“The Savage Inside us AllWilliam Goldings best book yet, is bound to give you a whole new perspective on human nature. Lord of the Flies was born out of his own experience serving in the Royal Navy in World War II, which made Golding lose his belief in the natural innocence of humanity and even in the innocence of children.. A running theme in the allegorical book is that man is savage at heart, always ultimately reverting back to an evil and primitive nature.
Golding skillfully tells the story of how a group of civilized British schoolboys eventually turn to savagery. Their plane has crashed onto an uncharted island and there are no parents. The children are forced to awaken their basic instincts and find food, and shelter. The more gentle minded readers would be shocked at what happens when these boys survive on basic instincts for too long and forget their social morals.
The characters in Lord of the Flies, while metaphorical and symbolic, are very descriptive and three-dimensional. The protagonist, Ralph is the appointed chief and sensible leader who tries to establish a democracy on the island. At first the schoolboys have good intentions, keeping a fire going so that a passing ship can see the smoke and rescue them, however because of the inherent evil of the many, the good intentions of the few are quickly passed over for more exciting things. The killing of a pig slowly begins to take over the boys life, and they begin to go about this in a ritualistic way, dancing around the dead animal and chanting. Kill the pig, cut her throat, spill her bloodFrom here on, the boys have forgotten all their social morals. A pair of twin boys, Sam and Eric, become known as Samneric and eventually Samneric, a single unit. This shows the breaking down of Englsih, and communication, as the boys break down morally.
The Essay on Savages Stole The Fire Hair Conch Boys
... length of the boy's hair to symbolize savageness in the boys. Initially, the ... of the boy's hair to symbolize the savages that live within in the boys. Golding uses the ... used by Golding to symbolize savageness that lives in the boys. Initially, the reason the boys had for ... familiar symbol, started to come back" (141). Golding mentioned the bleached color of the conch at ...
The schoolboys are soon split into two groups, one group of bloodthirsty hunters, the other, a minority of boys who have yet to succumb to savagery. The intensity of their savagery is proven when they kill two innocent schoolboys. The story culminates with the hunting down of their leader Ralph.
The book is quite clear and easy to read, though you might stumble across a few words like flinked which Golding has invented to convey ideas for which he finds existing words inadequate. The book does not elucidate its message across to the reader. You are forced to read intently and make the connections for yourself.
It is interesting to note however, that the children on the island are all white boys. The only females on the island are the hunted pigs. This characterisation couldve been used because it is easier to relate to or better understand the story. I mean, Goldings point that if there was no civilisation, people would turn into savages wouldnt have been as believable if they were all girls.
All in all, Golding doesn’t let too many good things happen in the book. He lets the evil win, and the nice guys finish last. Golding’s writing style certainly does reflect somewhat on his personality. No matter how you put it, The Lord of the Flies definitely shows his negative outlook on society and his opinion that all people are born with evil within, an opinion I personally dont quite agree with.