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Reflection on lord of the flies by William golding
Analysis of Williams Golding's Lord of the Flies
William Golding Lord of the flies analysis
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Everyone has common sense, or so it seems. Sometimes, looking at the actions of others, curiosity may strike; as to what goes goes through their head, we may never know. Just as a person may wonder about others, they may also be curious about the boys in The Lord of the Flies. Without common sense these boys struggled to survive When Piggy's glasses broke, it seemed like their common sense had also broken. In Golding's adventure through words, he wrote "you didn't ought to have let that fire out. You said you'd keep the fire going—" (77). Here Piggy had spotted a boat traveling by, but the choir boys had let the flames go out, opting instead to go hunting. Without a signal fire, the boy's chance of rescue are slim. Piggy could of also stood
in for common sense. He had managed to help in many ways whether it be pointing out the conch, or seeing the ship across the horizon. Common sense was out the door as soon as Piggy had died, "Then the sea breathed again in a long, slow sigh . . . And then it went, sucking back again, the body of Piggy was gone" (Golding 209). After this every thing had gone downhill. Ralph was left to fend for himself while the others were after him for just trying to do the right thing. Now imagine that the conch stands for common sense. After all, it started off as a pivotal object in the storyline, then just slowly drifted away like common sense had. All of a sudden the conch had broken "the conch exploded into a thousand white fragments and ceased to exist" (Golding 209). With the conch gone, common sense had turned had turned into nothing. Common sense is worthless if not used to its full potential. Here these boys squandered what they had, lost what they needed, and failed to help themselves.
...ing the boys know that if they do not stay prim and proper, rescue will be the last thing on their minds. Piggy is the brains of the group, he is the one with all the answers. When the boys first start the fire they want smoke, but Piggy is the only one who knows why, “Course we have. ’Cos the smoke’s a signal and we can’t be rescued if we don’t have smoke” (Golding 173). Ralph’s boys all just want to get off the island at this point, they are tierd of fighting Jack and his sneaky devious ways of getting what he wants. By stealing the glasses he has an edge on everyone and the power of fire, so Piggy is trying to come up with a way to keep the smoke signal going so they can still attract any passing ships attention. With all of Piggy’s genius ideas he shares with the boys to stay safe and civil on the island, he really is not paid back with the respect he deserves.
While they knew they had to get a fire started and maintain it, they also knew there was a lot that also needed to be done before that could happen. They would have to find a spot to build it up, gather a large supply of firewood, and know who would maintain it. They finally were able to get it started, but only through Jack’s cruelty towards Piggy. Even though they thought they had things worked out, they were very reckless. The boys did not take precautions as there was nothing to punish them if they didn’t. The book shows the result of their careless actions in the quote, “The heart of the flame left nimbly across the gap between the trees and then went swinging and flaring along the whole row of them. Beneath the capering boys a quarter of a mile square of forest was savage with smoke and flame. The separate noises of the fire merged into a drum roll that seemed to shake the mountain. Startled, Ralph realized that the boys were falling still and silent feeling the beginnings of all at the power set free below them.” (Golding 46). While it may be a long quote it demonstrates the consequences of your actions when you have no consequences to begin with. Just like the theme says the Downfall of Society Without Consequences is very evident throughout
One of the very first announcements Ralph makes is that the boys will be rescued. Ralph has hope that his dad will rescue them. But Piggy, having knowledge and intellect, replies that nobody knows where they are. Ralph then says that they “must make a fire” (page 38). The thought of having a fire going gives Ralph hope. He hopes that if a ship sails near the island, they will see the fire as a signal. Ralph is very optimistic about being rescued on the island. He believes that they will be stranded for only a couple days, however he does not realize that they could be there for a very long time. We light up a fire if we are lost so we can send a signal of to others near the area. If one person was near enough to see a signal, the boys would be rescued. But instead of looking at the world realistically, Ralph is looking very optimistically at the
Be civil, or be savage, the conflict between the instincts, stuck in the mind of boys who arrive at an unknown island after a plane crash. In many parts of the book Lord of the Flies, by William Golding, the lost boys face an inner conflict between their instinct to be civil, and their instinct to be savage. Some conflicts are faced in the novel throughout different scenes, such as; playing around, jealousy, hunger, mistrust, and death. Both the main characters, Ralph and Jack, are used as excellent examples to portray this idea of civil and barbaric, this comes as the group of boys separate. Because Ralph and Jack were on odds since the beginning, the group of boys eventually separates, giving them the choice to choose their own leader. Some ingenious boys allow themselves to have fun and become savages instead of keeping their civil instincts, causing Ralph to struggle against Jack and his savages, the ones who let the savage inside them take over.
