characters. This group includes, but is not limited to, Timon’s rich friends, the servant Lucilius, whose position he elevates in order that he may be married, and Ventidius whom he helps out of debtor’s jail, all of whom refuse to help Timon in his time of need. Shakespeare also includes other characters that prove to be less than honorable in nature throughout the story like the thieves and female prostitutes whom are easily bribable to carry out heinous deeds, such as when Timon commands the prostitutes “whore still; Paint till a horse may mire upon your face, A pox of wrinkles!” and the prostitutes answer “Well, more gold: what then? Believe't, that we'll do any thing for gold” (4.3.146-149). Even the leaders of this “civilized” society of Athens greedy and insensitive to their own citizens and to justice when they blindly refuse Alcibiades’ desperate pleas until he threatens to destroy them.