Lord of the Flies

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• What would happen if we took away the school
  rules?
• No class
• No consequences
• No authority

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• Are people naturally good or evil?
• Consider babies.
• Consider war.
• Consider our natural inclinations (Are we
  inclined to be good or are we taught to be
  good?)

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About William Golding

• British novelist
• Born on September 19, 1911, died 1993
• Studied Science and English at Oxford
• Fought in Royal Navy during WWII
• Participated in invasion of Normandy on D-Day
• At wars end, returned to teaching and writing
• Earned the Nobel Prize in Literature

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The World Golding Knew

• WWII 1939- 1945
• The fall of France to Nazi Germany in 1940
• Britain feared an invasion and evacuated children
  to other countries
• 1940- A German U-Boat torpedoed a British ship
  carrying children, killing the boys, thus
  suspending the oversees evacuation program

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Events of WWII

• 1939- Britain joined France in war against Nazi
  Germany
• 1940- Fall of France
• 1940- Fascist Italy joins the Axis with Germany
• 1941- Japan attacks Pearl Harbor causing USA to
  declare war on Japan and enter the war
• 1944- D-Day Normandy Landings
• 1945- Bombing of Dresden
• 1945- European victory celebrated
• 1945- Atomic Bomb dropped in Hiroshima
  immediately killing 60-80,000 people (final death
  toll 135,000 people)

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On Writing Lord of the Flies

• It was simply what seemed sensible for me to
  write after the war when everyone was thanking
  God they werent Nazis. Id seen enough to
  realize that every single one of us could be
  Nazis.
• --William
  Golding

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Inspiration

• Golding once allowed his class of boys total
  freedom in a debate, but had to intervene as
  mayhem soon broke out
• Experiences in war
• Critical response to Coral Island by R.M.
  Ballanytyne
• Philosophical questions about human nature

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Philosophical Influence

• John Hobbes
• English Philosopher 1588- 1679
• Man is by nature selfishly individualistic
• Man constantly at war with other men
• Fear of violent death is sole motivation to
  create civilizations
• Men need to be controlled by absolute sovereignty
  to avoid brutish behavior

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Facts About the Novel

• Rejected 21 times before it was published
• It was his first novel- published in 1954
• Not successful until the early 1960s
• On the American Library Associations list of the
  100 Most Frequently Challenged Books of
  1990-2000.

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Story Synopsis

• Set in mid 1940s when Europe was engulfed in
  war.
• A plane carrying British school boys is mistaken
  for a military craft and shot down.
• Only the boys survive the crash and try to form a
  society and govern themselves.

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Goldings Message

• The theme is an attempt to trace the defects of
  society back to the defects of human nature.
• --William
  Golding

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• As a child, Golding had witnessed WWI, which was
  referred to as the war to end all wars
• HOWEVER,
• 22 years later Britain was again involved in
• ANOTHER WAR
• to end all wars, which caused more
  devastation than was imaginable

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Through LOTF, Golding is making the statement
that we cannot escape our savage, violent
tendencies
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and without social order,we devolve into a
state of chaos
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Themes

• Survival
• Power/leadership styles
• Civilization vs. Savagery
• Loss of Innocence
• Human nature
• Duality of man
• Nature Vs. Nurture
• Good Vs. Evil

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AllusionsAllusions are references to other works
of Literature

• Use of the names Ralph and Jack as the main
  characters from The Coral Island.
• Simon from the Bible Simon called Peter, Peter
  was the other boys name in The Coral Island
• Mention of Coral Island and Treasure Island
• Numerous biblical allusions throughout

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Title Translation

• Beelzebub a Hebrew word for
• LUCIFER
• However, the literal translation of Beelzebub
• into English is LORD OF THE FLIES

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TERMS to REMEMBER

• Microcosm A small world that represents the
  world at large
• Edenic Eden like, paradise like, a setting that
  has not yet been spoiled by man

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Goldings Literary Technique

• Heavy use of symbolism
• Irony
• Abundant imagery and sensory detail
• Figurative Language
• Simile
• Metaphor
• Personification

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LOTF Symbols (Objects, characters, figures, or
colors that represent ideas or concepts)

• Piggys Glasses The last surviving evidence
  of the lawful, structured world
• Conch Shell New democracy on the island
• Snake Evilreference to the serpent in the
  garden of Eden

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Important Images

• The Beast The imaginary evil that is projected
  onto the island by the boys paranoia
• Lord of the Flies A pigs head on a stick that
  becomes the physical acceptance of evil on the
  island

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Character Analysis

• Ralph Main character described as fair
  haired, having broad shoulderslike a
  boxers, and has a face that proclaims no
  devil
• Committed to civilization and morality
• Translation GOOD

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Character Analysis

• Piggy \ Described as fat, intellectual,
  asthmatic, and needs glasses
• Represents scientific, rational side of
  civilization, and social order

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Character Analysis

• Jack Described as having red hair, wears black
  with a snake clasp, ugly
• Cruel and manipulative
• Represents our savage instincts played out
• EVIL

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Character Analysis

• Simon Described as a skinny, vivid little boy,
  who meditates and he faints, which some
  cultures have believed is a sign of connecting
  with the spiritual world
• Seems to be connected with nature, and he has an
  innate, spiritual goodness

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Character Analysis

• Roger Silent and sadistic
• Targets the littluns
• The only one to premeditate murder
• Kills without conscience
• Pure evil

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Character Analysis

• Sam and Eric (Samneric) Twins
• Described as barely having enough skin to cover
  both, bullet-headed, and they finish each others
  sentences
• Represent the tug-of-war within us to remain good

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Character Analysis

• Littluns The younger kids
• Represent the common folk, who easily follow the
  lead of others into savagery when there is no
  enforced structure in society

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Lord of the Flies in Pop Culture

• In Hook, Robin Williams compares Lost Boys to
  savages in LOTF
• The Simpsons episode Das Bus is a parody
• Inspiration for the anime series Infinite Ryvius
• Mel Gibsons 2006 movie Apocalypto has a similar
  ending.
• T.V. shows Survivor and Lost are said to have
  been inspired from LOTF
• 2006 movie Unaccompanied Minors makes reference
  to LOTF

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Popular Culture Cont.

• Stephen King uses the name Castle Rock (from
  the novel) as the name of a town in his books.
  He also makes reference to LOTF in the novels The
  Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon, Cujo and Hearts in
  Atlantis
• Orson Scott Card makes reference in his novel,
  Enders Shadow.
• Degrassi The Next Generation, Danny Phantom, The
  Daily Show all mention the novel

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Source of Inspiration to Musicians

• Musicians Iron Maiden, Gatsbys American Dream,
  Nine Inch Nails, Tori Amos, A.F.I., and Danielle
  Dax have all recorded songs about the novel.
• Titles such as
• Where the Flies Are
• Touch Piggys Eyes
• Lord of the Flies
• Piggy
• Fable

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Words that are difficult in CH 1

• Creepers vines that creep along the ground
• Scar the wound that the plane crash has made
  in the jungle/in the vegetation