The authors of “I Only Came to Use the Telephone” and Lord of the Flies show that human nature is corrupt and savage. In both texts, the authors use juxtaposition and imagery to show how the characters in both stories effectively personify these characteristics, either by being placed in situations to which they are not accustomed or by being in power and abusing it . In "I Only Came to Use the Telephone", Maria is juxtaposed with the matrons to show the corruption and savagery throughout the insane asylum. There is also imagery in the short story to highlight the dark and corrupt feeling the reader may get from the text. In Lord of the Flies, however, Jack is juxtaposed with Ralph and Piggy to demonstrate the savagery and corruption that can be seen in Jack's character. The author uses the imagery created in Lord of the Flies to make it seem like the boys will resort to wild and primitive behaviors to adapt to the island, which they do. The juxtaposition is seen at the beginning of "I Only Came to Use the Telephone" when Maria is first admitted to the sanatorium, and it is described as a seemingly pleasant place when she is in the room with the doctor : “Now is the time to cry at will,” said the doctor. in a soporific voice. “Tears are the best medicine.” Maria unburdened herself without shame, as she had never been able to do with her occasional lovers in the empty times that followed love... It was, for the first time in her life, the miracle of being understood by a man who listened to him attentively. with all his heart and didn't expect to sleep with her as a reward. (76) While this quote may not show the corruption of the asylum staff, the reader sees in this quote Maria's corrupt nature by practically selling...... middle of paper .... .. hence she tried to kill him. The author of “I Only Came to Use the Telephone” as well as the author of Lord of the Flies both use the techniques of juxtaposition and imagery to show that people's human nature is corrupt and savage. Regardless of how they choose to depict these qualities, both texts demonstrate that when humans are placed in unfamiliar situations, they will always resort to primitive instincts of corruption and savagery to cope with their environments. Likewise, people may choose to abuse their power of authority to get what they want. Just like Jack, Maria, Matron, Ralph and Piggy, sometimes you will do anything to get what you want. Works Cited Golding, William. Lord of the Flies. New York: The Berkley Publishing Group, 1954. Print. Marquez, Gabriel Garcia. I only came to use the phone. Np: np, nd Print.