Lord of the Flies

William Golding
 William Golding (1911-1993)
 Born in Cornwall, UK
 Studied anthropology,
archaeology, literature in
college
 Became a school teacher
(1935-1961)
 Entered the navy during
WWII; participated in the
invasion of Normandy on
D-Day
 Won the Nobel Prize for
Literature in 1983
 Historical Perspective
 WWI – the “Great War” or the “War to end all
wars”
– Can we ever have peace?
 WWII – the advent of the atom bomb – power
to destroy the world?
– 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
 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 weren’t Nazis. I’d
seen enough to realize that every single
one of us could be Nazis.”
--William Golding
Lord of the Flies
 Published in 1954
 Rejected 21 times before being
published!
 On the American Library
Association’s list of the 100
Most Frequently Challenged
Books of 1990-2000.
 Written partially in response to
The Coral Island, a story of
how people supposedly ascend
in their goodness on an island.
 Human nature
 Duality of man
 Nature Vs. Nurture
 Good Vs. Evil
 Lord of the Flies
 Title
– Translation of “Beelzebub” or Satan
 Setting
– A tiny coral island in the South Pacific during a war when the
atomic bomb may have (and most likely has) been used. This
world becomes their ‘microcosm’, which is definitely one of your
symbols!
 Plot
– A group of young boys is stranded on an island and they must
negotiate the social issues of cooperation and self-government
– The outside world is consumed with war
 Main characters
– Ralph, Jack, Piggy, Simon, Sam ‘n Eric
 Lord of the Flies
 Guiding Questions
– Does every human being
have a dark side? Are
humans inherently good or
evil?
– What does it mean to be
civilized?
– Rules of government –
democracy vs. dictatorship?
What type of government
works best? Why?
– What are the outcomes
when evil is an influence?
From the author…
 Basic Philosophies to Consider
While Reading
 Humans are inherently evil; society establishes
government to curb evil instincts
– “We all saw a hell of a lot in the war that can’t be
accounted for except on the basis of original evil”
 Humans are inherently good; humans are born
good and are corrupted by society
 Humans are inherently neutral; our experiences
determine the balance between good and evil
– Which do you agree/disagree with now? Choose the
one with the closet alignment to your own ideas.
 Golding’s Literary Technique
 Heavy use of symbolism
 Irony
 Figurative Language
Simile
Metaphor
Personification
 Abundant imagery and sensory detail
 Allusions (references to stories, names,
history outside the text)
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 Gibson’s 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
 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,
Ender’s Shadow.
 Degrassi: The Next Generation, Danny Phantom,
The Daily Show all mention the novel
 Source of Inspiration to Musicians
 Musicians U2, Iron Maiden, Gatsby’s 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 Piggy’s Eyes”
“Lord of the Flies”
“Piggy
“Fable”
“Boy”
“Shadows and Tall Trees”
 Sources Cited
 http://www.william-golding.co.uk/
 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Goldi
ng