WIlliam Golding

Humans have been known to do cruel and evil things to one another. Hitler’s hatred of the Jews led to the Holocaust. Humankind has also been known to mindlessly follow very cruel leaders. Stalin led his subjects in a communism in which millions of people died. William Golding attempted to put human’s ability to be cruel to one another in perspective in many of his novels. His experiences early in life, along with his comprehension and contemplation of human traits and characteristics helped shape his novels and make them dialogues on the evilness of human nature.
Golding’s father instilled many of the characteristics that Golding mirrored in his writings. His father taught Golding rationalism and scientific method (Feeney). All of Golding’s novels were very rational and could very well occur in our modern times. The supernatural elements of his novels were something that his mother, who was interested in the occult and spirits, had taught him (Feeney).
Golding also survived World War II, serving in the British Royal Navy. His participation in the war may have made a mark in Golding’s mind. Golding saw the true horrors of war and the atrocities men could commit against one another. He also observed the horrors of D-Day on the beaches of Normandy in 1944 (Contemporary). The influence the war played on Golding’s psyche is particularly evident in Lord of the Flies, when Simon is beaten and ripped apart by the boy’s tribe. This unforgivable act of violence in the novel was, perhaps witnessed by Golding during his service in the Navy. Golding also taught school after his time serving the Queen. He observed the school children’s treatment of one another. The children’s mean treatment of one another most likely shaped the way the boys in Lord of the Flies treated one another after the split between Ralph and Jack occurred (Prusse).
Golding’s Lord of the Flies is a key example of his views of human nature and man’s tendencies. The boys land on the island in the midst of a world war. They try and mimic the ways of the civilized world, but the island is eventually dragged down by the sins of its own inhabitants. Some of the boys’ addiction to hunting and killing tears the island’s social structure in two, maybe as a parallel to what was happening in the “real” world. Both the adults and children of the novel seem to have self-destructive tendencies, tearing their own respective worlds to shreds. Golding shows that men who bow to their primitive instincts drag down the men around them, and eventually cause conflict, whether it is physical or psychological (Macdonald).
Golding’s views of human nature are forever immortalized in Lord of the Flies. His time serving in the Navy and his time teaching school children helped to shape these views into what they were. He saw the evils and atrocities that man was able to commit, and preserved his thoughts to record them in his novels. The sins of man will be forever remembered by the novels that Golding created.

Works Cited
Feeney, Joseph J. "William Golding (1911-93): Lord of Horror, Lord of Awe." America 169.3 (31 July 1993): 6-7. Rpt. in Contemporary Literary Criticism. Ed. James P. Draper and Jeffery Chapman. Vol. 81. Detroit: Gale Research, 1994. Literature Resource Center. Web. 21 Aug. 2010.

Macdonald, Gina. "William Golding: Overview." St. James Guide to Science Fiction Writers. Ed. Jay P. Pederson. 4th ed. New York: St. James Press, 1996. Literature Resource Center. Web. 21 Aug. 2010

Prusse, Michael C. "William Golding." Nobel Prize Laureates in Literature, Part 2. Detroit: Gale, 2007. Dictionary of Literary Biography Vol. 330. Literature Resource Center. Web. 21 Aug. 2010.

"William (Gerald) Golding." Contemporary Literary Criticism Select. Detroit: Gale, 2008. Literature Resource Center. Web. 21 Aug. 2010.

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Quote from Lord of the Flies Page 202

"...Ralph wept for the end of innocence, the darkness of man's heart, and the fall through the air of the true, wise friend called Piggy."
-Lord of the Flies Page 202
Ralph is saddened and disturbed by the events on the island. During his time running from Jack, he had not had time to fully realize the magnitude of Jack's changes and it's effects on the island. He is bothered by the thoughts of what Jack and his groupd were going to do to him if they had caught him. Jack and the rest of the boys had landed on the island as sensible young boys, but had been transformed into bloodthirsty animals. The boys' characters had no innocence left and their hearts were cold as stone. Ralph also wept for the soul of Piggy, who was the only true friend he had never realized.
Song: Wish you were here - Pink Floyd
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IXdNnw99-Ic

Quote from Lord of the Flies Page 144

"'I'm warning you. I'm going to get angry. D'you see? You're not wanted. Understand? We are going to have fun on this island. Understand? We are going to have fun on this island! So don't try it on, my poor misguided boy, or else-'"
-Lord of the Flies Page 144
This seen sets in motion the events that will lead up to the first murder on the island. Simon realizes that the real beast on the island is inside all the boys. It is human nature that will threaten the boys, not some physical being. The encounter scares Simon to the point that he faints in the face of the pig head. The pig head tells him that the other boys do not like him, and that the island will eventually lead to the deaths of all of the boys.
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Final Words on Brave New World

