Jack Merridew

NOTE: This page is only for Jack Merridew's characterization in the film adaptations, consdering the original novel counterpart was not voted Near Pure Evil. Therefore, only the film versions' info and crimes should be listed here.

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Near Pure Evil
Full Name	Jack Merridew
Alias	Merridew Chief
Origin	Lord of the Flies (1963)
Allies	Roger His tribe Ralph (formerly)
Powers / Skills	Hunting Leadership Persuasion
Goals	Find a way off the island (abandoned). Hunt pigs for meat. Steal Piggy's glasses (both succeeded). Kill Ralph (failed).
Moral Event Horizon	Turning almost every boy on the island into savages. Brutally killing a sow and her piglets. Killing Simon. Torturing some of his own hunters out of his insecurities and allowing Roger to torture Sam and Eric. Attempting to kill Ralph, while burning the whole island down in the process.
Kill Count	1 (accidentally) 1 (attempted) Numerous pigs
Crimes	Murder Arson Animal cruelty Rape by proxy Torture Theft Assault Hate crimes Vandalism
Type of Villain	Barbaric Control Freak

“	Yeah? And what are you gonna do, huh?! What are you gonna do about it?! You’re out of it pal. You’re on your own!	„
	~ Jack to Ralph after Roger killed Piggy. (1990)

“	Kill the beast! Cut his throat! Spill his blood!	„
	~ Jack and his hunters' most famous quote.

Jack Merridew is the main antagonist of the 1963 survival drama film Lord of the Flies based on William Golding's 1954 novel of the same name and the 1990 film of the same name. He is the 14 year-old choir boy turned self-appointed leader of the young boys who are stranded on an uninhabited island.

He was portrayed by Tom Chapin in the 1963 film adaptation, and by Chris Furrh in the 1990 remake.

His Evil Ranking

What Makes Him Close to Being Pure Evil?

• Mere minutes after Jack and his choir boys meet up with Ralph and everyone else, he makes fun of Piggy's weight by calling him a "fatty", and when Ralph tells him that he is called Piggy, he and the rest of the boys start laughing, showing that he was already a bully before he became a savage.
• After one of his choir boys, Simon, faints, Jack insults him, not caring one bit about his wellbeing at that moment.
• He immediately gets ticked off when the boys vote Ralph as their leader instead of him.
• He swipes Piggy's glasses off his face without his permission in order to make a fire.
• He disobeys Ralph's orders to keep watch of the fire to go hunt for pigs instead.
• When Piggy complains about the hunters not keeping watch of the fire, Jack punches him in the face, breaking his glasses in the process.
• He shown to only follow the rules when it benefits him, as he complains to Ralph that holding a conch shouldn't give anyone superiority, but when he is holding the conch, he claims that only he has the right to speak.
• When some of the younger boys mention seeing a beast, he starts spreading propaganda about it in order to instill fear onto the other boys.
• He causes a huge divide between the boys, with most of the older boys joining him to go hunting for pigs.
• He converts kids like Maurice and Henry from relatively nice boys to bloodthirsty savages.
• He and his hunters brutally kill a sow and her piglets, even allowing Roger to rape the sow with a spear.
• After mistaking Simon for the beast, Jack and everyone else tear him apart with their hands and teeth, killing him in the process. While Simon's death wasn't on purpose, Jack feels no remorse, even claiming that Simon was a form that the beast took in order to keep the hunters on his side.
• He tortures Wilfred and the other boys just to establish his authority and later allows his now second-in-command, Roger, to torture Sam and Eric in order to get information out of them about Ralph.
• In the middle of the night, Jack and some of his hunters raid Ralph's camp in order to steal Piggy's glasses so that they can make a fire for themselves.
• When Ralph and his group demand Piggy's glasses back, Jack orders his hunters to capture Sam and Eric.
• While Jack is having a spar with Ralph, Roger pushes a boulder of a cliff, destroying the conch and killing Piggy. It is unknown if Jack feels remorse for this.
• Jack organizes a hunt to kill Ralph and burns the entire island to the ground in order to lure Ralph out of hiding. The only reason why he doesn't succeed in killing Ralph is due to the naval officers coming just in time to rescue everyone.
• While he did show care for his choir boys (including Simon) and had a tiny bit of respect for Ralph and even Piggy, he subverts all these redeeming qualities by the end of the story.
• By the end of the story, Jack has turned every boy alive, except for Ralph, into animalistic monsters.

What Prevents Him from Being Pure Evil?

• He is extremely insecure when it comes to wanting respect from the rest of the boys, which is played for sympathy.
• He also felt remorse for a bit of his actions, and even has a sad look on his face when Ralph was crying and the helicopter came to pick him up.
• He also genuinely cares about Roger, as he was concerned when he jumped and hit his head and asked him if he was OK.

Trivia

• Jack Merridew is the only Lord of the Flies character to be Near Pure Evil as his second-in-command Roger is Pure Evil and the rest of his hunters don't stand out in heinousness.
• Only his film counterparts qualify as Near Pure Evil, as his novel incarnation has a scene that outright confirms that he felt remorse for his actions, something that is left ambiguous in the films.

External Links

• Jack Merridew on the Villains Wiki
• Jack Merridew on the Lord of the Flies Wiki
• Jack Merridew on the Ultimate Evil Wiki