English 10
Lord of the Flies Final Essay Assignment
Due:
Learning Expectations
We believe that successful students:
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Communicate in a meaningful way for a variety of purposes and audiences, and
Demonstrate a sensitivity to the precision and nuances of written medium through comprehension, interpretation, and evaluation.
Your final essay for our Lord of the Flies unit will establish a link between the themes of Golding’s novel and the modern world to explain how the ideas represented in
the allegory are still relevant to our time.
Select a current news story—global, national, or local—and draw parallels between the events and people associated with it and the characters and events in Lord of the Flies.
Questions to consider while developing your connection:
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How do the psychological shifts the characters in the novel resemble psychological shifts in the people involved in your news story?
How does Golding’s representation of man’s destructive nature mirror the destruction you see in the in the news event you selected?
How does society fail/prevail in matters of human survival and the greater good of the populace?
How do the morally and/or ethically correct people in your news story experience the same treatment/fate as Simon or Piggy?
How is power attained and maintained? Do the leaders in your current event use tactics resembling Jack’s or Ralph’s?
Your essay should be accompanied by at least one article about the current event from a reputable news source, which you will cite and include in a Works Cited page
formatted according to MLA standards.
Essay structure:
1. Introduction, including a clear thesis that makes a claim about how your current event and events/characters in the novel are similar.
2. One paragraph explaining your chosen current event (with citations from your reputable news source).
3. One paragraph analyzing how events/characters in the novel resemble people/events of your current event (with quotations from the novel for
support).
4. A conclusion, justifying how your connection proves Lord of the Flies is a timeless allegory that is still relevant to readers nearly 60 years after its
initial publication. Your conclusion should also address how the ideas presented in your essay imply the significance of literature as a reflection of
human experience rather than simply an artifact for close reading.
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Requirements:
 3-5 pages, typed, double-spaced, Times New Roman font with proper MLA formatting (visit the LMC web site for guidelines).
 Upload to Turnitin.com prior to the due date.
 Submit a hard copy (complete with Works Cited and a copy of your news sources) at the start of class on the due date.
 WHS Writing Rubric is attached to this handout. Use it as you write your essay.
 The school handbook states that “all work submitted by students should be a true reflection of their effort and ability.”
Exemplar Introduction:
William Golding’s Lord of the Flies communicates the idea that society is what holds us together and when society’s grip is loosened or broken,
anarchy and barbarism take its place. As the article “School Safety: Trouble in Middle School” illustrates, middle school students today are influenced by
hormonal tension and peer pressure, the same behaviors that drive Jack to enforce his dictatorial will upon the other boys and turn them into his “tribesmen.”
Articles like this one substantiate that Golding’s psychology of his characters is grounded in a solid understanding of the middle school age group specifically.
Exemplar Explanation of Article:
The article from The Columbian attributes middle school violence and hazing to hormonal anxiety and peer pressure, behaviors that the children in
Lord of the Flies exhibit. The Columbian conducted research and analysis of the middle schools in Clark County, Washington state, and found that
“Documents... show that middle school students are cited for more incidents of fighting, bullying and weapons possession than other students.” Violence and
peer pressure are more of an issue in middle schools than they are in high schools. The Columbian found that from 2003 to 2011, the number of bullying
incidents in middle schools more than tripled: the situation is only getting worse. According to school counselor Michelle Rowen, “It’s not surprising that
middle school kids get into the most trouble. The middle school years mark the first stage of adolescence in kids’ lives, a time of great instability.” The
physical and mental changes they experience amplify their emotional reactions, something that can result in violence and pulling away from their parents and
rebelling against authority—their parents as well as school rules and customs. A 2010 survey of youth also conducted in Clark County revealed that over 30%
of middle schoolers had been bullied in the previous month. Districts responded with “Mediation,” a program that trains good students to be peer mediators
who sit down with students after a conflict to talk about what happened and how to move on from it. Halfway through the school year at Maple Grove Middle
School, where 27 fights per year is average, ten kids had signed up to be with mediators, and the number of fights reduced to 17. The Maple Grove example
suggests that when authority allies itself with anti-bully efforts, the impact is significant – something not available to the characters in Lord of the Flies. This
article shows that middle schools today are facing the same behavioral issues and conflicts as the ones in the novel, and that the solution is an organized
movement against it. Golding makes the same point by simply not including an opportunity for the solution to be implemented within his story.