It is in these games were the boys get carried away and Ralph feels a
Katherine Paterson once said, “To fear is one thing. To let fear grab you by the tail and swing you around is another.” William Golding, who is a Nobel Prize winner for literature, writes Lord of the Flies, originally published in 1954. Golding’s novel is about a group of boys who crash land on an island. All of the adults are dead and they are abandoned on an island. The boys try to set rules and create a fire in efforts of being rescued. The group of boys chooses Ralph to be their leader. This choosing makes a literary character named Jack, who doesn’t show his anger until half way through the plot. The novel shows the nature of humans and how fear can control them. The novel also shows the difference between good and evil. Golding experienced this when he was in World War II. There were many times fear controlled the boys in the island in Lord of the Flies.
The author, William Golding uses the main characters of Ralph, Jack, and Simon in The Lord of the Flies to portray how their desire for leadership, combined with lack of compromise leads to the fall of their society. This desire for leadership and compromise led to the fall of their society just like multiple countries during times of wars.
Civilization struggling for power against savagery was shown throughout Lord of the Flies. These opposite mindsets are shown battling while determining who had the right to speak during assemblies, when the group hunted pigs, throughout the struggle over Piggy’s glasses, and finally with Simon’s death. These polar opposites are shown throughout these examples and reveal the desperation of clinging to civilization while savagery took over the actions of the some of the boys in Lord of the Flies.
The others on the island could not leave behind the past where they could only see and refused to do anything other than take what is given to them as fact. In Lord of the Flies making connections beyond what is normally seen is a common theme demonstrated when Piggy is murdered for being logical, when Ralph is hunted over power, and when Simon can see past the fear of the ‘beast’. These three characters show that if one has great ideas one also needs the public to listen. Believing in a cause, even if you are ridiculed for it by your peers, demonstrates the skills of an admirable
Rules are the fundamental structures of society that prevent anarchy and discord. However, the rules only work if the people that they are trying to protect believes in them. When the people stop believing in the structures of society, we are calling for the end of the reign of order and the start of the tyranny of chaos.
The classic novel Lord of the Flies by William Golding is an exciting adventure deep into the nether regions of the mind. The part of the brain that is suppressed by the mundane tasks of modern society. It is a struggle between Ralph and Jack, the boys and the Beast, good and evil.
William Golding's Lord of the Flies "In 'Lord of the flies' Golding is clearly seeking to explore
Golding uses the signal fire as symbolism in order to highlight the ways some people fight against darkness and others allow it to control them. The signal fire illustrates the theme by showing the boys eager effort to build the fire, in hope of humanity. When thinking of ways to potentially be rescued, Ralph states, “We can help them to find us...we must make smoke on top of the mountain. We must make a fire” (Golding 38). The boys are anxious to keep the fire going because to them rescue is right around the corner. They use this
William Golding’s Lord of the Flies shows man’s inhumanity to man. This novel shows readers good vs. evil through children. It uses their way of coping with being stranded on an island to show us how corrupt humans really are.
In the novel Lord of the Flies, the author William Golding shows the ideas of how outside forces impact human choices. Golding uses the conflicts in the book to present the ideas