William Golding's Lord of the Flies is an interesting insight into the primal characteristics of man. The characters in the novel progress from being civilized, English boys to savages on the verge of losing all of their civility. The book serves as an insight onto what might happen when humans are taken out of a world of law and government, and pushed into a world of total freedom and anarchy. The struggle for power between Ralph and Jack lead to the deaths of two of the more sensible boys. The book also possesses many symbols. The conch is one of the most common of the book. The conch represents order to many of the boys. It is what calls the boys to assembly and what dictates who is to speak at the assemblies. The stuck pig head that "talks" to Simon is also a symbol in the book. It represents the island’s overwhelming power. The pig’s head represents human nature. It tells Simon that it is the Beast, and it is inside him. Human nature was the Beast that the boys on the island should have feared, instead of some physical monster. Pigs were also a symbol of Jack’s regression into becoming a savage. The thoughts of hunting and eating meat possessed Jack, causing him and the rest of the boys to forget of being rescued. The signal fire was Ralph’s last connection to any civilized thought. The rest of the boys had reverted back to savages and forgot about the fire, but Ralph’s single-minded obsession was to keep the fire going to signal possible rescuers. Lord of the Flies serves as a testament to what may occur when law and order are removed and people are left to govern themselves.

Lord of the Flies Pages 180-200

The scene with Ralph running into the naval officer illustrates a very powerful oversight in the book. As the novel progresses, Golding's descriptions of the characters and the events of the novel make the reader forget that the characters described are only ten, eleven, and twelve years old. The last scene with Ralph and the naval officer gives a different perspective on the characters. The descriptions change. Golding uses words such as "little boys" to describe the boys the naval officer meets on the beach. No where else in the novel does he describe the boys in such a manner. Golding is narrating the scene through the eyes of the naval officer. The officer is met by a group of boys who appear tribal in their ways, but British school boys by their appearence. Golding also makes the boys appear more adolescent when he writes that they begin to sob after they have realized what they have become.

Lord of the Flies Pages 160-180

The conch that Piggy holds so dear is destroyed in this section of the novel. The conch was a symbol of order and social structure on the island. It was what Ralph called assemblies with and what gave one the right to speak at said assemblies. When the boys in the tribe capture the twins and destroy this symbol, along with Piggy, the island is pushed into anarchy and chaos. Ralph's mindset is completely changed with this development of the story. He initially believed that the boys would come to their senses, but now he comes to realize that these boys have lost all traces of civilized life. Their time on the island has erased the civilizing marks of society and has instilled primitive thoughts and ways in the boys. I believe this is the point in the novel in which Ralph loses all hope in being rescued. He believes that because of the boys choice to be savage, he will die on the island.
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Lord of the Flies Pages 140-160

The divisions in the island become even deeper. Jack's group of boys continues to become more and more savage. They seem to be regressing to a primal human state. It is almost as if the boys are devolving mentally into simple hunters and gatherers. Ralph, Piggy, and the twins are the only ones on the island who seem to keep their wits about them in the face of the island. Simon, along with Jack and the savages, also seems to be losing his sanity. His thoughtfulness earlier in the story seems to be leeching out of his personality. His delusion of the talking pig may be a symbol of how man is his own worst enemy and biggest threat to himself. Simon's theory that man is the biggest threat is shown in Jack's hostile actions towards those who did not join his group. He acts as if he may attempt to kill them off soon.

Lord of the Flies Pages 120-140

The boys split up into two groups as Jack leaves Ralph's leadership and goes off with other boys to be hunters. The two boys had held a very tense relationship regarding the island's leadership. I believe that the stories of the beast made this relationship even more tense. Both boys had different views of how to deal with the beast. Jack took a more aggressive stance, while Ralph would rather just avoid the monster to keep the fire going. It seems that Jack has lost the will to be rescued because he doesn't care about making any signals for ships to see. Ralph is almost consumed by the thoughts of keeping the fire going. Both boys are tiptoeing the line between lunacy and sanity. Simon also seems to be losing his sanity. He is becoming more and more solitary, withdrawing from the rest of the group. I believe that this may foreshadowing some ominous event.
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Lord of the Flies Pages 100-120