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Exemplar Analysis Paragraph:
Lord of the Flies conveys the message that society encourages people to stick to their morals and that without society’s firm grip we are nothing more
than savage wretches. Piggy is the character most disgusted with the other boys when they focus on the most exciting activity rather than the most necessary.
Piggy is also the most passionate about maintaining British identity, as shown when Ralph proposes more rules so they can keep their unruly brethren in
check:
“We ought to have more rules. Where the conch is, that’s a meeting, the same up here as down there.”
Piggy replies, “I agree with Ralph. We’ve got to have more rules and obey them. After all, we’re not savages. We’re English, and the English are best
at everything, so we’ve got to do the right things.” (42)
Piggy and Ralph are like student mediators, Ralph more so than Piggy, but they are both trying to remedy the conflicts within their group, as they know
infighting will only bring them down. Jack, on the other hand, in a middle school setting would most likely be the head bully or popular jock who organizes
hazings, instigates conflicts, and is responsible for peer pressure fueled activities. Those who support him are safe from his bullying and receive the benefits he
can offer them. Jack’s unbridled aggression is revealed by his constant intimidation of Piggy, for example when he will not let Piggy speak on top of the
mountain:
“I got the conch.” said Piggy indignantly. “You let me speak!”
“The conch doesn’t count on top of the mountain,” said Jack, “So you shut up.”
“I got the conch in my hand.”
Jack turned fiercely. “You shut up!” (Golding 42)
Jack disregards his own rules about the conch when it suits him, rejecting the notion of any authority, even his own, the same as a middle school bully does,
and this is the aggression that leads to his dominion over the “tribe” of peers. Jack promises food in exchange for fealty. If they oppose him, they suffer
physical “punishment.” The main characters in Lord of the Flies are the same kinds of people that inhabit Clark County Middle School. Piggy is bullied
because of his physical appearance, Jack is a bully, and Ralph is like a student mediator/obedient student, roles seen in middle schools today.
Exemplar Conclusion:
Lord of the Flies shows us how behavior and circumstances result in anarchy and violence, how humans need society in order to protect themselves
from each other, and that no one is immune to its corruption, regardless of age. Middle schoolers are the same age as the main characters in Lord of the Flies,
showing that Golding has essentially unraveled the issue of bullying, and understands just how the seeds of anarchy are planted, through our own behavior.
Lord of the Flies is an example of how literature is a record of human experience: its history. The horror Golding depicts, and recreates in each reader, teaches
empathy. Literature implies that humans can learn from stories to recognize and avoid the mistakes of their predecessors. Because of Lord of the Flies,
bullying can be seen, and recognized wherever it appears, and finally, be put to an end.
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Proficient
Emerging
Limited
Engaging opening sentence that
grabs the reader’s attention.
Information in the paragraph
leads in a logical, fluid way to
the thesis statement. Wellwritten, complex thesis
statement.
Good opening sentence that
introduces topic. Information in
the paragraph is mostly relevant
to the thesis statement. Coherent
thesis statement.
Opening sentence with adequate
focus on text/topic. Some
information in the paragraph is
relevant to the thesis.
Identifiable thesis statement.
Vague/overly-general opening
sentence with little connection
to the topic. Information in the
paragraph may not be related to
thesis. Weak or unidentifiable
thesis statement.
Topic sentences both clearly
connect to thesis and take a
precise critical stance. Each
sentence in the paragraph has a
clear connection to the topic
sentence. Sophisticated
transitions between thoughts
within the paragraph.
Sophisticated transitions
between paragraphs.
Topic sentences take a critical
stance and connect back to the
thesis. Most sentences in the
paragraph have a clear
connection to the topic
sentence. Some sense of
transition between thoughts
within paragraph. Clear
transitions between paragraphs.
