Name: ______________________________
English 10 R
Lord of the Flies – Three Allegories
ALLEGORY – A work of literature where everything represents something deeper
such as a scientific theory, another well-known story or a historical moment.
Macrocosm  Microcosm
New York  Manhasset
World  Island
Humans  the boys
(1.) If one looks at the Lord of the Flies as a religious allegory, then the story of the
Garden of Eden might help you see the connections Golding is trying to make.
(2.) If one looks at the Lord of the Flies as a psychological allegory, Freud’s
structure of the psyche that may help with seeing connections Golding is trying to
make.
Freud saw one’s personality as having three aspects, the Id, the Ego and the Superego.
They all work together to produce our complex behaviors and all 3 components need to
be well-balanced in order to be healthy. The conflict between the Id and Superego,
negotiated by the Ego, is one of the fundamental psychological battles all people face.
The way in which a person characteristically resolves the instant gratification vs. longerterm reward dilemma in many ways comes to reflect on their "character."
THE ID (“It”): functions in the irrational and emotional part of the mind. At birth a
baby’s mind is all Id - want want want. The Id is the primitive mind. It contains all the
basic needs and feelings.
THE EGO: (“I”): functions with the rational part of the mind. The Ego develops out of
growing awareness that you can’t always get what you want. The Ego relates to the real
world and operates via the “reality principle”. The Ego realizes the need for compromise
and negotiates between the Id and the Superego.
THE SUPEREGO (“Over-I”): The Superego is the last part of the mind to develop. It
might be called the moral part of the mind. The Superego becomes an embodiment of
parental and societal values. It stores and enforces rules. It constantly strives for
perfection, even though this perfection ideal may be quite far from reality or possibility.
Its power to enforce rules comes from its ability to create anxiety.
(3.) If one looks at the Lord of the Flies as a political allegory, here is a history lesson
that may help with seeing connections Golding is trying to make.
As a political allegory, each character in Lord of the Flies represents some abstract idea
of government. Ralph, for example, stands for the goodhearted but not entirely effective
leader of a democratic state, a ruler who wants to rule by law derived from the common
consent. Piggy is his adviser, someone who is unable to rule because of his own social
and physical shortcomings, but who is able to offer sound advice to the democratic
leader. Jack, on the other hand, represents a totalitarian dictator, a ruler who appeals to
the emotional responses of his followers. He rules by charisma and hysteria. Roger, the
boy who takes the most joy in the slaughter of the pigs and hurts other boys represents
the henchman necessary for such a totalitarian ruler to stay in power.
Such a reading takes into account the state of the world at the end of the World War II.
For many years, leaders such as British Prime Minister Winston Churchill and U.S.
President Franklin D. Roosevelt led democratic countries against totalitarian demigods
such as Germany's Adolf Hitler and Italy's Benito Mussolini. Further, in the early 1950s,
the world appeared to be divided into two camps: the so-called Free World of Western
Europe and the United States, and the so-called Iron Curtain world of communist Eastern
Europe and the Soviet Union. At the time of the writing of Lord of the Flies, the world
appeared to be teetering on the brink of total nuclear annihilation. Thus, by taking into
account the historical context of Lord of the Flies, it is possible to understand the work as
political and historical allegory, even as a cautionary tale for the leaders of the world.
Your turn:
1. Find a quotation that may connect Chapter 1 to a religious allegory.
Page number: __________________________
Quote:
Why is it a religious allegory?
2. Find a quotation that may connect the book to a psychological allegory.
Page number:______________________________
Quote:
Why is it an example of a psychological allegory?
3. Find a quotation that connects the book to a historical allegory.
Page number:______________________________
Quote:
Why is it an example of a historical allegory?