The boys paranoia grows as two of the twins say they have spotted the beast. Jack's ego also continues to grow. He seems to be offended by Ralph's leadership. Anytime Ralph gives an order, Jack comes at him with some sarcastic or rude remark. This may be because Jack has always been in charge of groups he has been a part of, such as the choir. Ralph and Jack take turns leading a group of boys up the mountain, on the hunt for the beast. Ralph and Jack's personalites clash as the expedition moves up the mountain. Eventually only three boys are left. Jack presses Ralph to go on, but Ralph refuses. Jack's ego pushes him up the mountain, only to be deflated as he sees the beast, sending him running back for where Ralph and the other boy set up camp. Ralph is also paralzyed at the site of the beast. I feel that the differences in personality of the two boys will eventually lead to an epic clash and possibly a death or two.

Lord of the Flies Pages 80-100

The boys call an assembly to talk of the problems of the island. They talk of a beast that the smaller boys have seen. The talk of the beast sends the assembly into an uproar. Jack and Ralph begin to fight over whether or not there is a beast. This fight shows the tension between Ralph and Jack. Jack, the aggressor in the conflict, takes off with a slew of other boys leaves the assembly. The social structure of the island is in shambles and Ralph feels unable to do anything about it. The setting of the novel also lends itself to stories of beasts and monsters. The island is said to be unexplored and the boys are intimidated by its thick jungles. Anything could be hiding in the dark green mess of the jungle. The boys are psyched out by the unknown of the island, which leads to a sort of hysteria among them.
Song: Pink Floyd-Brain Damage
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M00KyGpJRVY

Lord of the Flies Pages 60-80

The social structure of the boys on the island begins to fall apart. Jack's personality begins to change. The time he has spent on the island, along with his obsession with hunting pigs probably has something to do with his personality change. He repeatedly challenges Ralph at the meetings by the lagoon and he appears to resent Ralph's elected authority. Ralph becomes very angry at Jack for letting the signal fire on the mountain go out. Jack had been hunting pigs while he was supposed to be watching the fire. Ralph's demeanor on the island also begins to change. The initial optimism has died and Ralph has realized that being stuck on the island may not end well. He also begins to realize that he cannot trust many of the boys on the island to do their jobs. This leads Ralph to become pesimistic. Many of smaller boys on the island also being to resent Ralph's leadership.
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Lord of the Flies Pages 40-60

The boys begin to realize that living on this island is not going to be very fun. Ralph and Simon construct shelters for everyone, while Jack tries to kill his first pig. All the other boys go and play in the ocean or sleep. Ralph begins to become frustrated because all of the other boys won't work. His leadership skills seem to be slipping because he cannot seem to get the boys to do what he wants. Simon is becoming more and more withdrawn. This is a sharp contrast to what at first he came across as. He seemed at first very outgoing, but this may have just been a cover for something that he is hiding. Jack seems to be becoming obsessed with sticking and killing a pig. He only talks of killing pigs and every thought he has includes pigs in some way. This obsession may have started because of the boredom of living on the island. The pigs offer a hobby that help focus him away from other things.
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Lord of the Flies Pages 20-40

The boys begin exploring the island. Ralph leads a pack of three around the island. It is clear that Ralph has emerged as the alpha-male of the group because all of the other boys seem to listen to him and do what he tells them to do. At first, Jack the choirboy seems very confrontational. He seems to take an aggressive stance against Ralph after Ralph has called all of the boys with the conch shell. This aggressive attitude eventually gives way to a submissive attitude when Jack goes along with what Ralph says. The other boy Simon is a very odd character. At first he seems quite melodramatic, but a little later in the novel he seems like a very quiet character who speaks only when spoken too. Piggy also begins to change as the story goes on. He seems withdrawn in the first few pages of the novel, but later in the novel, he seems to be outspoken and assertive.
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Lord of the Flies Pages 1-20

What seems to be the two main characters are introduced in this section of the novel. Ralph seems to have all the characteristics of a leader, and I believe he will lead the group of boys during their time on the island. The other boy, Piggy, seems to be much more subserviant. He also appears to be much more child-like than Ralph. The story hints that there has been a plane crash which stranded the boys on the island, but never actually tells of what happened to the plane or how the boys survived. I would've appreciated it if the story had told how all the boys survived. I find it odd that the boys survived, but no adults survived. I don't understand how a plane crash can lead to the deaths of the adults,without so much as an injury to any of the boys. I would also like the story more if the setting was described in more detail. I could not gain a full mental picture of the island from what was described in the novel.
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