Topic sentences have a mostly
clear connection to thesis and
are easily locatable by the
reader. Some sentences in the
paragraph support the topic
sentence. Organization of
thoughts within paragraph
occasionally random or
inconsistent. Some sense of
transition between paragraphs.
Unidentifiable topic sentences.
Paragraph lacks cohesion. Little
to no sense of organization of
thoughts within paragraph.
No/unclear transitions between
paragraphs.
Restates main idea in identical
language; repetitious and/or
vague language.
Details and Evidence
Claims are original, complex,
and sophisticated. Very wellselected and relevant evidence
to support claims. Textual
information is smoothly
embedded and has been
purposefully selected. All
references are properly cited
according to MLA guidelines.
Summarizes main idea(s) of
paper with some sense of
extension / development.
Addresses the significance of
literature as a reflection of
human experience rather than
simply an artifact for close
reading.
Claims are coherent and
identifiable. Most evidence
accurately supports claims.
Textual information is correctly
embedded and is mostly
purposeful. Few errors in MLA
citations.
Summarizes main ideas; echoes
key concepts.
Conclusion
Extends, enriches, and
comments on key themes and
ideas from the paper. Analyzes
the significance of literature as a
reflection of human experience
rather than simply an artifact for
close reading.
Most claims are accurate and/or
identifiable. Some evidence
supports claims; paper may
have an overreliance on quoted
information. Some errors in text
embedding. Substantial errors in
MLA citations.
Few or unidentifiable claims.
Evidence seems disconnected
from claims. Textual support is
either missing or incorrectly
formatted. Egregious errors in
MLA citations.
Body Paragraphs
Introduction
Exemplary
Student
Teacher
4
Analysis
Connections &
Justification
Mechanics
Exemplary
Proficient
Emerging
Limited
Demonstrates evidence of
rigorous, highly analytical
thinking. Develops thoughts in a
progressive, sophisticated way.
Higher-order ideas are
communicated in a cogent and
engaging fashion.
Evidence of analytical thinking
is prevalent but could be further
developed. Some thoughts are
developed in a clear and logical
way. Ideas are communicated in
a clear and mostly engaging
fashion.
Thinking is somewhat
superficial and underdeveloped.
Thoughts are limited in scope
and may not be properly
developed. Most ideas are clear
to the reader.
Analytical thinking is not in
evidence; paper does not reflect
complete comprehension of
topic. Thoughts are very limited
in scope and lack development.
Many ideas have not been
clearly articulated.
Draws well-developed,
elaborate, defensible
conclusions about intended
meaning from the key details of
the article and the book.
Provides an especially
thoughtful, developed, welldefended justification of the
allegorical implications of the
novel.
Paper is virtually error-free, and
has been thoroughly proofread.
Text features: varied, wellstructured sentences; correct
spelling and punctuation; and
sophisticated, assignmentappropriate vocabulary.
Draws defensible conclusions
about intended meaning from
the key details of the article and
the book. Provides a welldefended justification of the
allegorical implications of the
novel.
Draws somewhat substantiated
conclusions about intended
meaning from the key details of
the article and the book.
Provides a general justification
of the allegorical implications
of the novel.
Does not provide a wellconsidered justification of the
work’s success in
communicating meaning the
allegorical implications of the
novel.
Paper is mostly error-free, and
has been adequately proofread.
Text features: some sentence
variety, mostly correct spelling
and punctuation, and
assignment-appropriate
vocabulary.
Paper has a substantial number
of errors and proofreading is
somewhat inadequate. Text
features: unvaried but
structurally sound sentences,
occasional spelling/punctuation
errors, and limited and
occasionally inaccurate
vocabulary.
Paper has frequent and
egregious errors and there is
little to no evidence of
proofreading. Text features:
fragments or run-on sentences,
frequent spelling/punctuation
errors, and overly-simplistic and
often inaccurate vocabulary.
Student
Teacher
* Please note: Failure to accurately cite sources falls under the category of plagiarism, which is clearly defined in the school handbook and has separate consequences.
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