Introduction to Lord of the Flies
© The English Teacher’s Pet, 2014
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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 DDay
 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…
Symbols
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The island
The conch
Piggy’s glasses
The fire
The “beastie”
The “littluns”
The pig
The names of the boys
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)
Allusions
 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 boy’s name in The Coral Island
 Mention of Coral Island and Treasure Island
 Numerous biblical allusions throughout
Lord of the Flies in Pop Culture
 In Hook, Robin Williams compares Lost Boys to savages in
LOTF
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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”
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